Life Lessons from running a half-marathon distance

Some context: I have been “locked down”, at my brother’s, in a place called Victoria Garden City (VGC) somewhere in Lekki, since 20th March 2020. My family is yet to join me in Lagos (from Doha). Incidentally, my brother, the host, is out of Lagos, with his family. Our mom lives alone in another part of town so she decided to join me on 29th March 2020.

Half a marathon is 21 kms. There is a Circular (or Ring Road), in VGC. Circular Road is approximately 5.5 km long and I was able to go round that road four (4) times. This is such a big deal for two (2) reasons:

a. Pre-existing Medical Condition – At age 4, I was diagnosed with Asthma, and that automatically limited what I could or couldn’t participate in, growing up.

It determined the way I dressed, the temperature of the water I drank, where I visited, and even how I slept – not dusty, moist or stale but rather I am only able to sleep peacefully in an airy and well-ventilated room. I have lived my entire growing up years and most of my adult years managing this condition. I have been in and out of hospital admission beds, receiving countless injections, medications & therapies. As challenging as that was, it is not a tale of woe, as I was, excitedly, exempt from chores at home and ‘manual labour’/rotational class cleaning in secondary (high) school – that really felt good to me as a child ??

b. Existing Physical Condition – following the restrictions above, which are aimed at not triggering an Asthmatic attack, all physically exerting activities including running about, playing football or even Physical Education (P.E.) classes in school were no-go areas.

That, unfortunately, was my reality. Though I still maintained a frame that made me appear to be somewhat fit, it only takes walking up a few flight of stairs before you notice how unfit I am. One of the deliverables of my current role is the coaching of Business Leaders. I sit on the 14th floor while my stakeholders sit between floors 6 & 15 so I regularly shuttle between floors. It is embarrassing to stop the elevator just for a couple of floors, right? Therefore I find myself panting between engagements as I walk up and down the stairs. ?

How can I possibly run 22 kilometres then?

On the evening of Sunday 19 April 2020, I did what I thought, all my life, was impossible. I ran round the circular road 4 times. I did this in 2 hours 46 minutes (with a 3-min break after 11 kms, to take some water and grapes ??).

I am quite proud of this achievement.

I learnt several lessons while preparing to run; these are just 8 of them

1. Have an outcome but keep reviewing your strategies

Be very clear on your outcome (or the goal or what success looks like). That is the WHAT ie what you want to achieve – for example, improved spousal relationship, expanding your business, starting or intensifying a side hustle, a career change, a promotion, and the likes. The WHAT in this context is, ‘I want to be fit – to be able to walk up and down the stairs at work without panting hopelessly’. When the WHAT is clear then you need to have a few strategies to achieve it and those are the HOWs. The HOWs are the strategies. The WHAT usually doesn’t change often but the HOWs can and should, based on additional information, technology & innovation, customer preference, ‘COVID-19 way of life’ etc.

 "The HOW set her up as ‘Self Employed’ and not as a ‘Business Owner’. Huge difference... she will end up having Less Time, Less Money, and definitely No trips for another 10 -15 years at least"

I had a few HOWs, to achieve my goal of keeping fit, including brisk-walking 5.5 kms every other day. However, when I had the boldness to envision myself running the stretch instead of walking, I quickly changed the HOW from walking to running. My HOW was to initially do it in 60 minutes then I realized I could brisk-walk in 55 minutes. I kept improving the HOW by 2-3 minutes until I could run round the Circular Road in 40 minutes. Then I increased the number of times I ran round to 2, then 3 times… until I was able to do it 4 times, running a total of 22 kms.

Key take away here is this: Feel free to raise the bar on your WHAT and especially on your HOW, as things become clearer; it’s ok to do that.

Recently, I was coaching a lady who set the goal of Financial Independence for age 40. A commendable goal. When I asked her a few questions I quickly realized she has anchored that on three themes – More time for family, more money to spend on self and family, and thirdly, more frequent and improved quality of holidays ie More Time, More Money, More Trips. The WHAT is clear and agreeable. However, analyzing her HOW quickly revealed that contrary to her expectation, she will end up having Less Time, Less Money, and definitely No trips for another 10 -15 years, at least, after quitting her 9-5. The HOW sets her up as ‘Self Employed’ and not a ‘Business Owner’. There’s a huge difference. Self-Employment is significantly different from Business Ownership, because the former simply means you are now working for yourself, which was not what she had in mind. We re-worked a more aggressive HOW to achieve her WHAT and she is back on course. My point is don’t be afraid to keep re-working the HOW as you learn more about your destination.

Unfortunately, many refuse to set goals because a few things are unclear. Bad move. Set goals based on what you know today. Search for knowledge and feel free to improve the HOW as you get more information. Going through life without a goal is like playing a football match without your opponent’s goal post; you will quickly get exhausted running up and down the field without scoring … needless to say, you can never win such a game.

2. No matter how small it is, make the move - just start!

My goal has been clear since I moved to my 14th-floor office in January this year – ‘take the stairs without panting hopelessly’,  however, the saying, “the secret of getting ahead is getting started”, is a reminder of the imperative to act. I never really got started.

Starting to run was my greatest barrier to running. While I lived in Qatar, friends & colleagues would invite me for runs within compounds, at the popular Aspire Zone and even at the Corniche but for over 4 years that I lived there, I always declined or at best procrastinated. I declined because I knew I did not have the stamina to go several kilometres of run and therefore procrastinated to ‘get fit’. I planned to build stamina before joining my friends but that never happened. I succeeded this time around because I started. I started small.

I built stamina by initially walking a distance of 5.5 kms, then I would run for the first 100 metres and walk the remainder, 5.4 kms…. Then the first 100 metres run became 200 metres run, became 1 km run, 2 kms until I realised I could run the whole 5.5 kms nonstop.

Richard Branson, the serial entrepreneur writes in How a teenager is turning frustrations in into opportunities, “many of Virgin’s businesses have started off small, as side projects, which have grown into big companies”. Whatever dream or project you have in mind, do not despise the days of small beginnings. Once you are clear this is what you want to do – just start … just do it!

I have had discussions with a few people that desire an MBA degree but they simply struggle to get this lofty dream off the ground. I usually advise them to start by reviewing what locations would work, based on family circumstances? What schools are available in those locations, what MBA programme would align with current economic status, etc. Or we could take the ranking approach and answer the question, what’s the ranking of the schools and that programmes, etc? What are the admission requirements, what are the fees, are there opportunities for financial aid, can your present employer co-sponsor you, can you get time off work, do you want to resign, do you want to use it as a springboard to get into a higher job role, different role/industry/country, have you signed up for MBA tours and so on? These are basic questions, whose answers signal the start of your journey towards your goal of obtaining an MBA.

 "A 50-year-old start-up founder is twice as likely to succeed as a 30-year-old...it is not too late to start!"

It’s never too late to start! A recent study of 2.7 million company founders conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau and two MIT Professors published by Kellogg School of Management found that despite the often celebrated successful under-30 entrepreneurs, most successful entrepreneurs tend to be middle-age. “The average startup founder was 45 years old when he or she founded the most successful companies. And in general terms, a 50-year-old entrepreneur is almost twice as likely to start an extremely successful company as a 30-year-old.” – that is profound. A 50-year-old start-up founder is twice as likely to succeed as a 30-year-old. If you are young, start - because that might just be the right thing to do with that great idea of yours. If you are older, the odds favour you – start. It’s not too late to start!

3.    Set Milestones & timelines

Before I started running, I got into the car and drove round the Circular Road taking note of landmarks/completion markers for 25%, 50%, 75% & 90%. Hitting these landmarks increased my motivation and multiplied my determination to continue running even when I appeared tired. I kept motivating myself at each milestone, for example at the 25% completion milestone I would say to myself, “you’ve just crossed the 25% marker; you are almost halfway gone … you can do it!” 

It works for fitness goals, it works for family goals, it works for career goals, it works for financial goals, it works for corporate goals. A recent McKinsey report on How to build megaprojects better  recommends that “a payment system based on completing milestones is the best contractor incentive to accelerate the completion of projects”. According to Milestone Planning: What, Why, and How, “Milestone planning is one of the most important aspects of achieving your goals because they are the most visible indicators of progress”. University of Notre Dame's Mendoza College of Business recent article proves that (mini) goals increase motivation and determination. You need no more proof.

By all means, have a big dream big but please break it down to chew-able completion chunks and watch your motivation improve. Milestones certainly make your goals less overwhelming.

 "Buying the things you don’t need with the money you don’t have to impress the people you don’t like - That’s pathetic, isn’t it?"

Back to the lady I coached on life, having milestones to attain specific levels of financial independence at a certain age will help you re-prioritise your spending and investment decisions. You will find out that you are not buying stuffs not because you do not have the money to but because you cannot afford them as such expenses do not align with attaining that financial independence at your next age milestone. Rick Warren puts it this way, “buying the things you don’t need with the money you don’t have to impress the people you don’t like”. That’s pathetic, isn’t it?

4. Anchor on at least one trigger 

There is a saying that ‘Change happens at the end of your comfort zone’. Your comfort zone is a comfortable place to be hence the name. You need a trigger that will get you out of that zone entirely and that is when you begin to make progress towards your goal. Change happens, the saying goes, when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change. A trigger could be some pain of the present, an irritation at the status quo, or a desire to be in a better place generally. You need to find and activate your trigger(s).

 "A trigger is some pain of the present, an irritation at the status quo, or a desire to be in a better place generally. You need to find & activate your trigger(s)"

Recall I started easy with little sweat and I indeed made modest progress of walking the circular road of 5.5 kms. When I started about mid-March, I did the walk in about 70 minutes and progressed with brisk-walking till I was able to do it in about 55 minutes. However, when my mom moved in and wanted to start walking as well, she asked how long it takes me to walk the circular road and I proudly announced, “55 minutes”. Her first walk took her about 70 minutes but she made rapid progress to walking the distance in 60mins within a few days – yes; she is competitive! That was my trigger. I felt a little insulted that my 73-year old mom would walk the same distance as I do, just 5 minutes longer, so I cut short my stamina building plan and immediately started to run. I built endurance and made consistent progress until I could do the distance in 40 minutes. Bravo!

I proudly sent a WhatsApp message to my brother, announcing that I could now run round non-stop. I didn’t expect his response (second trigger), “Going round once is 5.5km; in case you want to do it three (3) times, that will be 16.5km”; that was his response! Of course, I scored an "A" in High School mathematics final examination and can surely multiply 5.5km by 3 laps even without a calculator. I was a bit irritated at his sarcasm. He knew my medical history and I expected him to simply say, “Oh wow … very well done! Be careful”. In as much as I didn’t like the response, that was my 2nd trigger. I made sure I didn’t just do 3 rounds like he teased but 4! ??

For you to achieve your most important life objectives, there must be something(s) irritating you about your present state, or in the imminent future. If there is none, I suggest you look for irritants (or triggers). Such triggers could be intrinsic (i.e. values, or simply hedonistic pleasure), however, what I have realized is that the extrinsic triggers usually get us moving faster eg lack of guaranteed & stable future for your children, no assurance of a better life for your family, your imminent unemployability, imminent troubled water for your business, current health challenges, spending most of your income on ‘OPEX’, etc. The trick here is to identify the trigger, keep referencing it as (part of) your WHY. Doing that will help your acceleration towards your ambition.

5. Play Music

After a few days of running, I introduced music into the run. The impact was remarkable; it’s like the difference between night & day. Music made the run less boring & less monotonous. Fast-paced beats helped improve my speed as I ran in sync with the beat. Not surprising as recent research by the U.S. National Library of Medicine's National Institute of Health which concludes that listening to fast-paced music increased pace and distance traveled on the treadmill without participants getting tired

Legendary Bruce Lee was quoted to have said, “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times”. 

Picture shows how high his kick can go with former NBA star, Kareem Abdul Jabbar.

Clearly, success in any field is the outcome of seemingly insignificant habits over a long period and that can be really tiring and boring therefore I suggest you get something (your music) to keep you going. A practical example of playing music is to periodically review the value of your investment portfolio to see how those monthly deductions & sacrifices are helping to make you richer. I do that and it works for me …. Like music in my ears. Whenever I am getting financially weary and short-term focused, I simply pull out my investment portfolio and check my worth if I were to offload today. That action usually kills momentary pleasure I would have received from making a poor financial decision. I believe it will work for you too. Know your music and get it to motivate you towards your goal.

 "Whenever I am getting financially weary and short-term focused, I simply pull out my investment portfolio and check my worth - that is music to my ears, as it reassures me that the monthly deductions are propelling me to my financial goal"

6. Fail Fast Fail Early Fail Safely

“Fail Fast Fail Early” is a Silicon Valley Mantra however I would like to add, Fail Safely, not only because I work in a safety-conscious industry but because that is the responsible thing to do. Perhaps what kept me out from joining my friends in Qatar was the fact that I knew I wasn’t fit and I also knew I could, like a couple of months ago, get expired within 100 metres, in a, perhaps, 10 kms race. Some of these guys inviting me for runs have been running all their lives and a few participating in triathlons. There is no way I would keep up however running within a private estate, where I am largely unknown meant there was no shame in stopping after a few metres to catch my breath, walking and running again when I felt ok, every day, without letting others down. I was failing fast though 6-7 years late. That assurance of failing safely, and not letting anyone down further motivated me to give it a try.

When you have a goal before you, I would encourage you to try your hands on the trio:

Fail Fast – Many practise what is known as analysis paralysis; a syndrome characterized by over analysing opportunities resulting in zero deliverables perhaps due to perceived risk or lack of drive or the sheer burden you seem to carry as a result of your over-analysis. This could refer to failure you experience as a first-mover or the cycle time to recover from a setback and attempt again. The only way to fail fast is to try.

Fail Early – when you fail early in life you have the opportunity to recover faster. There are some big risks I took 15 years ago, which paid off handsomely however if I am confronted with similar opportunities today, I would cringe and probably walk away.  

 "The assurance of failing safely, and not letting anyone down further motivated me to give it a try"

Fail Safely – One of Warren Buffet’s business nuggets is ‘never invest in a business you don’t understand’. That is so important. Another way to fail safely is to diversify your investment portfolio – real estate (per type & location), stocks, bonds, business, mutual funds, etc

7. Maintain your pace

I recall stepping out at about 1 am to practise running my half marathon distance. It was quite lonely on the Circular Road – obviously – so you can imagine how startled I was to see someone run past me like a breeze. I looked at the person who ran past me, probably a professional runner. I ran to catch up with him, and he took a look at me saying, ‘don’t even bother’, and zoomed off. Next thing I started panting so hard I had to stop running for a while – I was running at another’s pace!

Oprah Winfrey, in her Masterclass, puts in this way, “The way you step up your game is not to worry about the other guy in any situation because you can't control the other guy. You only have control over yourself. …The energy that it takes to look back and see where the other guys are takes energy away from you. … that's what I would say to my team all the time: Don't waste your time in the race looking back to see where the other guy is or what the other guy is doing. It's not about the other guy. It's about what can you do. You just need to run that race as hard as you can. You need to give it everything you've got, all the time, for yourself." Oprah’s message is about looking back but it also applies to looking at those doing better than you, as in my case, and probably yours. 

 "It’s not about living someone else’s life (or dream or capacity) but being the best version of yourself, for yourself"

 You need to understand that there is a time and season for every dream. If you take note, a few folks you looked up to some years back are probably now drawing inspiration from you, while some folks that looked up to you previously might be doing better than you in some areas. If the gentleman that zoomed past me could run 35 kms but did 30 kms then he has failed concerning his potential. My point is that with goal setting & life attainment, at the end of the day, it’s not about living someone else’s life (or dream or capacity) but being the best version of yourself, for yourself.

8.    Be consistent 

The power of consistency is profound but underrated. Anthony Robbins is credited to have said, “it’s not what we do once in a while that shapes our lives. It’s what we do consistently”. 

An average person that is consistent will always outperform a genius that is not committed to anything. Consistency can help you overcome any lack of natural talent and allow you to focus on the process instead of the end goal. The problem with many of us is that we have goals quite alright however we do not pursue them consistently. We are halfhearted about the leading indicators but usually surprised at the outcome, which is lagged. Arshid Feroz pushed consistency to the realm of unreasonableness in Life Goals & Motivation as he writes, “Consistency Is the key to success. To be consistent means you dedicate your entire self completely to a task, activity, or goal. It means to fully stay engaged without distraction. It means that you go out every single day after that thing that you want without being reasonable”.

 "A person of average endowment, but consistent, will always outperform a genius that is not committed to anything"

While building momentum for my half marathon distance run, I ran at least 5.5 kms every day for about 3 weeks – when I felt like it and when I felt unlike it.

How persistently are you pursuing that important career change you have always talked about? How consistent are you at investing the percentage of your income to what you committed to? How often do you cheat on your meal plans, taking frequent diet breaks? Someone said, “if you don’t come out of the on-going pandemic with at least 2 of the following, then it is not about being busy; you simply don’t have it in you!”

- improved quiet time, for meditation, reflection & prayers

- improved relationship with your family

- new skill

- healthier lifestyle

- commenced something you have always wanted to do

- made significant progress towards your career and side hustle, or your business

I agree with that line of thought and would even stretch it further; if you don’t tick at least 4 of the boxes, it’s not about being busy; it’s not just in you!

You need to consistently march towards your goal. I remember a quote from the great Aristotle, who seemed to be contributing to this article when he said, “we are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit”

If I, with all odds against me, could run a half marathon distance, then you can achieve absolutely anything you set your mind to.... Go! Go!! Go!!!

About the Author

Akin Monehin (MBA, Strategic Management – Chicago Booth) is a thought leader, executive coach, business strategist & speaker.

He is a 2015 recipient of Choiseul Institut France’s Award of Top 100 African Business Leaders under 40 Years Old. Has has worked in over 10 countries including French and Arabic speaking ones. He has the privilege of work experience from the following leading organisations:

• Qatar Shell GtL Ltd - The world's largest Gas to Liquid Plant
• Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd - one of the most innovative (& fun) businesses
• British Airways PLC - the world's favourite airline
• The Shell Petroleum & Development Company of Nigeria Ltd - the pioneer in oil exploration & production in Sub Sahara Africa
• Nigeria LNG – one of the world leading producers of Natural Gas

He currently works for Shell Nigeria Exploration & Production Company(SNEPCo) as the Business Transformation Manager.  He is based in Lagos and can be reached on [email protected].

Views expressed in this article are personal and do not represent the views of SNEPCo, Royal Dutch Shell or any institution he is affiliated to.

Further readings/References:

1.    How a teenager is turning frustrations in into opportunities by Richard Branson https://www.virgin.com/richard-branson/how-teenager-turning-frustrations-opportunities 

2.    How old are successful Tech Entrepreneurs? By Kellogg Insight https://insight.kellogg.northwestern.edu/article/younger-older-tech-entrepreneurs

3.    The construction productivity imperative by McKinsey & Company https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/capital-projects-and-infrastructure/our-insights/the-construction-productivity-imperative

4.    Milestone Planning: What Why & How by David Goulden https://www.clarizen.com/milestone-planning-what-why-and-how/

5.    Six steps to setting business goals published by Mendoza College of Business University of Notre Dame https://www.notredameonline.com/resources/business-administration/six-tips-for-setting-business-goals/

6.    International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology published by US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3339577/ 

7.    Bruce Lee’s 10,000 Kicks and the Real Meaning of Mastery by Devon Boorman https://www.academieduello.com/news-blog/bruce-lees-10000-kicks-and-the-real-meaning-of-mastery/

8.    Rule Number One: Don’t Invest in Something You Don’t Understand by Ryan Vanzo https://www.gurufocus.com/news/127046/rule-number-one-dont-invest-in-something-you-dont-understand-

9.    Oprah Winfrey’s Masterclass https://www.oprah.com/own-master-class/oprah-winfreys-master-class-quotes/4