Success Comes with Planning , not just wishing , or merely crossing the finishing line !

Today I share a real story on perseverance, grit and determination of an athlete, who had the pig headed determination to excel. The reason I share these stories with you is that many of us have the hidden human potential which is just below the surface and waiting to explode, but as in Physics , sometimes the feelings have to cross the threshold escape velocity to achieve the desired results . 

We have to start thinking and planning like Winners and Champions to bring the best in what we do. We indeed need to bring a change in the mindset and get into a leadership mode with the indomitable will and spirit . 

A police officer from Finland , named Lasse Viren , appeared in the International athletics scene somewhere in the early 10970's participating in the 500 m and 10,000 events . In his first international appearance he finished a forgettable seventh and 17th in each race . The problem was that he ran too fast and then at the later stage of the race , jaded, he faded. 

Something similar happened at the second race and the third race . He could not manage to be on the podium . He seemed to be a loser , but that where he introspected and started planning his success. 

To make the environmental conditions harsh and difficult , Lasse decided to move some 5600 kms away in Kenya , next to the Thomson falls and started pushing his bodily limits to the extreme everyday. He started preparing for smashing the world record for a two mile race in Helsinki , Finland in the summer Olympics of 1972. He gruelled and stretched himself practicing in the misty waterfall environment . And he did just that . 

His next goal. To dominate the Munich Olympics . Not just one event but many events . He shifted himself to the forests of Finland and started logging thousands of kilometers sprinting gradually at increasing intensities to prepare for the race of his life . He mastered the art of " bend mathematics", where he practiced running along the very edge of the first lane . His plan was that this will help him save tens of meters over his competitors .

The Olympic days neared. And on 03rd Sept 1972, he took his place at the starting line of the 10,000 meters event , ready to take his plan to the finishing line . After the gun sounded, Lasse ran to the front of the pack, right behind the celebrity runner Steve Prefontaine. And he completed the 12 laps maintaining the position . 

Oops , the next minute the crowd went silent. 

Lasse fell down . Lasse's legs got entangled with another runner from Tunisia and before he could lift himself up , he was already at the last place. 

With desperation fuelling every part of his body and soul, Lasse got back to his feet. In less than 150 meters , he caught up with the race leaders . 

With less than 600 meters to finish , Lasse began the spring at a pace nobody could match . Leaving everybody behind, including the favorite , Prefontaine, he crossed the finish line in the first place . 

But hold on. Lasse was just getting started . 

A week later he won the gold in 5,000 meters as well. 

At the Olympics four years later , Lasse again won gold medals in both the 5000 meters and 10,000 meter events , against what some would say were more challenging competitors than he had faced in Munich .

The humble policeman from Finland , at that time accomplished what no other athlete had ever done before . Because, HE HAD A PLAN. 

I look forward to an opportunity to discuss and be part of your plan where you intend making mark at your organisation , and in the professional world not only in India, even at the global level. 

Looking forward to hearing from you .