Monday October 2, 2017
By Melissa Chan
There are plenty of marathon events happening these days. However, do you know that running a marathon is very similar to managing your career? What these professional runners did are just the same as how we can manage our career success.
To complete a marathon need loads of practice and hard work. Some runners can complete a marathon easily, and for some, it’ll take a longer time. It’s the same with our career, as some individuals tend to get a promotion or task completed easily, while some will struggle with difficulties.
Setting your goals
To participate in a marathon it takes dedication, plenty of training, enough of rest, etc. For each runner, timing plays an important factor in a competition. Every minute second count! Even they can achieve a second faster in their next training, it’s already a success.
In other words, you need to plan your goals so you know how to achieve them. Set a plan so you are able to measure your:
- - Timeline per task and when is the due date.
- - Time management: meetings, due dates, events, etc.
- - Act as a reminder, guideline and checklist to achieve your goals.
- - Monitor your achievements, regardless how small they are.
- - Something for you to refer back for future improvements.
Dealing with difficulties
The finishing line is every runner’s goal, regardless if it’s 5KM, 10KM or 42KM. They will complete it within the fastest time possible. However, even professional runners will face some challenges during the race such as legs cram, overheat, trip over, falling down, etc.
In your career journey, there will be plenty of setbacks and challenges along the way. How you overcome and solve these problems will set you aside. Not only you’re better in your career journey but also as a person.
Understanding your mistakes is never easy as we are emotional beings. Cry, scream, and release your frustration in any way (make sure it’s in a positive way). Once done, pull yourself back up and learn from the mistakes that you’ve made. No one is perfect, and forget about being perfect! Remember this phase failure is the mother of success?
Discipline and consistency
As a runner, they will not forgo any of their training, even if they had won several marathons. After success, it’s extra harder for us to push ourselves forward because we had achieved our goals. Many of us will be on cloud 9 and when reality hits, its back to square one by starting all over again.
If you constantly work on your career success, you will not slack so easily, and most of all, reduce in procrastination. Procrastination is the number 1 killer of all success. A runner will face difficulties in running and stamina when they skip their training, even for a pro runner.
Never take your success for granted. Stay disciplined and be consistent with your plan. Amend, change and tweak your plan to see what suits you best.
Conclusion
No matter what is your career success or journey is every individual’s path is different. Don’t compare yourself with others as all of us have issues to deal with. Be happy with your own journey, long or short, it is your story. Every runner is happy with their achievements, running at a faster pace, being a top 10 runner, or just crossing the finish line. It’s all your own effort, and appreciates it!
Melissa Chan is the editor for LisAffair.com, an entrepreneur and lifestyles news.