There are lots of ways to get better. There are lots of reasons to need to get better. The question for you today is this: How do you want to be a powerful positive influence to help yourself and others get better?
Sometimes we get injured. The most intelligent thing we can do for ourselves and the most influential thing we can do for others is to care for our injury responsibly. It’s often easier to overlook it, insist it will be fine, or that “it’s no big deal.” However, when we challenge and stress our bodies constantly, without allowing for the needed amount of rest, recovery, and even medical or therapeutic attention, we do not get better. We usually take steps back and we prolong what could be brief periods of hurt into long periods of injury. And when we are humble enough to allow for the hurt to happen–and tend to it in the right ways–then we usually get better. Sometimes we are not just healed but actually better as athletes too, because we needed the rest, we needed to attend to our bodies and care for them. I think it often gets overlooked, but caring for an injury responsibly also sends the message to the people in our lives that, “I am worth taking care of.” Which means you expect others to be caring toward you as well. And if you want to take care of yourself kindly, then you tend to treat others kindly too. You are a positive influence on others by living out the importance of caring for ourselves and others. #WorldTakeover doesn’t just mean NP dominating the world, it means making the world better. That happens with each person choosing to be better by caring for themselves. How are you caring for yourself today–and how does that teach others how to care for themselves?
Sometimes we want to be faster, reach a PR (personal record), or accomplish an athletic goal. We get better by showing up because the more we show up, the more stadium sections we have run and our bodies adapt to the challenge. The more hills we run and we start to believe hills aren’t so bad. The more crazy, weird, hard shit we do and we find a smile on our face when we do it, which makes us appreciate all the little things we do that get us moving. We also get better by setting goals and sticking to them. Telling other people, “My goal is to finish all 40 sections today because last time I got 38.” Or “I will do a half-tour today and I will not stop at the bottom of any of them.” Or, “I will smile when it hurts today because it always hurts but I can choose to smile.” I realize that I keep talking about these “attitude” things that are more about perspective than accomplishment. I do this because we ALL want to be faster, set and break PRs, and accomplish goals. But because all of our goals are different, it highlights the fact that WHAT your goal is, is far less important than the way in which you choose to work toward it. So today, with the crazy rain yesterday and the totally uninspiring weather, for many of us (myself included), just showing up was the act of committing to getting better. Continuing to freaking move through one more section and one more stair was getting better. Think about the workout today. Answer this question for yourself: How did you get better as an athlete today? Maybe your answer inspires you. If it does share it with others. Record your time of the NP Tracker. Facebook post that good shit. Tweet it out. Instagram your inspired ass off. …and if you answer is less clear or less inspired, then commit to this: How will you choose to get better as an athlete next week at the stadium?
Sometimes we realize that we are constantly influencing each other. This is one of the most powerful active ingredients of November Project. We are not running stairs alone. We are doing it together and this has potential to carry us off in the waves of amazing, inspiring feelings of “Fuck Yeah! We can do this!” or it can spiral us down into waves of apathetic, uncertain feelings of “…whatever” if that kind of energy prevailed. Fortunately for all of us, so far NP seems to be outrageously positive but the potential for either wave is equally present. This means that we get better as a community by noticing the little things that build us up, that expand the waves of awesomeness and inspiration, and that support us in reaching our fitness and athletic goals, healing our bodies, and generally feeling good in life. So when we have a partner to run with, who we know will either be chasing us or coming back to finish with us, we get better. When we learn people’s names because just about everyone appreciates being cheered on BY NAME, we get better. We get better by celebrating PRs that are fastest in the tribe and slowest in the tribe because they are all someone’s very best time, ever. Boom. We get better when we choose to keep moving as we turn from the bottom stair to climb the next section because we want to influence and remind everyone else who sees us that THEY can keep going, they can do it, they are awesome, they are getting better. We help them see that, feel that, and believe that because we simply keep moving. Think about that as you move about your day today, and again tomorrow, on Friday at the hills, and so on: What are the little, powerfully influential ways you are influencing others to get better?
Thank you to Ryan Komaiko who won the Positivity Award this morning. He makes a positive difference in the world by loving NP, by offering his time and talents to help the Tribe in many ways, by giving great hugs, and also by noticing when his friends verbal and don’t show up. He loves the tribe enough to motivate them with “We missed you” posts. We love you Ryan!
Thanks for showing up this morning to the 5:30 and 6:30 crews. Our 40 sections + finish with your partner today was badass and I know it made me better. To those of you who were not at the stadium today: you were missed. Don’t think I’m trying to make you feel bad, I just want every single member of this gigantic tribe, Boston and beyond, to know that today–right now– is all we have. How will you get better?
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