Weekdays I do HIIT training at GotEm Fit; on the weekend I stretch my legs with some cardio. It’s a great time to do some thinking, clear my head, and get ready for whatever is coming next. This past weekend I had a lot of ground to cover, mental and physical. We hosted the 2nd annual Mileage Monsters 5k in Olathe on October 24, 2020 and (especially given the state of 2020) it was a big success!
Adding to that debrief, November 2 was the first day of my new career; this is a big jump for me. After 23 years in the print industry I am moving to training development and changing, well, everything. Instead of working for a 25-person small business, I am joining a multi-billion dollar corporation. No longer am I working in an office and hands-on with production every day; instead I will be working remotely with a team spread across the country. So, yeah, this will be a little different…
Several people have asked if I’m scared or nervous. Honestly, the answer is no. Here’s the thing: I loved my coworkers. I loved my clients (well, most of them…). J&J took a chance on me when they weren’t really in the best spot to do it – but they saw value in me. I think I delivered on that value, and it was a great five and a half years for both of us.
Keep Challenging Yourself!
Cause he’s protected himself from the world
He never gave it a chance
And he says: Here in my security
I’ve put a limit on my self-potential
And my possibility
– Jeffrey Gaines, Hero In Me (1991)
A few months before I joined J&J, I had started back to school to finish my degree. They were very supportive, and in fact I wrote my capstone project about J&J. It was during that time that I started to get healthy (down 95 pounds at one point before gaining muscle back) and again, they had my back. J&J was the title sponsor of the FIRST Mileage Monsters race, in fact.
After all those changes, though, I needed a new challenge; I needed to push myself in other ways. I was limiting myself. I excused it because they were flexible with me, they let me do other things – and that is true. I appreciate that and I’ll say it now – that may be the best job I’ve had.
And as I grow older
And there’s so much that I do not know
I’m drawn to those who are bolder
And go where no one dare to go
– Hero In Me
We look for comfort; it’s a natural thing to want to feel a part of something, belong somewhere. Security, especially job security, is hard to take chances with. I’m no different, and there is nothing wrong with that – to a point. When we allow ourselves to be complacent, though, is when it goes too far. In 2017, my friend and partner challenged me (indirectly) and it led me to Spartan racing. Duuuuuuuuuuuuuuude. Talk about “drawn to those who are bolder”! I found a new home, a new tribe in OCR that I never dreamed of.
And I sleep
And I dream of the person I might have been
Then I’ll be free again
And I speak
Like someone who’s been to the highest peaks
And back again
And I swear
That my grass is greener than anyone’s
‘Til I believe again
– Hero In Me
I spend a lot of time encouraging other people to take on new challenges, to push themselves. I stand by that – after all, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Still, I was holding on to a little security blanket of my own, and I needed to let go.
Then I wake
And the dream fades away and I face the day
And I realize
That there’s got to be some hero in me
– Hero In Me
To be a hero is not always to ride in front of an army and urge them to fight. It’s not fighting supervillains. Sometimes getting out of bed and going to work when everything is going to shit around you is heroic. So yes, there is some hero in me, and pushing to be the best me in every aspect is one way to show it.
Guess what? Every time you make the choice to work harder, not to settle, not to appease a user? You’re proving that you, too, are a hero. I see you; let yourself see it too!
Photo by Steve Halama on Unsplash