Three Signs The Goal You Set Is A Great Goal
Ahhh… springtime has arrived in the Pacific Northwest. That means the sun is finally starting to turn the tide in it’s annual months long battle against the rain. We’re basically covered by slate gray clouds that spit on us from late October until May. It’s relentless. I feel like I’m stuck in that children’s rhyme. It’s raining. It’s pouring. The old man is snoring. And when he wakes up in Portland, Oregon he puts on his jeans that are pegged at the ankle and then drives his Porsche SUV to work. A bit too passively aggressive I might add. Just let me into the slow lane! I know you see me on your right trying to merge! Did you peg your jeans too tight today? Could that be limiting blood flow to your brain? I don’t think that’s how it works. But I’m struggling trying to understand why you won’t even acknowledge the line of cars trying to get into the slow lane. Listen, I know you’re upset that there is so much traffic here and I know you blame people like me because I moved here from out of state. But do I need to remind you that you probably got here less than a year before me?
Sorry. I’m rambling. But seriously, where did all these Porsche SUV’s come from? Was there like a fire sale or something? Did I miss a Porsche Pop Up Shop that hit town like some Spirit Halloween? Okay. I don’t feel any better. But I do feel like I’ve said what I needed to say about Tucker. I’m assuming his name was Tucker.
Alright, let’s do this. The sun is out. There is magic in the air. It’s really just pollen. So much pollen everywhere. But it’s more fun to pretend it’s magic pixie dust. Magic that makes your nose runny, your eyes itch and get bloodshot. Magic that makes you sneeze so much and so often and so violently that your loved ones start to yell at you when you do sneeze. Nothing better than drawing the animosity of those you care about for something that’s a really complex action you have almost no control over because it’s your body trying to expunge something from itself that it considers a foreign substance. But whatever. Keep yelling at me. That ought to help with the full on assault my body is dealing with right now. Good gracious. Every time I go outside it’s like I’m snorting lines of pure grade pollen. So, maybe a little empathy. Because that pixie dust is coming for you too. I can hear it in your voice. Oh… what’s that? A sniffle? And… a sneeze? Here… we… go!
I’ve lost the thread again. Let’s reset. And let me apologize again. If you’re still reading you are a really good person. Okay, goals. That’s why we’re here. More specifically, we’re here to talk about how you can measure whether your goal is a great goal or not. Let me start by saying that it’s kinda unfair for me to say something like let me start by saying since I started this newsletter hundreds and hundreds of words ago. But let me start by saying that this is one way and not the only way to measure whether or not your goal you are thinking of setting is a great goal. With that out of the way… you ready? Good. What took so long?
3 SIGNS THE GOAL YOU SET IS A GREAT GOAL
👊YOU DON’T KNOW IF YOU CAN DO IT
This is kinda sorta two different reasons. Because if you don’t know if you can achieve the goal you also don’t know if you can’t achieve the goal. I heard a global gasp from grammar nerds everywhere. I’m not entirely sure if that sentence was poor grammar or not. So, I want to personally apologize to both Mrs Laffey and Mrs. Maroney. They are two of the best English teachers I ever had. They helped me fall in love with writing. And as a result I forgave writing for having so many rules.
Okay, back to the two signs for one deal. (By the way, I’m not cheating the system. I’m just being efficient. You’re welcome.) You want a goal that has a real chance of being accomplished successfully if you do what you need to do and are capable of doing what you need to do. A goal like that motivates you to put in the work. You also want a goal that is enough of a challenge that failure is a real possibility even if you do all that you are capable of doing. That means you’re going to need to work and work hard and commit and recommit to that commitment and be open to the possibility that you still may come up short. I know. It’s a little scary. That leads to the next sign that you set a great goal.
👍 IT MAKES YOU NERVOUS
You want a goal that attracts butterflies. You want your heart rate to pick up when you think about that starting line and what may or may not happen on the other side of it. You want to be excited about the specter of success and you want to be excited about the real possibility of failure. Embrace those butterflies. Don’t shoo them away. They’re beautiful. Acknowledge them for what they really are. Those nerves are evidence of you caring about this goal. The butterflies mean that this quest you are on matters. They’re proof of the passion you have for this goal. And that’s proof that you have a great goal.
🙌 IT WILL CHANGE YOU
A great goal ends with you having been changed for the better. Let me reiterate that. A great goal ends with you having been changed for the better. You should end this journey… because every great goal involves a journey… better for having taken it. Oh, I should definitely say here that the success of the journey does not depend on whether or not you successfully accomplish the goal. The success of the journey is dependent on whether or not you are better for having tried to accomplish the goal. Pretty much every single big ass kick ass goal I set when I was running and racing competitively I failed to accomplish. But the journeys I took to try and achieve those goals were all smashing successes. Because I crossed the proverbial finish line as a better version of myself. And that has led me to so many more starting lines.
I’ll never cross a finish line as a sub 4 miler or having qualified for the Olympic Trials or having anchored a winning relay at the Penn Relays. But giving my best in the attempt to accomplish those things has led to more success than I ever could have imagined if I had never imagined achieving those goals. That was a long sentence. Makes sense though. I reread it. You should too. Probably counts as a run on sentence though. Mrs. Laffey and Mrs. Maroney would have both told me I’d be best served to turn that one sentence into two. But they also would have told me I wasn’t wrong.
YOU GOTTA HAVE FAITH
Faith Kipyegon is going to try and break 4 minutes in the mile this summer. That’s all you need to know. Because that’s all you need to know to know just how epic this is. Watch the video below. Get excited. Be inspired. And remember that if you try and you run your best mile you are a sub something miler and that’s badass.
MINNEAPOLIS FOR THE WIN
I was lucky enough to get to spend a little bit of time in Minnesota soaking up the fantastic running community in Minneapolis. I flew in late on a Thursday night and woke up early to meet up with a big crew of runners at the wonderful running store Mill City Running for their Flapjack Friday morning run. Mill City Running is an absolute gem. They serve and support this sport. If you are in or around Minneapolis I highly recommend you stop by Mill City. And if you’re not in or around Minneapolis then I highly recommend you find and support your local running specialty store.
That evening I headed to the super fast and fun Hamline Elite Invitational. This Track & Field meet showcased the best and brightest high school T&F athletes from the North Star State. After scarfing down an entire pizza in my hotel room I passed out and woke up early yet again so I could hang out with members of the Mill City Running racing team at the Get In Gear 10K. I even jumped in the race so I could get my run done before I headed to the airport and back to Oregon.
The weather was gorgeous (especially for later April in Minnesota). The community was kind and vibrant and welcoming. It was an absolute blast to get to talk to and run with so many good people. It was also nice to get to walk around post race and have so many of you come up to say hello and tell me about your own running journey. I love to celebrate. So, never hesitate to come up and and show off just how badass you are. And if you run… you are a badass.
Just a little reminder… all those photographs from the Hamline Elite Invitational are from the great photographer Katrina Gaisford. There are so many people that support this sport in so many ways. If you can support them… you’re also supporting this sport.
NEW COACH BENNETT’S PODCAST
100th episode dropped! Thank YOU! Because without all of you listening to and sharing the podcast I would never have been able to get myself to record and edit and publish 100 episodes of Coach Bennett’s Podcast. So, truly, thank you for being a part of this extraordinary community.
Thank you for reading Coach Bennett’s Newsletter. And thank you for reading all the way to here! You deserve bonus points. Cheers to you. Thank you sharing the newsletter too! I appreciate it. And thank you for subscribing to the newsletter and for leaving a comment and for tapping that LIKE button. And thank you for being a paid subscriber if you choose to be a paid subscriber. It’s a truly wonderful community that has been built up around the newsletter and podcast and running. I’m grateful for each and every one of you.
Take care of yourself… take care of each other… and I’ll meet you on the next starting line.
Cheers,
Coach Bennett
As a Hamline alum let me just say.. The Hamline Elite Invite is definitely in Saint Paul, not Minneapolis ;) Thank you for a terrific newsletter!
Those three signs were me, heading up to running the NYCRuns Brooklyn Half last Sunday. I've never run more than a 10k, and wanted to set a goal this year to run a half. I didn't think I could do it, especially after pulling my calf in March and had to shelve running for 3 and 1/2 weeks. But I got back on the horse and found a way. Your guided runs, coaching, and encouragement were critical to my success. I was so nervous on Sunday, hoping to average 12 minute miles. I beat it by a lot, and it was the kick in the pants I needed to go out more and tackle new things that are out of my comfort zone. Marathon next? Not sure if that's in the cards, but I enjoyed the mental challenge in pushing myself past my limits. Thank you!