A LETTER FROM CHRIS SUAREZ

LESSONS FROM A MARATHON: ONE YEAR LATER

I am flying home after a couple weeks in New York. It was a blend of family, of friends, the marathon, of some back-to-back meetings, and hosting a mastermind I have been running for the last two years called the Xperiential MBA. The weeks went fast, the days even faster, and the hours were hard to keep track of. As I sit on the plane a week after the New York City marathon, I am able to take a step back and process the race, the event, my experience, and my perspectives to record the lessons I get to take with me.

First, I had a much better race this year than last. I was coming off of running the Chicago Marathon just four weeks earlier. I had some unique things show up this time, but none of which I will use as an excuse for coming in well slower than goal time. I found myself in the medical tent on two occasions tending to my meniscus tear with some ibuprofen, some stretching, and a quick massage. I’d be lying if I said half in jest that having two people massage my legs at mile 18 wasn’t one of the highpoints of my race this year.

Here are my top 5 lessons learned on race day:

Achieving a goal together is so much more fulfilling than achieving one on your own.

In the end this event was less about me and more about setting a goal with someone and achieving it together. This year, my wife set the goal of running the marathon together along with a few others on a team to raise money for charity. Training together for the four months leading up to the marathon with my wife was awesome. Prepping for the race, showing up for the race, and knowing she was out their on the course on the same morning was invigorating. My start time was early in the morning and she began a couple hours after. There was something special knowing that as I passed buildings, and crowds, and bands, and signs, that she would pass them in just a little bit. We were in this together. It's the power and fulfillment of great partnerships. Whether that be at home, or with friends, or in business, setting a goal together is what winning is all about. Bring people along with you. Set and achieve goals together. 

Being happy is all about perspective.

After I finished the marathon I quickly ran back to my apartment to shower and change. I grabbed a cab back up-town and navigated my way to mile 23 where I knew my wife would be passing in just a few minutes as she was almost done. As I saw her from a distance I was proud to see her still running her race. As she jogged closer to where I was standing I was struck by just how happy she was. Happy at mile 23. Still moving. She had started the race over 5 hours earlier. She wasn’t running her first marathon with a goal time. She was running it to finish it, and to enjoy it, and experience it. And she was happy for 26.2 straight miles. As I looked at marathon photo after photo, she was smiling in every one. It was amazing to see her enjoying her race. I thought back to how I felt at that very same mile 23 just a short time before. I am pretty sure I was tired, and frustrated, and couldn’t wait to just be done. She was ready to enjoy the last 3 miles, and have fun doing it. Being happy is about perspective, and is always a choice. Even through challenges, choose happy.

At times ignorance is bliss.

A couple days before the race I wound up getting sick. My kids were sick, my wife got sick, and although I usually avoid it, it got me good. The day and night before the race I was pretty down with a headache and cold. But I typically just choose to power through it. I woke up on race day with the same headache, figured I’d run the headache out, and called it good. At mile 4 I could physically feel myself getting out of breath. This was quite abnormal for me being a runner with a pretty high VO2 Max. I ran through it and have some lessons to share for it. The day after the race is when I found out that my wife and I had run the 26.2 miles with Covid. I am not sure we would have opted to run the race with Covid had we known. In fact, we never even thought of it in the days leading up to the race. At times, not knowing the risks or having the opportunity to overthink your options in business leads to action. Too often we don’t move forward because we are unsure of the potential pitfalls, are unsure of the risks, or are afraid of failure. Not knowing, being uncertain, and fear should move us towards action, not away from it. 

In life, some things are uncontrollable.

Would I have loved to have a stronger outing and faster race? Sure. Just a month before in Chicago, I had one of my stronger races, finishing in about three and a half hours. It took me over four hours to finish New York this week. In the past, I would probably be upset, disappointed, and frustrated with myself for not showing up and knocking out the results I wanted. This time I realized that my knee could only do so much. This was not something I could control. I did my best with my prep. I rested my knee leading up to the race the best I could. I had a cortisone shot the week before. I taped it up and wore a brace. I controlled what I could control, and I didn't let the rest upset me for long. It doesnt mean there weren’t immediate emotions of frustration or disappointment. But I did not let that emotion control my experience. Right now, it is the perfect lesson for business. Things may not be happening as fast as we'd like. The results may not be showing up as we expected or wanted them to. If it is based on something we can control, then do something about it. If it isn’t, then just run your race. Don’t allow your emotions to hijack your experience.

Stay warm. Be consistent.

After losing about 10 minutes in the medical tent for the first time, I was ready to get back to running. By that time, my body had cooled down. I had previously soaked through my shirt with sweat in the first half of the race. My shirt was now so cold that I started to get chills. In the tent, the helpers suggested I take off the wet shirt so that my body could warm up faster. Once I took off and got back on the course I had to slowly get back into a rhythm and pick up speed so as not to cause a strain or drive cramping. The cool down definitely cost me some massive time. I find business to be much the same. Constant movement will keep you warm and moving forward. Inconsistency cools down your momentum, inhibits growth, and definitely slows down your results. Inconsistency breeds inefficiency. Our activities cool down, our conversations go cold, and our results freeze over. To be effective we have to stay warm, keep moving, and taking steps forward.  

Some run for the competition. Others for the medal. Others for the accomplishment. I run for the lessons.  Looking forward to many more lessons from many more years of running. Next up for me? I’ll be running the Tokyo Marathon in March of 2024 and the Boston Marathon in April of 2024. Let’s go.

Chris Suarez