A picture tells a thousand words.
A kayak is paddling in the open ocean. But if you look closely, just behind the kayak, hidden in obscurity is a lone swimmer. The conditions are abysmal, the wind is increasing. The support in the kayak has already been tumbled by a rogue wave and is himself struggling.
At this stage, she’s close to the 5 kilometre mark. Another 5 kilometres remain. Conditions are worsening.
This is a race, a 10 kilometre ocean swim from Burleigh Heads to Surfers Paradise. On any other beautiful Gold Coast day, it wouldn’t be too much of a problem. It’s not the first ocean swim she’s done – there’s been months of training, she knows she can swim the distance. But today Mother Nature has other plans. Some swimmers are struggling with sea sickness.
Endurance sports are not only about the physical challenge, the mental challenge is just as important if you’re going to beat the odds.
I’ve always been curious as to how one person will climb Mount Everest, yet another struggles to get out of bed each morning just to face a normal “run of the mill” day.
So, I couldn’t help but ask our swimmer – Vanessa – Why? Some specifics became apparent:
1. The Challenge – it makes you feel alive. Pushing yourself to do something bigger than what you are is a great achievement. It pushes you onto bigger and better things.
2. Commitment – Definitely commitment, it becomes all about you, it’s selfish really. But you need to be 100% committed.
3. Confidence – The more you do something the more confident you become in your ability to achieve. It grows on you. You have to convince yourself you can and that’s self-belief in your ability.
4. Courage – It takes a bit of courage, for some it can be a big thing. It all ties in with your confidence. If you’re confident, it’s easier to be courageous.
5. Discipline – Discipline is in the commitment. It’s the disciplined training, like I said earlier, it’s a bit selfish, it becomes the Number 1 priority in reaching your goal. You have to be fully prepared for what might come your way. The discipline is in your preparation.
6. Failure – It’s not so much about failing, it’s more about not doing as well as you thought. Disappointment sucks. There’s a big difference between racing and just participating, so it depends on how competitive you are and that alone can put a lot of pressure on yourself. But competition is about winning and losing. You can’t win all the time and you have to accept that.
7. Fear – To avoid fear, you have to be aware and understand the uncontrolled environment you are in. Don’t be “cocky” because that’s just a false sense of security. Being a little nervous is a good thing. If an issue arises you can’t panic, that becomes dangerous. Pre-planning to cover as many aspects that could occur, helps alleviate any fear.
You might not want to swim 10 kilometres in the open ocean or climb Mount Everest, however, the 7 insights above are just as applicable to achieving whatever your personal goals might be. Nothing comes easy, you have to commit and accept you will face challenges along the way. It won’t always be smooth sailing. You have to endure.
Vanessa’s goal was a podium finish. She achieved this, coming second in her age division. After 10 kilometres and just over 3 hours of swimming in more than difficult conditions, just 1 minute separated her from the winner. An extraordinary result! Vanessa also agreed, part of the achievement was her endurance in beating the conditions Mother Nature threw at her.
Behind the scenes were her support team which allowed her to just concentrate on what she had to do. Bruce (Rowdy) also did a personal best in the support Kayak – great job Rowdy! And her land crew – well that was me, I had the easy job – RD
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