If you have never been a part of something bigger than yourself like a big event or a team, then you really are missing out on experiencing something special.
On the 1st of April 37 of us found out just how amazing it was to be stuck in the middle of a massive event together. Not only was it huge but it has also been said to be one of the toughest events in the world!!
Below are my top 8 life lessons that I took out of Tough Mudder
1. Facing your fears
If you have been playing life on the safer side of things because you do not like to take on some of your fears then I would love to empower you to face whatever fears you have face on!!
We had no idea how the electricity would feel but regardless everyone ran straight into the wires!! Throwing caution to the wind and deciding that no matter what the pain might be like I am going to move forward and take this on!!
How many things have you not yet taken on in your lives because you hate the thought of how much it might hurt to do it or you are afraid on the unknown so much so you do nothing!!
2. Putting others before yourself
My favorite thing about Tough Mudder is the single fact that if we did not all work as a team we would not have finished the event and most of our team would not have made it through the obstacles!!
Sometimes I feel like it is really easy to forget about other people in our lives and we often put our needs in front of others. Any parent will tell you that one of the things you 1st realize when you have kids is that it is no longer about you and that whatever your child needs always comes before your own needs.
How often are we all in such a hurry to get through the day, week or month that we fly past others who might be doing things a bit slower or could really use a leg up?
What would things be like in all our lives if everyone stopped a bit more regularly and checked in to see how others are doing?
If we all slowed down long enough we would see how much we could help others and how we could add value to their lives.
I was so proud of our team and everyone’s commitment to get us all across the line without any question.
3. Asking for help
How many times have you been stuck beneath or behind a wall that was bigger than you could see over but yet you never asked anyone for help to get over it??
For some reason it has become normal to feel like you can’t or shouldn’t ask for help. Almost like it has become a sign of weakness to ask for help.
Suddenly it is not ok that people are better than us or may even know a better way of how to do things. We often try so hard to go on our own that we end up stuck on our own and often up a certain creek with no paddle!!:)
In some cultures it is considered an honor to be able to get help from someone, yet why do we fight so hard never to ask for help.
Who could you ask for help from right now to do something better or to end up getting a better result?? Who could you offer help to, to achieve the same?
I am sure in most cases we are so afraid of people saying no to us that we don’t even want to ask the question anymore!!
Put your hand out more often ask for help and if the worst thing that ever happens to you is that someone says no, guess what you are still at the same place and are no worse off!!
I have a team who loves to be here for you all, please make sure you ask for help if you need it, we would love to be able to help you!!
4. Being able to laugh at yourself
We often take ourselves too seriously and we forget that it does not matter how we ended up looking, as long as we had a bit of fun and got some value out of what we were doing.
Maybe not being able to have a good laugh at yourself is stopping you from trying certain things just in case you end up getting embarrassed or end up looking as sexy as these lovely gentlemen!!:)
Life is too short to be serious all the time if I could not laugh at myself I don’t know who would find me funny!!
5. Staying focused on the bigger picture
I have never been a details person so I have always found it a bit easier to keep an eye on the bigger picture sometimes too much!!
I talk to people and clients all the time about this. It is easy to only look at the scales and let that control weather you are motivated this week or not. I ate crappy food this weekend I have ruined it all I will just keep eating shit for the rest of this week.
The part I find hardest to watch people go through is when they get so caught up in all the little things like the I can’t do that or I am so fat in those pants that they forget about the big picture all together. They forget about why they wanted to change and how important it was to them and on how great it would be to actually achieve it.
This is crazy considering that we would never take a car for a drive without ever knowing where we were going, yet we will keep exercising and working out without staying focused on where we are going and why we are going there!!
Take a 30,000 foot view of your life or even your week and start to prioritize what is actually worth focusing on and why the hell am I so caught up on feeling fat and crappy when I know that that is doing absolutely nothing to help me get where I want to go.
If you have a bad weekend get over it 2 days in the bigger picture is nothing!! If I said it would take you 12 months to get in amazing shape what is 2 days out 365??
Don’t sweat the small stuff get over your bad/fat days and keep your eye on the end goal which is what you want and how you want to feel.
If you ever need help with this I am always happy to paint the picture for you and make things a lot clearer for you to be able to move forward with purpose!!
6. Determination and drive to succeed
Not only was this obstacle named perfectly as Everest!!
I have never been a part of one single obstacle that took not only everything I had but everything our entire team had to get through it!!
I could and have spoken to all of our Mudder contestants about everything that happened on Everest for hours.
All the individual battles and successes was the most inspiring thing I have witnesses in a long time!!
Contestant who were hanging onto Andy, Brad and myself as if their lives only consisted of that very moment and that if we let go of them not only would they fall but they would not know if they could get the energy to try again.
Watching our team full of people who less than a year ago were not even running, were now flying up and jumping out to us, it was amazing!!
The sheer determination I saw in so many of our team mates to conquer Everest and not give up no matter how many attempts it took or how many times they fell down. They knew that we were there for them and they knew that if they kept trying harder that they had the determination and will power to get to the top!!
This was the most incredible obstacle for me throughout the entire event and I feel so proud to be a part of this team and to have seen you all take on the massive feet of Everest and come out on top!!!
For me it just shows that no matter how big the obstacle with right amount of determination and drive you really can achieve anything you set your mind to.
7. The buddy system
The buddy system for our team was a huge success and without it I do not know if we all would have finished especially not as well as we did.
Having someone who is there to make sure you do not quit and to support you throughout the same journey awesome!! Your buddy is there to stick with you through all the pain, triumphs and great stacks!! Oh and to make sure if you have any clear spots on your body to then cover you with mud!!:)
I have always been a massive fan of having a training buddy as they not only are there to help you but together you can actually achieve more!!
You can get through more, lift more and keep each other more focused. It’s also the main reason we become good friends with our clients is because we value being your training buddy and being there for you.
If you struggle to keep on track towards anything to do with your training then ask someone to be your buddy and keep each other accountable for making it to sessions and for sticking to your goals!!
If this is hard then ask us to be one of your buddies and start committing to seeing us as many times as it’s needed to get you to where you want to be!!
No one ever said you have to be in your journey alone and it is a lot more fun having a buddy to give you support and the occasional banter from time to time!!:)
8. Resetting the limits you put on yourself
How many of you thought I would love to do Tough Mudder but I am not yet fit enough, I couldn’t do that, I am not strong enough or I can’t do that stuff I am too old!!
Nobody ever achieved anything amazing by staying in the same place and by doing the same things without ever getting out of their comfort zone!!
I was astounded at not only how well all of our team did but also how easy some of them found it when 3 months ago they were trying to convince themselves it was even possible!!
Don’t play life on the sidelines and put yourself out there to try new things and take on new challenges.
Almost all of my favorite moments have come out of some of the biggest challenges I have ever set myself!!
Don’t live with regrets like I wish I could do that or if only I had tried to do that , maybe next time.
Live with passion and take on everyday as if it was your last so that you never have to live with regret or limits that only you have created.
Once you believe your life does not have to have any limits set on it, you will be amazed at how many new things you will be presented with and how many more amazing memories and achievements you will make!!
If you never open the door how will you ever know what’s on the other side??
Congratulations to our entire Tough Mudder Team for Melbourne 2012, Sydney is on in September and I want to know who is in???
