Jun 10
25
What’s Pushing You Up That Hill?
by Julie Broad
My legs were burning and heavy with exhaustion. My lungs were tight. I was heaving like an asthmatic as I pumped my arms. Every inch forward was a struggle but after a minute or so of pushing myself forward I was almost at the top of the sixth hill of my training run. And pretty much as soon as it started to level out I started to think about all the reasons why I didn’t have to do the seventh hill.
I was thinking things like “If you skip the hill it’s still going to be a solid 50 minute run and considering the mountain bike ride you did yesterday and all the travel lately it’s ok to cut the run a little short. You don’t want to wear yourself out. You have lots to get done this afternoon.”
I still had a few hundred meters to go before I had to choose whether it was going to be a left turn home or a right turn up the next hill. During the time it took to run that distance I allowed myself to think of so many reasons to cut the run short.
But when the moment of decision arrived I thought about my adventure racing teammate Chris Nicholson (crazy looking guy on the left in the photo from last year’s big adventure race we did). I thought about how he is doing his third Ironman Triathlon tomorrow. And I thought about how, less than 5 years ago he was more likely to compete in a beer drinking Olympics than be closing in on qualifying for the Kona Ironman in Hawaii. And yet, here he is and Kona is within the realm of possibility.
Thinking about him inspired me to go right. A couple of extra kilometers and another hill seemed so small when I think of the hours he’s been training!
And I am glad I had him for inspiration because at the end of my run I felt an incredible sense of accomplishment because I finished the extra hill even when I didn’t want to. And I felt a sense of pride because last year running that extra hill wouldn’t even have been an option because I wasn’t fit enough!
It’s because of Chris that my husband and I do the races we do, and it’s because of Chris that I push myself to train just a little bit harder.
And that inspiration is important to me because I want to create the best ME possible.
And it’s not just Chris who I think of when I need inspiration. I’ve gradually been surrounding myself with people who inspire me to be better at just about everything I do in life. I carefully select the blogs I read, the courses I take and the friends I make to ensure that everyone in my life has qualities I admire and something about them that inspires me.
It helps me be a better real estate investor, a better teacher and a much better wife, daughter, sister and friend.
Here’s just a couple of the other inspirational people in my life that you might like to get to know:
- MaryEllen Tribby of WorkingMomsOnly.com – Besides being a direct response marketing genius, and the voice in my head whenever I’m about to spend a single dollar on advertising saying “You need to know what every dollar you spend gives you in return“, MaryEllen is an extremely successful businesswoman. And most recently, entrepreneur. And to me it’s not just that she excels in the roles she takes on, it’s that she does big things while maintaining a great family life with her three kids, her new puppy and her husband.
- Shae Bynes of Good Faith Investing – I’m a massive action taker. I am the kind of person who will run enthusiastically in a direction, even if it’s the wrong direction just because I thrive on taking action. But, even with that drive there are days where I wonder why I am doing what I am doing. That’s when I think of my friend Shae and the incredible amount of things she accomplishes in her day. And I always think of her saying simply “It’s because my WHY is so big“. The reason she is doing what she is doing is critical to her. And that keeps her going no matter what gets thrown at her. So whenever I feel lost I think of Shae, and I am reminded that I need to go back to my WHY so that I too can accomplish big things in a day.
- Greg Habstritt of Simple Wealth and Engage Today – Sometimes it feels like I’m miles away from where I want to be. And when I think that, I quickly think of Greg Habstritt who began his real estate ventures ten years ago and today controls a huge real estate portfolio worth hundreds of millions. But even more interesting and inspiring to me is the fact that he put together what I believe was the event of the decade in Calgary last year with Richard Branson, the Dalai Lama, Stephen Covey, Sean Stephenson, Janet Attwood, and so many of the other great minds of our time. Greg was not a household name when he put this event together. It wasn’t like he was calling up these people and getting them on the line on the first try because they were flattered to hear from him. Yet, piece by piece, the pieces fell into place for this extraordinary event. And whenever I start to wonder whether big things are possible, I think of Greg and the path he has been on the amazing stops he’s had along the way so far. And I once again believe that big things are possible if you just keep moving forward.
I am so fortunate to follow, know and work alongside some really incredible people – and this list would be long if I started to list all the people that inspire me. But it is not by accident that I have people in my life that inspire me. It’s not by luck. I’ve purposefully sought out people I admire and reached out to build relationships with people who inspire me. And I will continue to do that.
Chris painted his head to cheer me on for my first adventure race in 2008
I believe that creating the best ME possible is a work in progress and always will be. But I believe it’s important to pursue the best ME possible because I feel it’s the greatest gift I can give myself, my family and even the world. And, I also believe that none of us can actually do that alone.
My hope is that by working towards creating the best ME I can, I will help and inspire others along the way to be their best ME’s too! Think of the ripple effect it will have if we all do this and we all inspire others to become their best?
So, let me ask you, who in your life inspires you to greatness? If your list is short or you find you’re missing inspiration in an area, then I think you’ve got an important job ahead of you to start filling in the missing pieces. Because let me tell you – in the big moments in life – when you’re faced with the decision to run that seventh hill or just run home you’re going to want to have some inspiration to push you up that big one and get you to where you want to be.
P.S. We’re celebrating today – we just closed on a house we bought from our yellow letter campaign! It’s lining up to be our best ROI property of 2010 so far!! We take possession on Sunday and will be there on Monday to get it all prepped for tenants. WOO HOO!! Happy Weekend indeed!
Next year though! Watch out! Later!
Probably because it was those couple of days before vacation! Even though its a bit delayed….thank you so much for your kind words! It’s always an honor to know that something you have said or done is an inspiration to someone else particularly when its someone you look up to yourself!