14. Sticking to Your Guns

Let me tell you the difference between amateurs and pros. It’s got everything to do with preparation. Amateurs don’t prepare like pros do. A standard amateur marathon training program will have the runner build up their endurance for months before the race, but never actually run a full 26.2 miles. Seems weird but it’s true. It’s common practice for non professionals to prepare for something they’ve never done before by not actually doing the thing they’re preparing for. On the other hand, the best performers in the world run the marathon dozens if not hundreds of times before the main event.

You never hear about an Olympic marathon runner who got to mile 22 and hit a wall. An Olympic marathon runner knows exactly what it will feel like at every point in the race and how to react to it because they’ve already done it.

Don’t leave it to chance.

Don’t utter the words we’ll see what happens.

Once you go beyond the level of training that you’ve done, you’re in uncharted waters, and who knows what might happen. Expecting to perform beyond your level of preparation or practice is a fools errand. Sure it’s possible, but it’s certainly not probable. For every story you hear of people accomplishing extraordinary feats while being extraordinarily underprepared, there are countless others that you don’t hear about that crashed and burned.