This week we are going to have a one-off entry about finishing the year strong and reflecting on running races, our pace, and finish lines.

Let’s say that I’m running a race.  I just passed mile marker 12 and the next marker will be 13.1.  Should I go all out and sprint until I hit 13.1 miles?  It depends on how far the race is.  If it’s a half marathon, then 13.1 miles is the finish line.  I can go all out, because after that I’ll have days and weeks of recovery before I push myself that hard again.  If it’s a marathon, then 13.1 miles is only halfway, and going all out will only exhaust me and decrease my chances of finishing strong without injuries.

What does this have to do with anything?  How many times have you heard, “We need to finish the year strong!” during a staff meeting, a town hall, etc.?  Per our race analogy, when we think about finishing strong, we need to understand where the finish line truly is.  We need to adjust our pace and effort based on where the finish line is and our ability to rest and recover.

Earlier in my career, I felt like Q4 was a true a finish line.  Finishing the year strong meant sprinting hard AND knowing that I’d have time to recover and would be able to ease into the next year before sprinting right away again.  Over the past few years, I’ve come to feel like there really isn’t a clear finish line anymore.  Just the other day someone was talking about how Q4 isn’t the end of the year but is really just the kick-off to having a strong Q1.  It’s like everything blurs together into a frantic frenzy.  I end up going all out in Q4 only to find myself spending the holidays sick, burned out, and exhausted both physically and mentally.  By the time the new year rolls around, I’m still not recovered, and I’m being asked to start sprinting right away.  Does that sound familiar?  Somewhere there must be a happy medium, where we work hard without running ourselves into the ground and starting the next year burned out from the moment it starts.  Somewhere, there has to be a happy medium where we take care of ourselves and each other.

Challenge 1: How can we all be more mindful of our pace and its sustainability as we close out the year?

Challenge 2: How can you lead and set a pace that is sustainable?  (Ex: When is the last time you clearly told your team that you don’t want them to run themselves into the ground, and made trade-off decisions where you would be okay with some things not getting done?)

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry