BECOMING RELENTLESS
Some time ago I wrote a post about my experience climbing the Longs Peak Trail in Rocky Mountain National Park. Before I go further, I did not summit Longs, nor was it my goal to. My goals for this trail are broken down into stages.
My next goal will be Chasm Lake (mostly because my daughter and I didn’t get there last year), and then after that, I want to reach the Bolderfield and the Keyhole. Given the condition of my knees, and the fact I have not been up that far since probably 1991, that would be a deeply satisfying accomplishment. If I ever do attempt to summit, it will likely be after knee-replacement. There are some things I cannot even imagine trying to do at this time.
So in that post, I described the Longs Peak trail as being relentless. It was a steady upward trajectory with no breaks to catch your breath along the way other than the ones you create when you stop. The forces are constantly pushing against you both physically and mentally. Enthusiasm is challenged within the first .5 miles from the Trailhead as conversations get shorter and hikers begin to focus on breathing in the thin air. The 2+ miles below treeline are not very rewarding because there are no places to step off the trail and enjoy views that testify to the progress you’re making… you have to trust that you’re getting somewhere with every step.
I thought about Longs Peak the other day when the word “relentless” came into my mind. I found I was fighting through resistance to get down to my basement and get on the elliptical after a long day. I’m on a quest for the 260’s and possibly the 250’s by summer and the report from the weight scale reflected I was stuck the past 4-5 days with no “visible” progress. Resistance tried to convince me that what I was doing was no longer effective. It was whispering in my ear that I deserved a break from the process… “go ahead… take the evening off; go watch some TV and chill out… you deserve it!” The problem is, the motive behind the message was not to encourage me toward an “active recovery” day… it was intended to steal the powerful momentum I had established through a steady and persistent commitment to a process that HAS been working.
I won the battle that night and got on the elliptical. At some point during the workout, the word “relentless” came into my mind along with this question: “Why can’t I be the relentless one here?” Why can’t I be the one applying a relentless pressure against those barriers that attempt to frustrate me, to discourage me… that are committed to my failure? Why can’t those barriers be on the wrong end of a relentless pressure applied by me that eventually cause the walls to topple over?
I ended up having a great workout and over the past few days I have seen significant wins on the scale.
Are you FINE with fine?
So I present that question to you. Why can’t you be the relentless one? Most of us in self-improvement mode have things on our radar we’d like to address. Overall, your life may be going fine, but maybe you aren’t “FINE with fine”. Maybe you’re after more than just… fine. Maybe the idea of things being “fine” in your life sounds like being fine playing in a game that ends in a tie, like making a compromise and settling for something you’re really not… “fine” with.
What’s stopping you from being the relentless one in your battles for the change you desire? What’s stopping you from becoming relentless in your pursuit for the lifestyle that stirs you with passion?
You…. that’s what?
We cannot control every factor that comes against us.
- We can’t control if an employer chooses to hire us over another candidate.
- We can’t control if a lending institute is willing to come behind our idea and give us the financial backing to take the next step.
- We can’t control if a publisher is willing to work with our book idea.
- We can’t control if a recording label chooses to sign us based on our demo tapes….
We can’t control many factors that are dependent on the decisions of others… but what we have absolute control over is how we respond to every barrier we face. We get to choose whether we fight, flee, or freeze. We get to choose how we respond to every setback we face; we get to choose to get up and go after it again, or we get to choose to quit and walk away defeated.
So I ask again… Why can’t you be the relentless one?
Here’s a thought to end this post.
MOUNTAINS BEYOND THE MOUNTAIN WE FACE
I’m convinced that for the climber, life is about a pursuit of many summits. We have no idea what is beyond the mountain we are currently climbing. Hindsight is said to be 20-20… we can look back and see things much clearer than in the moment. Let me play “what if” for a moment.
- What if the process you are fighting through right now is in place to prepare you for a future mountain you have no idea is out ahead of you?
- What if there are lessons you absolutely must experience now because they are in place to prepare you for things out ahead of you… beyond your current field of vision?
So I challenge you here… become the relentless one. Become the one who applies such a consistent pressure against obstacles standing in your path that they have no choice but to eventually collapse… and then walk right over them as you move upward.
It’s 6:30pm… my elliptical is taunting me; it thinks I’m skipping a workout tonight. Time to hop on and wear it down for the night.