20 Things I Learnt About Entrepreneurship While Running Marathons

On 23rd November, I ran my first marathon in Philadelphia. It has been a long and arduous journey and had its share of ups and downs. A new life unravels at the end of those 26.2 miles. Running a marathon is no different from running a start-up. Here are a few of my learnings:

1) It’s never too late to start running or start your own business but the important thing is to start.

2) Have a time based goal – Goals propel you, make you accountable and most importantly help you get to the next level.

3) It’s not going to be easy – Entrepreneurship is nothing short of a marathon and will have its shares of difficulties. Achieving anything outside your comfort zone is always challenging and difficult. Brace yourself for a bumpy ride.

4) Discipline – Nothing beats discipline in your quest to achieve your goals. Create a schedule and be discipline about adhering to it.

5) Be a morning person – As a runner, it’s best to wake up in the morning and achieve your goals early in the day. The sunrise awakens you to the beauty of life and gives you time with yourself. Likewise, as an entrepreneur, spend as much time in the morning with yourself. Those will be your best and most productive hours.

6) Surround yourself with like-minded people – Runners, support and encourage runners. Entrepreneurs, support and encourage entrepreneurs. You need people who understand your situation and propel you to move forward.

7) Learn to learn but most importantly learn to step back and unlearn – Both running and entrepreneurship is about constant improvisation. You might be stuck to a certain idea and a certain way of doing things which might not be working perfectly. Learn to unlearn and improvise..

8) Gratitude for self – Learn to express gratitude. Thank every single day you run. To be able to do the things you want to do is nothing short of a miracle.

9) Gratitude for others – There are many people along the way friends, family and strangers who propelled you forward with their kind words. For me the wall at 6.2 miles would have been invincible without the support of the volunteers and strangers.. Never forget to thank them.

10) Socialize – Join a club or other social settings. People are idea generating machines. Whether information on a new run or problems that you can provide a solution for, never underestimate their power..

11) Remove Fear and challenge the unknown– Most people don’t run for fear of an injury.. Likewise, most people don’t become entrepreneurs for fear of leaving a cushy 9-5 job.. Either ways, it’s about challenging the unknown by removing fear.

12) The finish line is always a new beginning – Revel in the glory of the finish line but remember life will never be the same after those 26.2 miles. Likewise, revel in your business success but remember, it’s not going to be the same ever again.

13) Celebrate – However, little your success, be it a new PR or achieving new sales targets, don’t forget to celebrate.

14) Forget the naysayers – Sometimes people cant look outside their small cubicles or their comfort zones. For every person encouraging you, there will be thousands discouraging. Forget them and move on.

15) Tap your inner beast – Nothing in the world beats the inner reservoir of energy. Its pit-less and immense. Tap it . Whether its a race or a company, your inner beast is the only thing that will drive you..

16) Make it about survival – Watch yourself run at the end of 20 miles, as if you were being chased by dogs. When it’s a test for survival, the inner tank creates energy. Unless it’s about survival, you will never push yourself to the max.

17) Be with better runners and more successful people – They will encourage you to run further and move faster. They will be your source of ideas as well as your motivation.

18) Failure is part of the deal – There will be many races where you do not finish. You gotta forget it and move on. Likewise, you won’t hit the success button immediately in your business. You need to embrace your failures, learn and move on..

19) Retrospect – The goal is not the end by all means. Its a time to line up a picture of all, that got you there. What you did right that culminated into success.

20) Get the beat on – Something very simple but nothing makes a runner’s race more enjoyable than music. It gets your mind off the mundane and makes you feel better. Have a list of your favorite motivational tracks and let the beat drive you always..

I always like to think of the world at the other end of 26.2 as one where you can live forever. It marks the end of having to prove anything to anyone, more importantly, to your own self.

@shilpi_mahajan