4 Startup Lessons I Learned as an Ironman Athlete
I love sports.
They are a great channel for personal growth, fulfillment, social connection, life lessons, and good ole fashioned FUN!
(Same is true for music and art, but I don’t do those, so someone else is gonna have to write that post. 😂)
I played college softball, club rugby, summer league ultimate frisbee, high school then pick up basketball, before settling into my adult sports of Ironman triathlons and (post-children) marathons.
I met my husband while training for the Ironman World Championships and he worked in pro track and field for a decade before coaching his own clients which includes me as his most difficult favorite.
In other words, we’re into sports and spend (way too much) time analyzing them.
I see parallels across athletics and startups ALL THE TIME!
Elite performance is elite performance whether your venue is a conference room or softball diamond.
Here are 4 key lessons I’ve learned from teammates and coaches that apply to the wild startup arena as well!
1. Run your own race.
The best way to have a terrible race?
Try to keep up with someone who passes you, especially in the first half of the race.
You don’t know their training, plan, how they’re feeling, anything.
They may be only running half the race. They may be way faster than you. They may be going way too hard and will have to walk the rest of the race.
The key to a great race is to stay within yourself, run your race plan, and if you have anything left at the end, let ‘er rip!
When someone would pass me, I used to say, “I’ll catch them later or they were going to beat me anyway.”
At a startup, you can’t let what others are doing (like that super high valuation, big press release, or glamorous social media) dictate your strategy.
Sure, keep an eye on it, but do what’s right for you and your company!
When you’re “mid-race,” it can seem like other startups are raising more or doing better.
But who knows what their P&L actually looks like? They may be weeks away from shutting down. They may have raised too much. They may be quietly imploding.
In which case, you — who has kept an eye on cash and listened to customers — will still be going strong when they are fading away.
2. It never gets easier, you just get faster.
How many times have you said…
If I could only run 8 minute miles, then I would be fast.
When I can deadlift 400lbs, then I’ll be strong.
Once I make it to the elite team, then I will feel successful.
Sounds very similar to…
Once we raise money, then it will get easier.
When I make this hire, then I’ll have more time.
As soon as we close this deal, then I can relax.
Guess what?
When you reach this finish line, you’ll realize almost immediately that there is another finish line in the distance.
When you hit 8 minute pace, you won’t go on cruise control.
Because 7 minute pace is now in your sights!!!!!!!
Just like your startup goals.
There’s always another mountain to climb.
It’s always busy. The relaxed week never comes.
You get good at something…and then start on the next improvement.
It never gets easier, you just get faster.
3. Enjoy the journey.
My best memories of Ironmans are not the podiums.
It’s the training days with friends.
Buying $20 of candy to get us over the last climb of our 120 mile ride.
Blasting music at 5:30a during our bleary-eyed bike workouts.
Laughing on the pool wall between sets.
Meeting for a 20 mile long run at 4am to fit into someone’s schedule.
And selfies. Lots and lots of selfies.
Some (most?) of that sucked. But we had fun too.
A great race outcome was important. We wanted it. We cared. But also, we had already won.
Because we loved training.
We were healthy, getting better, learning about ourselves, and making life long friendships.
If you don’t love the process of building a company, if you don’t like the people you’re doing it with…it doesn’t matter how much money is at stake.
When it gets hard, you won’t keep going.
You need to love the work itself — good, bad, ugly — because that’s the real reason we do it.
Regardless of the outcome, we couldn’t imagine doing anything else.
4. Consistency over heroics.
You can’t train for a marathon in a weekend. You can’t build a startup either.
It takes years and years of showing up every day.
Even on days when all you give is 80%.
Math: 80% every day for 3 years is better than 100% every third day or 100% for 3 months.
Startups and sports require hard work. But work over months and years is what matters.
The best future predictor of success is consistency over time.
Warren Buffett is a great investor — who made 99% of his wealth after age 65.
Steve Magness, elite running coach and scientist, tracked improvement factors across collegiate runners. Those who missed the fewest days of practice improved the most.
I saw it in Ironmans. People who spent 1-2 years training rarely achieved their big goals. But those who did Ironmans year after year? They could go from mid-pack to podium.
The best way to succeed in startups? Show up every day, year after year. Layer on improvements and learnings. Figure out how to keep it fun. Keep going when others give up.
Great startups, like most athletic careers, are 10 year overnight successes! 😉
What’s your best sports advice that applies to startups? Anyone training for any races???
Something I learned from elite athletes that I'm still trying to learn in start-up life: "active recovery" is as vital for performance as heavy training. Long term high performance incorporates thoughtful recovery when you're body actually adapts, builds strength and gets ready for the next push.