4 lessons I applied to the workplace by coming in last in a Triathlon swim
In September of 2016, I participated in my first ever Olympic distance Triathlon, it was my first Tri ever, for that matter. An Olympic distance means a 0.9 mile swim in open water, pictured above, followed by a 25 mile bike ride and then a 6 mile run. If I recall I was released in the 3rd or 4th wave, followed by about 4 of 5 additional waves. A Wave, in this context, is the staggered process of releasing groups of swimmers so that the chaos of 200 plus participants kicking and whacking one another is avoided.
I remember each of the later waves passing me by as well as the organizers closing up shop right behind me as I struggled to finish. The patient lifeguard on her paddle board above me asking me if I were ‘OK’ and to ‘turn on my back if I needed to’ due to the fact that my style of swimming resembles someone drowning.
I came in dead last, behind ALL waves.
Now I know, and was reminded by several close friends, that ‘winning isn’t everything!’ ‘At least you persevered and finished!’ Yet it was still embarrassing and decided to do a post-mortem to examine what went wrong, I discovered that preparing for a Triathlon is similar to preparing for any kind of ‘long distance’ accomplishment, such as the completion of a project
Lesson 1: You can never be too prepared
2 weeks before the race, I felt like I was prepared. I had went from barely being able to complete 4 x 25 yards in a pool, to being able to complete 60 x 25. Well, I was wrong, I could have and should have perfected my technique, yet I was so terrified of drowning that I concentrated on my endurance. Take time to analyze the steps needed to reach your end goal and avoid overly focusing on yours or your team’s perceived weakness.
Lesson 2: Ask for Help
Watching YouTube videos of swimming techniques did not cut it. The one time I had a swim coach analyze my technique, was the day I learned more than all YouTube videos combined. It was too late, the event occurred a week later. Be humble, seek the advice of an expert early on. Maybe its a Project Manager or team lead who has already gone through the pitfalls you may go through.
Lesson 3: Break the project down into bite size pieces
A thorough exercise in defining the steps needed to reach your end goal is crucial. I did not bother to do that. I figured all I needed to do was build my endurance to complete the swim and I’d be good, totally ignoring the fact that I needed not only endurance but technique and a strategy to pace myself as well.
Lesson 4: Enjoy the journey
I think this is probably the most important lesson of the four because had I stopped acting like I was trying out for the Olympics and instead had fun, I would have been less stressed. Stress makes one forget, which means I probably would have remembered to do the previous 3 lessons. Have fun, relax and absorb the lessons on the journey.
Don’t forget to take notes!
BONUS LESSON (Thanks to Ian Malec): Get out of your comfort zone BEFORE GO LIVE!
This is absolutely necessary because had I trained in open water early on, something I dreaded doing, I would have discovered my fear of open water and been able to deal with that way ahead of the race. The same principal applies to a project, if you’re going to try a new strategy or innovation, test the waters (no pun intended) long before your go live date. Give yourself time to deal with any unforeseen complications that may arise.
