原文: Personal Development Lessons from a Marathon

The Pleasure and the Pain

I recently went along to the Melbourne Marathon, here in Australia, to watch some of my team (Fiona, Johnny and Mikey) punish themselves for 42.2 km’s (26 miles). Aaah the pleasure and the pain of it all. The agony and the ecstasy. They all finished and they all did great. Well done guys. I rode my pushbike to the course so I could pedal beside those crazy kids for a while to offer a little support, some momentary distraction from the pain and some timely encouragement. Gotta say, on my current list of things to do, running a marathon ain’t anywhere near the top. While the idea of completing a marathon kind of appeals to me (in theory), I don’t know that my 95 kilo (210 lb) body-builder-ish physique would enjoy the experience or get me over the line (in reality). Having said that, I must admit that I totally love watching them and being part of that incredible energy. Even as a cheer squad. If you can’t get inspired watching thousands of ordinary people doing extra-ordinary things, then you don’t have a heartbeat. A sea of humanity all moving in the same direction; both literally and metaphorically. Where else could you see such a massive cross-section of people all working to their absolute max and fearlessly and passionately exploring their potential to achieve a common and a personal goal?

A Feelgood Event

Watching people explore their boundaries and discover their own version of ‘amazing’ gives me goosebumps. Ironically, when people are exhausted and in pain is often when we see them at their best. Their genuine selves. No bullshit, no acting, no ego, no lies, no meaningless dialogue. They don’t have the time or the energy for pointless crap. Despite the obvious physical pain, a marathon is a feelgood event. There is universal and unconditional encouragement, friendship, care, compassion and support. To see complete strangers (both runners and spectators) encouraging, supporting and helping people along their way is both uplifting and moving. If only mainstream society was a reflection of the Melbourne Marathon. Over the course of a couple of hours I saw thousands of people and witnessed no anger, no rudeness and no negativity. In fact, quite the opposite. I rode beside an old(er) guy for a while and apart from getting his sixty-something body through the distance, he seemed to be on a personal mission to encourage every other runner over the finish-line as well. He was constantly talking, cheering and even clapping for the runners going in the opposite direction (it was an out and back course).

The Runner Salad

Elite athletes, high-performance running ‘machines’, Ethiopians who ran without actually touching the ground, hard-core guys in army boots and backpacks, a girl running in bare feet, a woman with her head fixed at forty five degrees, two old blokes wearing shiny running shorts from the eighties, young alpha-males who only started training three weeks ago, the guy with the tennis racquet (racket) and ball, the woman with the worst running technique in the world who appeared to be jogging on the spot, the chubby woman who will “finish no matter what”, the eleven year old kid with the backward light-weight headphones who sang as he ran, the hi-tech crew and the old-school brigade… they were all there. They all lined up side by side.

Much More than just ‘a Run’

Being a born motivator, coach and encourager, I couldn’t help but get totally drawn into the moment; the emotions, the psychological battles, the physical pain, the barriers being broken down, the incredible stories being written, the fears being overcome, the courage, the discipline and even the lives being changed. I know that all sounds somewhat melodramatic but for many people, running a marathon (or achieving any significant goal for that matter) is indeed a life-changing, mind-altering experience. It has the potential to change the way people think, behave and achieve - in all areas of their life. For life. It re-defines their standards, their expectations and even their beliefs. They become stronger, more courageous and have a greater insight into, and understanding of, their own potential. It’s truly amazing what we can achieve when we stop talking ourselves into defeat and we find a way, rather than an excuse.

Doing What Most Won’t

When we persevere and do what most people won’t (not just in a marathon but with any challenge), we learn, we grow and we change. When we endure the discomfort, face the fear and work through the challenge, we become a better version of us. We get stronger. More courageous. More capable. We develop new skills. We see things differently and we start to produce better results in our world. Why do the vast majority of people who start the marathon complete it? Because they have prepared. They did the work. The got uncomfortable on a consistent basis over an extended period of time. They got fit and strong. They did what the majority wouldn’t. They did what needed to be done to produce an exceptional outcome in their world. Marathoner runners understand what it takes to succeed. They understand the concepts of discipline, self-control, over-coming fear, dealing with discomfort, determination and perseverance. They understand that, more often than not, success has almost nothing to do with potential, age or genetics and everything to do with attitude and hard work.

Thanks and congratulations to all the brave runners who inspired me that day.

Craig Harper (B.Ex.Sci.) is a qualified exercise scientist, author, columnist, radio presenter, television host, motivational speaker and university lecturer. For the past 25 years he has been a leading presenter, educator, motivator and commentator in the areas of personal and professional development. You can visit Craig's blog at Motivational Speaker.

译文: 一场马拉松比赛给你个人发展的启迪

快乐与痛苦

最近，我来到澳大利亚观看正在进行的墨尔本马拉松赛并且时刻关注我们团队中的一些人（菲奥纳，约翰尼和米奇）用42.2公里（26英里)的赛跑来折磨自己。为它所有的快乐与痛苦呐喊，也为那份痛不欲生与欣喜若狂呐喊。他们都跑完了全程，而且完成得很出色。好样的，伙计们。我骑着车沿途跟着那些疯狂的孩子，时不时给予一些支持，让他们从痛苦中转移注意力，并且及时鼓励他们。不得不说，在我最近列出的一些要做的事情当中，跑一场马拉松赛就被列在前几项。跑完一场马拉松赛的想法一定程度吸引着我（理论上讲），我不知道我95公斤（210磅）的体型能否胜任这项运动或者跑完全程（事实上讲）。虽然这样说，我不得不承认我非常喜欢看他们赛跑并且希望成为那非同寻常的力量中的一部分。即使是啦啦队。如果你连看到成百上千个平凡人做不平凡的事情都不能感到片刻激动的话，那就没有什么能让你感觉到心跳了。人海齐齐涌向同一个方向；若隐若现。除此之外在哪里能够看到那么多的人为达到一个普通的个人的目标倾尽全力、勇往直前、狂热地挖掘他们的潜力？

一个令人感觉良好的运动项目

看着人们不断超越极限并且探索他们自己眼中的“魅力”都要使我起鸡皮疙瘩了。具有讽刺意味地是，在人们精疲力竭或者遭遇伤痛的时候通常就是看见他们发挥得最好的时候，也就是他们真实的自我。不是胡扯，没有假装，不是自负，没有说谎，更不是毫无意义的对话。他们没有时间和精力去做无意义的事情。除去明显的身体上的伤痛，马拉松赛确实是一件让人感觉良好的项目。这是广泛且无条件的鼓励、友谊、关怀、同情和支持。对于陌生人（不管是运动员或者）的鼓励、支持和益于他们沿着正确方向发展的帮助都在不断地鼓励着他们提高和前进。但愿主流社会都关注墨尔本马拉松赛。经过几个小时的过程，我看到数千名群众和目击者没有生气的态度和粗鲁的行为，也没有消极的情绪。其实，恰恰是相反的。我时而骑着单车与一名年长的运动员同行，他除了凭借自己60岁的体格穿越重重障碍，同时也赋予自己亲身的使命去鼓舞着所有其他的运动员冲破终点线。他不停地说着，欢呼着，甚至为已在返回方向的运动员奋力冲刺而拍手鼓掌（这是一场往返赛）。

运动员拼盘

精英运动员们，高水平的赛跑“机器”，漫无目的地在跑的黑人们，穿着军靴背着双肩包的中坚分子，一个光着脚跑的女孩，一个耷拉着脑袋成45°角的女士，两个看上去80多岁却穿着鲜艳运动服的老人，仅训练过三个星期的新人，带着网球拍和网球的小伙子，缺乏技巧且慢吞吞地跑着的妇女，怀着“无论怎样都要跑完”信念的胖女人，戴着后挂便携式耳机且边跑边唱的十一岁少年，高技术的工作人员以及守旧派队伍…他们都在这儿出现了。他们都肩并着肩排成一行。

坚持跑下去

作为一种天生的动力，指导和鼓励，除了此时此刻挂着满是疲惫的身躯外，我得不到任何帮助。从情感上，从心理斗争方面，从身体所遭受的痛苦上，从需要克服的障碍上，从所著的那些不可思议的故事里，从必须战胜的恐惧方面，还有从勇气和训练方面来说，一切都需要被改变。我知道对于许多人来说这听起来有些许戏剧性，参加马拉松赛（或者完成一件有意义的目标）确实是一段改善生活、改变思想的经历。这很可能会改变人们的想法、行为和成就---在生活的各个领域。就生活而言需要重新定义他们的标准、期望，甚至包括他们的信念。他们会越变越强，更加勇敢，同时拥有洞察和了解他们自身潜能的方法。真正让人觉得诧异的是，当我们不再说服自己去战胜我们应该完成一切的时候，然而找到一个方法远强于编造一个借口。

最不该做的事情

当我们坚持去做其他人不愿意去做的事情（不仅仅是指马拉松，还包括其他具有挑战性的事情），我们慢慢地去学习，成长和改变。当我们忍耐苦楚，面对害怕却也通过重重挑战的时候，我们开始向更好的方向发展。我们变得更强壮、更勇敢、更有能力并且开始发展新的技能。我们用不同的观点看待问题并且开始在各自的领域取得更好的成绩。为什么大多数完成马拉松赛的人们会这样做呢？因为他们时刻准备着，时刻这样做着。持续一段时期后，他们会为始终如一的信念而感到不安。他们慢慢适应，日渐强大。他们所做的是大多数人都无法做到的事情，他们在各自所处领域所需要去做的事情中得到满意的结果。马拉松运动员知道成功的必要条件。他们了解训练的要求，懂得自我控制以及克服恐惧，能够摆脱苦恼，下定决心，做好必要的准备。他们懂的次数比不懂的次数要多，成功几乎跟潜能、年龄和遗传基因没有太大的关系，态度和勤奋才是一切决定因素。