I’ve been thinking about the word pace over the last several days. One of the definitions in the dictionary is “a rate of activity, progress, growth, performance, etc; tempo.” The reason I have been thinking about this word is because I am a runner. Pace is very important when you are running. Your pace depends on how far you are running and what kind of terrain you are running on.
I was on the treadmill this week and decided to run to 45 minutes. I started out at a slower pace and then kept increasing the pace each mile. I averaged a 7.5 minute mile for the 45 minutes, but I was running much faster and harder at certain points than others. As I was running at the fastest pace I noticed a few things.
- My running form started to slip
- My ability to focus was decreased, because I was feeling some pain and was getting tired
- I was watching the clock a lot more instead of focusing on my form.
- I was more likely to get injured because my form was sloppy.
As I thought about this idea of pace, it struck me that many of our lives are just like that. We start out at a steady pace, but often find ourselves in a sprint trying to juggle all of the stuff we are involved in. We can barely keep up and are in danger of taking a serious fall.
My wife and I were eating at a local restaurant and one of the waitresses commented to us how busy her life was right now. We talked about the hectic Christmas schedule and how sometimes we can feel overwhelmed. Then she said that she would love to have a day just for herself, where she could just do what she wanted and slow down the pace. Right after she said that she then said, “that is not going to happen.”
The pace in which we run in our lives is a choice that we make. It often does not feel like we have a choice, but the reason most people are running at a very fast pace, is because of the choices they have made.
I work at a place that runs at a pretty fast pace. One of the most important lessons I have learned is that I need to train to run my leg of the race and not the entire race. Think about it like this; when you are running a marathon, you can train and run it on your own or you can train with a group and run it as a relay. You can run the marathon much faster if you do a relay in which each person runs a portion of the race. That is how I view my role at NewPointe. I need to train for my portion of the race and run that leg as best I can. I can encourage and train with the other staff, but we each have a portion of the race that we are ultimately responsible for.
So here are some take-away ideas for improving your pace of life:
- Determine to say no more than you do right now – What do you need to stop doing? Sometimes you need to say no to some good things in order to enjoy the best things.
- Plan and schedule time for yourself – If you don’t schedule it, it won’t happen. Self-care is critical and most people don’t take the time to care for themselves emotionally, spiritually and physically. Rest and relaxation are vital. Getting enough rest is hard work, but it is worth it.
- Find some good training partners – Surrounding yourself with the right people can make all the difference. Having accountability in your life is a key to a healthy life pace.
- Make sure you are running the right race and on the right track – Everyone is here for a reason and a purpose. Are you running in the right direction? Are you on the right path? God has a path for all of us, choosing His path makes all the difference.
- Set aside time to lead yourself – I am the most difficult person in my life to lead. Often times, we are our own worst enemy. Take time to do personal development. The more we grow, learn and change the bigger impact we will have on our journey.
- Invest in others – When you take the time to use the life experience that you have to help someone else you get much more than you give. Investing in people brings new life and energy to your life. People are always more important than things, projects and money.
- Take some time to develop a life plan – A life plan is simply writing down the main areas of your life and then creating some goals and action steps for each of those areas. It then helps to keep you focused and on track throughout the year. For more information on how to develop a life plan go to Michael Hyatt’s Blog.
Think about the pace of your life right now. Are you running at a pace that is causing your form to slip? Are you nearing a severe injury because you are running too hard? Knowing when to speed up your pace and slow down your pace will help you run a successful and enjoyable race.