Make Sacrifices to Achieve your Goals

Often, it’s not easy to balance our endurance sports dreams and responsibilities. So, you want to run a 100-mile race. Maybe you want to do a sprint triathlon. Furthermore, you could have goals outside endurance sports, such as writing a book. Nevertheless, you have to make sacrifices. Truthfully, you have to input something in order to get something. Don’t worry! That’s what the process is all about. Here are a few ways you can evaluate how you should make sacrifices to achieve your goals.

Time

Time is a finite commodity. Let’s assume you sleep 8 hours a day. The other 16 hours or 960 minutes of the day belong to you. Then, look at your main responsibilities. For some, this could be working an 8-hour shift. To add to that, let’s put in 3 hours for the commuting time and getting ready. For example, I worked a job where I had to wake up at 6 AM and commute to work by 8 AM. This being a private sector consulting career, I worked a lot of unpaid overtime on a salary, staying anywhere from 10 to 12 hours (not including commute). During this time, I was training for my first half marathon. The reality is our time is finite but we can control our situation by being as efficient with our time as possible. Here’s how you can do that.

Quality, not Quantity

I cut back on my social media time to just 15-20 minutes a day (screen time is a big one nowadays). I took care of as many responsibilities as possible during my lunch break or went for a quick jog. My workout clothes were always ready to go the night before so I could just put them on if I had to do a night run. The same was true about my work clothes. Knowing I didn’t usually work Saturday and Sunday, I did my longest runs on the weekend and sometimes doubled up. Time isn’t just about quantity, but about quality. With focus, you can do a lot more with the finite time that you do have instead of worrying about the time you don’t have. But what about your sleep? Look, I can’t say that I got 8 hours a day, but what I do know is I would take advantage of my weekend time to make up as much sleep as I could.

Know The What and Why of Sacrifice

Be committed to your goal. Do your goal for the right reasons. Honestly, if you’re doing something just to show off to other people instead of for yourself or a bigger cause, you’ll find more excuses than solutions. The more badly you want something, the more you’ll be willing to sacrifice. This is called knowing the what and why of sacrifice. Before you pursue something new, state what you’re doing (maybe in a journal) and why you’re doing it. Be earnest about your why. A goal for yourself and your growth is okay, but remember to do it for yourself first or you’ll constantly put your goal last.

Just Go For It

This is not a magic potion. The road ahead is going to get messy. You’ll have to adapt and work around your other responsibilities. It’s not going to be fair because what we do is often a hobby and prioritizing it over family, friends, and work is going to get tough.

That being said, you can do it and you will be okay. Find something that sets your soul on fire, aim big, and fail forward! A little every day is better than nothing at all! Besides, it’s all about the process. A good success story is paved with sacrifices. They make the joy of achievement that much sweeter. That’s because you know your real race starts with the sacrifices you make to achieve your goals. You can do it.

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