photo by Pro-Zak

I was first introduced to the practice of positive self talk while training for a marathon. When facing the notion of a 26.2-mile run in one go, you get to a point where you realize your brain needs some training in addition to your legs, heart and lungs. I don't know that I would've finished without first realizing and then preparing for this.

The idea is that you control your actions or reactions through your own thoughts. So with running, rather than allow your brain to focus on the pain you may be feeling at mile 20, you take charge and lift your thoughts to a more positive space so that your body will lose focus on the negative and muster the ability to charge forward under extreme exhaustion (remember: we're talking 4+ hours of uninterrupted running at this point).

It's no secret (there is a pun here) that this concept works in all sorts of facets of life. That's the whole jist behind the Oprah-backed "The Secret" sensation of recent years. Visualize the positive and make it a reality... though "The Secret" is criticized for its focus on material things like money.

As I move forward in my life and my career, I see this in action more and more. In order for me to do anything, I must first visualize what it is I want to do, then clear out all the hurdles and set them aside for another slide, another time. Only then can I start taking the steps I need to take to get where I want to go.

So why am I talking about this now? Even though I've learned how this works, I find myself tucking it away in my mind and have to remind myself of it. Yesterday, I was in the middle of a 5-mile run and found myself focusing on how tired I felt, how I didn't feel in optimal shape. Then something turned my attention to the fact that I was thinking these things, which were distracting me from actually enjoying my run. So I flipped it around and instead starting thinking how great it feels to run, how I am lucky to be able to run, how I know I can complete this run based on past performance. And suddenly I was rounding the corner to home.