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When You Feel Like You're Getting Lapped

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You felt pretty good about where you are in your business until...

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🫣 You saw your friend just got 5k new followers overnight.

🫤 One of your peers just sold out 12 spots in her group program.

😬 A late-night Google search lands you on a competitor's beautiful website full of testimonials from 38 happy clients.

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All of the sudden you went from sitting up straight, and feeling pretty darn proud of yourself... to slumping in your chair, wondering if you've got what it takes after all.

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I can relate.

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The other day, I ran my first 10k.

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There were over 5,000 (way more serious) runners in it, with the terminator-like Oakley shades and running vests to prove it.

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I've never been a runner. But since I'm prepping for my HYROX competition in November, I've put more miles on my New Balance 860s than the wienermobile. 🌭

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I was terrified to run in this 10k -- not just because it was my first, because as soon as I signed up and started telling people, all I heard about was THE HILL.

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"There's this one HILL that goes straight up! It lasts over a mile! It'll kill you!" they said. All I heard about was THE HILL for weeks.

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A hill that lasts over a mile?! How on earth... 🤯

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My race goals were to:

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• Run without stopping
• Build up my stamina, and
• Practice running on tired legs (which I'll have to do for HYROX!).

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As the race got nearer, THE HILL = Everest (in my head). I was really good at centering and reminding myself to stay in my own lane...

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Until I got there.

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🏃🏻‍♀️ After the starting pistol made me leap into the air fired, my wave passed beneath the bright yellow start sign, rounded a curve, and hit our first steep hill.

I settled into my slow and steady pace, checking Strava on my Apple Watch to watch my heart rate and pace/km.

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🐘 As I slowly shuffled my feet up the first hill, I felt the ground beneath me rumble from the thousands of approaching footsteps.

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One-by-one, hundreds of runners who started after me, passed me.

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All of of the sudden, that voice kicked in...

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You're getting lapped.

Hurry up...

You're losing... what's the point?

You can't do this...

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It was like all the mindset work I did ahead of time fell away in each sweat droplet hitting the pavement.

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I felt my face flush like an inferno as my ego kicked in, questioning how all of these people could pass me when I'm really fit.

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🏇🏻 My muscles fired on all cylinders, like a race horse being held for too long behind the starting gate. "I could go faster..." I told myself.

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But I paused.

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I zoomed back into my body like a Polaroid setting into focus, and remembered why I ran.

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I turned Spotify up a notch, looked at the white sailboats bobbing on the harbor, and got back to my running my own race.

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I'd finally settled in when I saw it:

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🌋 THE HILL. 🌋

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Those people who passed in the beginning?

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They were walking.

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Some had even pulled over to catch their breath.*

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But guess who was still going?

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👋 👋 👋

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Turns out, when the time came -- I had the energy to withstand THE HILL because I'd reserved enough juice in the tank.

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When I got passed, I felt so left behind. But I just needed a little time to catch up.

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Here's the deal, Reader --

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As an online business owner in particular, you feel like people are lapping you.

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Social media is like the digital version of feeling the rumbling of feet behind you, just as they're about to pass.

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Trust me when I say:

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Slow and steady wins the race.

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Better yet, this isn't even a race! Building your business doesn't have to be a race. Who says it's supposed to take a certain amount of time? Or reach a certain $ amount by a certain date?

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You get to control what sort of race you're running in -- or if you're running in one at all.

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I've been here for 8 years. I've sent 1,205 weekly emails, written 623 blog posts, and produced 224 podcast episodes.

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I've panicked as people have lapped me. I've watched them sell out programs or humble brag over how many figures they're making, only to pass them later on the digital hill.

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When you're getting lapped, it's easy to want to quit or count yourself out.

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But just because you see someone passing you early on, doesn't mean you won't see them in your rearview in the future.

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So next time you feel behind: remember the race (if you even think it's one) you're running.

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Let them pass you.

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You may pass them later on. Or catch up. Maybe you're going on another course, entirely.

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You're running building totally different races businesses for different reasons.

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If you're clear about what you're running for... only you can win that race.

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Just be sure to stay in it, no matter how tempting it is to start running someone else's ;)

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Reader hit "reply" and let me know if this hit the spot today. I can't wait to hear from you. (if it DID speak to you, I better hear from you!!)

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Off to practice my runs. I've only got 6 weeks left until my HYROX race.

PS. I finished in 1 hr 11 mins!! Even with THE HILL. I'll take it :)

(*There's absolutely nothing wrong with the fact that some runners chose to pull over and rest on the hill. Everyone should go at their own pace. This story has more to do with not judging yourself for seeing others go 'faster' than you sometimes, or thinking that you can't ultimately catch up, that's all.)

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✔️ Finally, Your Task This Week

If building your business is your race, why are you running it? Journal this week about why you're building your business, what you hope to accomplish, and what you want to get out of your work (without applying any 'shoulds' or what anyone else is doing).

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