2020 Reflections: The Third 500

Many of us are familiar with the concept of the Third 500, that is outlined in Chapter 4 of Freed to Lead.  In his Harvard Crew days OBT describes a strategy of breaking the 2000 meter race into 4 quarters.  In the first 500, the men are running on adrenaline and have not yet reached oxygen debt.  In the second 500, they have found their rhythm.  The fourth 500, is the moment when the end is in sight and the crew is emptying the tank to reach the finish line.  “It was the Third 500, that their coach (Fred) told them, where the race would be won or lost.  The start would be a distant memory, lost in the fog of fatigue and the buildup of lactic acid in their muscles, the finish too distant to even contemplate.  If they could hold it together – as individuals and as a crew – In the Third 500, that would be the difference.”

I often tell my children when they confront their failures to cherish the experience and learn from it.  Winners take the loss as a lesson and leverage it for future victory.  This is the distinction between those that stand still in the face of adversity and those that rise above it.  It is in these dark times, that we can discover our will to adapt and thrive.  We must yearn for the win and celebrate victory, but it is through challenge and failure that we learn how to win.  We all have a story of a failed evolution, a lost race, an injury, or a personal loss in which we found strength.  Early on in my recovery from drug addiction, when I was complaining of all the hardships that life had presented to me, a close mentor and friend would often tell me that “this is good experience.”  I initially despised this response but eventually came to know the truth in those words.  It is only through the hardships, that personal growth is discovered.

This year felt like the Third 500.  Our world was flipped upside down and all of our routines suddenly had to be reexamined through the lense of the pandemic, creating incremental effort and angst in every corner of our lives.  If you spent your time this year watching the news or participating in social media, you were witness to an air a lamentation and a loss in hope.

As leaders, we do not have the luxury of lamenting.  We must find a a way to understand the current landscape, and lead to a point of advantage.  Although this year presented many challenges, we found intimacy in small groups of people, whether that be family or close friends, we were reminded of the resiliency of the human spirit, and we found joy in a slower pace of life.  There are always opportunities to be found if we are aware and it is our responsibility to lead others to receipt of these gifts.

As we embark on the new year, we must remember the lessons that we have learned in the prior annum and continue to lead to a point of advantage.  I trust that you will take this challenge and serve as the guiding light in your Concentrica.

If nobody told you they love you today, I do, my friends.

Tonka