I've Got a Gut Feeling

Today I took an online quiz to find out what career I should have. Guess what!? It came up as ATHLETE. Sigh. After all these years I'm on the path that was meant for me.

I am an athlete and I am truly happy being one. Therefore, empirical  evidence shows this quiz is 100% correct.

Please don't get confused with "career athlete" as being the same as "professional athlete". Surveys, under "occupation", have "homemaker" listed as a career. This is usually the box I check. However, now I'm going to select "other" and write in athlete. Obviously, Occupation/Career have nothing to do with getting paid. I've never collected a dime as a mom... oops. That's a lie. Coins I get in the washer and dryer are mine. Always mine; and members of my household know that. But you get what I mean, right? My career and arbitrary success isn't limited by the amount of money I make doing it.

I love my sponsors which help out and support me. (Shameless plug for 2014 Team SOAS) But it has been a long road to reach this point.

Am I the only one with Jiminy Cricket on my shoulder, or more appropriately, in my gut? Gut feelings lead me through this world. They are invaluable.

When I insisted on trying to start a business, there was a gut feeling. No matter what hurdles I jumped or how many friends insisted on helping me, supporting and making me feel good about it, that gut feeling wouldn't subside. The one that makes you insist, over and over again, "I can DO this. I can MAKE it work!" If you find yourself saying this a lot, this article is for YOU.

Years ago a friend told me I should be a real estate agent. Oooooh, that gut feeling started, but hey, "I can make it work! I can do this!" I thought if I had more information the feeling would go away. Nope. Maybe I just need to pay my money and take the classes. Friends and family thought it was a fabulous idea. Refueled, I recommitted, doubled my resolve and took the classes. The feeling got stronger. Well, that's just because I need to take the test and then I'll feel better. Remember, everyone thought it was a fantastic idea.

Totally confident that I had made a commitment and fighting all gut feelings, I kept insisting, "But I can make this work". I continued down the path and refused to listen to Jiminey Cricket squeaking in my gut. I took that test. I paid for the license. I found a broker. I bought business cards. No backing out now!!! The ball was rollin', man! With tons of "likes" on FB, I was gonna be a real estate agent! But after spending one day with my first client from Las Vegas, I realized nothing was calming my gut.

But, you say, what about Michael Jordan? He didn't make his high school basketball team. He must have had a conversation with himself that might have had, "But I can Do this! I can make it work!" And he forged on and look how that turned out! What about the snowboarder I just heard about who lost her legs at 19 and is still snowboarding 15 years later? She sat down and said, "Well, I can do this, I just need to figure out how". Well, I say, we don't know what their gut was saying. Maybe it was calm as they faced the odds.

I've had those conversations with myself, too. Like when I decided to do my first triathlon and couldn't even swim. AT ALL!! I watched Ironman and thought, "I can DO that. And I'll have to figure out how to make it work!" All outward indications were screaming otherwise, but my gut was calm and quiet.

When I barely finished my first sprint triathlon and told myself I wanted to be sponsored, some people supported, some people doubted, but I didn't need their "likes" on FB to make me feel good about my decision. Because Jiminy was quiet as a mouse.

When I crashed three weeks before Ironman and had to find a new bike, and not having the chance to ride it before the race, my gut was also calm. I couldn't walk, run, swim, or bike for those final three weeks because of the stitches, the road rash, the stiffness, and my knee was the size of a cantaloupe, but I went ahead and competed. Why? Because my gut was calm. (Nerves were shot, but my gut was calm).

Now I am an athlete. I am on the path I was meant to be on. Was it always easy? Absolutely not. Was it obvious to everyone else? Probably not. Do I care? Did Michael Jordan care? Probably not. Because when you are on the path, you should feel calm. You feel sure. When you are all by yourself, alone in those quiet moments, you just KNOW. You don't rush to others wanting them to calm Jiminy Cricket, or that feeling in your gut. Others don't know what's right for you. Find your better path.

Race like there's no tomorrow. Train with confidence in yourself. Listen to your Jiminy Cricket and become the athlete you are supposed to be, not the one you are insisting you WANT to be. What you may think you want might not be what you need. Your gut knows what no one else does. Listen.

Happy Day! It's almost race season!! Race CALM!