Always Better, Never the Best

5 Minute Read

"Success is not about being the best. It's about always getting better."

Today’s midweek motivation quote is basically an entire way of life. 

It is meant to shift our thinking from outcome-oriented to process-oriented. We should seek to love the feeling of progress, always finding new goals chase.

Success can’t be the goal, because it'll ultimately lead to disappointment and aimlessness once it’s achieved. Rather, we should learn to love how it feels to consistently make progress and get better. Then, when one goal is achieved, we simply move the goal post.

The Chase

As runners, we are familiar with the feeling of chasing a new goal—a faster time, a longer distance, or a more challenging race. This chase keeps us motivated and engaged. However, it’s important to recognize that the ultimate success is not about reaching the top. We should really be working to beat who we were yesterday.

When we achieve one goal, we set a new one, and the cycle of improvement continues. This approach prevents stagnation and keeps our passion for running alive & well. 

Grind it Out

In running and in life, the journey is where we learn the most. Each training run, each race, and each setback teaches us valuable lessons that contribute to our growth. And in fact, we learn lessons that can only come from setbacks and failure.

This mindset then also helps us deal with setbacks. Everything is training, and the setbacks in life are necessary to prepare both our bodies and minds. Then (somewhat paradoxically) the setbacks are actually successes in disguise. 

If we view success as a continuous journey of improvement, then every experience, whether good or bad, becomes a stepping stone towards becoming better.

Practical Steps

Here are some practical ways to embrace the philosophy of always getting better:

Chunk Down: Break your larger goals into smaller milestones. This gives us all more wins to chase, within one overarching goal. More wins, more motivation, strengthened passion. 

Look Back: The point is to love how progress feels. So, take time to think back on the progress we’ve made. Are we further in your running journey than we were 2 months ago? If so, that’s pretty neat. Celebrate that, and keep going. 

Stay Curious: Progress definitely doesn’t just come down to our fitness level. We love learning new training science, mindset topics, etc. related to running. This is also progress! Staying curious keeps us engaged and motivated.

Love the Work: Find joy in the daily grind of training. Work hard, and feel happy about it. 

Final Thoughts

"Success is not about being the best. It's about always getting better."

This quote is a powerful reminder that the essence of success lies in continuous improvement. By focusing on getting better each day, we can sustain our passion for running and achieve long-term fulfillment.

At Long Run, we believe in loving the feeling of progress. With that mentality, we can build a routine we love, and train consistently. With consistency, we build passion.