So this was “the wall” I had heard so much about.
13 miles into my first marathon, I entered into a dark place I knew I wouldn’t be coming out of anytime soon.
In addition to being massively underprepared for the event, I spent the first half of the race trying to keep up with runners significantly beyond my pay grade.
Fuelled by a combination of pride, ego and adrenaline, I stuck with them.
However, I was running harder than my body was used to, so it was only a matter of time before things took a turn.
And take a turn they did.
Just after the 13 mile mark, I started to “bonk”, and now found myself in a world filled with lactic acid and pain.
It was like every ounce of energy had been sucked out of my system.
I was empty.
And with another thirteen miles to go, things we’re not looking good.
Although I was still technically “running”, it could better be described as an enthusiastic limp.
My pace slowed to just over a walk, and I could only watch as people twice my age glided effortlessly past me, mumbling words of encouragement as they passed. I was drained — mentally, emotionally, and physically — and needed something, anything to get me through what lay ahead.
In desperation, I searched every corner of my mind for a narrative that would help to get me to the finish.
Many surfaced, but one was particularly helpful:
“If I can get through this, I can get through anything.”
It dawned on me that nothing I could possibly attempt in the future could ever be this hard.
So if I could finish, this experience would become a resource for getting through difficult situations in the future.
Ultimately, this is what got me over the line.
To this day, anytime I’m struggling with something, I remind myself:
“Although this might be difficult, it isn’t as hard as that marathon was. And if I finished that, I can finish this too.”
In the lowest moments of that day, my mind intuited an important—and often overlooked—principle of human psychology:
Our past experiences can become resources for the future we’re working towards.
A model which illustrates why this is so important is the “Beliefs Cycle”:
(1.) Empowering Belief —> (2.) Massive Action—> (3.) Successful Outcome —> (4.) Reinforced Empowering Belief → (5.) → New Opportunity → (6.) More Massive Action → (7.) Another Successful Outcome.
And so on.
According to this framework:
1.) Success depends upon the amount of action you take towards an outcome.
2.) Your level of action depends upon how much you believe the outcome is possible.
If you believe you are likely to succeed, you’ll take massive action.
And if you take massive action, you’re more likely to succeed.
Unfortunately, the cycle goes the other way too. If someone believes they’re likely to fail, they’re not going to invest a lot of time or effort into a project.
Why waste the energy?
And because they take minimal action, they get a mediocre outcome:
(1.) Limiting Belief —> (2.) Minimum Action —> (3.) Mediocre Outcome —> (4.) Reinforced Limiting Belief
In short, our beliefs matter because they influence the amount of action we’re willing to take.
Empowering beliefs lead to massive action, making success more likely. Limiting beliefs lead to minimal action which produces mediocre results.
So the beliefs we hold about what’s possible directly influence our level of success in life.
For me, the key takeaway is that if we have our sights set on a future outcome, we should be actively tweaking the beliefs cycle in our favour.
And the simplest way to do that, is to “harvest” our past experiences.
Because, if you’ve made it this far in life, you’re likely sitting on a goldmine of untapped past experiences that, if you become conscious of, could provide you with a strong evidence-base that your future goal is possible—maybe even likely.
So if there’s a goal you’re working towards—and you’d like to tilt the beliefs cycle in your favour—give this a try:
1.) Make a list of past situations where you overcame something difficult to achieve an important goal.
2.) Choose one that feels particularly meaningful, and ask:
a.) What were you working towards?
b.) What was standing in your way? (Internally and externally.)
c.) What action did you take to overcome the obstacles?
d.) What did you learn about yourself as a result?
Paradoxically, the past—when harnessed consciously—becomes one of our most valuable resources for creating the future.
