| lLesley Geller Business Coache |
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| Lesley@LesleyGeller.com 609.730.1540 |
| Featured Article: Inner Strength by Lesley Geller |
What is inner strength? We have all seen it before and have watched in awe. Family members,
friends, co-workers; people capable of digging into their core and achieving, at least it seems, almost
anything they set out to accomplish. They seem to have the ability to move beyond fear, pain and
worry, and simply focus on their landing spot, not on the ground to be traveled ahead. Are some
people simply born with that or is it something that people can learn?
I wondered about it often going through a divorce and being forced to think deeply about my life and
the way I lived it. I watched carefully to see if there was something different about them overall, but
couldn’t pinpoint it. What I knew was that I was not one of those people. If something I was doing
made me feel uncomfortable, I stopped doing it.
It wasn’t until I was almost 40 that I hired a trainer to see if I could learn to be a fast runner. I was
clear I could run the distance, as I had already crossed two marathon finish lines, but they both had
the same style: slow and steady. It was my style, it seemed, by nature. I was good for the long haul,
the commitment, but it would be slow and steady and without discomfort. So I thought this would be
the perfect chance for me to see if in fact you could be taught how to find that inner strength, or if it
was a gift that you either had or didn’t.
On the first day of training, what I learned was that my very cute outfit was not going to be enough to
get me through this workout. In my family, as long as you had the right outfit, one that made you feel
good about yourself and looked good in the pictures, you were good to go. But in this arena, with my
good looking 30-something trainer, I was clear that my outfit was the last thing he noticed. As a
matter of fact, after the first ten minutes, I became consumed with where I could vomit and how that
could ruin my reputation in the gym forever.
Did you want to ask me how old I was? I asked the trainer, in hopes of him lowering his goals for me.
No. Not necessary. I have seen you train…
That answer was not settling at all since my snail pace around the track, smiling all the way, was
really based on my comfortable and steady pace.
I survived the first session, but questioned whether I would come back. I even considered donating
the other nine sessions I had bought to a needy athlete somewhere. My trainer, though, was clearly
onto me and was not going to let me bail out. Somewhere deep, he saw potential in me.
It seemed that his ability to see what I couldn’t was just what I needed. I didn’t become a speed
demon over the next several sessions, but what I learned from him was invaluable. As American
Express says, priceless. He taught me to listen to my inner voice and create the strength that I
wanted to exist. He tuned out my complaints about what I could or couldn’t do and told me to do it
anyway. He taught me to feel the pain, become aware of sensations in my legs and to welcome the
discomfort as a sign that I was moving to the next level.
It was an experience that definitely impacted my life. Although I didn’t become a track star at 40, I
clearly was learning to move beyond the discomfort that often gave me the permission to stop.
One session while running sprints, I literally stopped, even though I knew he was timing me. I
walked for a minute, and then began again to the finish.
Great job, he said, rattling off my time, but I said to run…not walk.
But my legs were…
He knew where I was going with my complaint and knew better than to hear me out. His goal was my
goal, which was to get me to the other side. So what? He said without emotion. I said to run, so let’s
try that again.
I got that message loud and clear that day and realized how often I chose to settle into my comfort
zone, rather than pushing myself to the end. It was a conscious choice I made regularly, as much as
I wanted to believe it was some higher force. It made me think about how often I choose to stop, due
to the discomfort I was feeling emotionally, or physically. His voice has stayed with me even two
years later and still impacts the things I do. Whether soul searching for new clients, managing the
drama of two teenage sons, or just running up the last hill of the race, the voice is still the
same…your inner strength is there, you just have to choose to use it.
friends, co-workers; people capable of digging into their core and achieving, at least it seems, almost
anything they set out to accomplish. They seem to have the ability to move beyond fear, pain and
worry, and simply focus on their landing spot, not on the ground to be traveled ahead. Are some
people simply born with that or is it something that people can learn?
I wondered about it often going through a divorce and being forced to think deeply about my life and
the way I lived it. I watched carefully to see if there was something different about them overall, but
couldn’t pinpoint it. What I knew was that I was not one of those people. If something I was doing
made me feel uncomfortable, I stopped doing it.
It wasn’t until I was almost 40 that I hired a trainer to see if I could learn to be a fast runner. I was
clear I could run the distance, as I had already crossed two marathon finish lines, but they both had
the same style: slow and steady. It was my style, it seemed, by nature. I was good for the long haul,
the commitment, but it would be slow and steady and without discomfort. So I thought this would be
the perfect chance for me to see if in fact you could be taught how to find that inner strength, or if it
was a gift that you either had or didn’t.
On the first day of training, what I learned was that my very cute outfit was not going to be enough to
get me through this workout. In my family, as long as you had the right outfit, one that made you feel
good about yourself and looked good in the pictures, you were good to go. But in this arena, with my
good looking 30-something trainer, I was clear that my outfit was the last thing he noticed. As a
matter of fact, after the first ten minutes, I became consumed with where I could vomit and how that
could ruin my reputation in the gym forever.
Did you want to ask me how old I was? I asked the trainer, in hopes of him lowering his goals for me.
No. Not necessary. I have seen you train…
That answer was not settling at all since my snail pace around the track, smiling all the way, was
really based on my comfortable and steady pace.
I survived the first session, but questioned whether I would come back. I even considered donating
the other nine sessions I had bought to a needy athlete somewhere. My trainer, though, was clearly
onto me and was not going to let me bail out. Somewhere deep, he saw potential in me.
It seemed that his ability to see what I couldn’t was just what I needed. I didn’t become a speed
demon over the next several sessions, but what I learned from him was invaluable. As American
Express says, priceless. He taught me to listen to my inner voice and create the strength that I
wanted to exist. He tuned out my complaints about what I could or couldn’t do and told me to do it
anyway. He taught me to feel the pain, become aware of sensations in my legs and to welcome the
discomfort as a sign that I was moving to the next level.
It was an experience that definitely impacted my life. Although I didn’t become a track star at 40, I
clearly was learning to move beyond the discomfort that often gave me the permission to stop.
One session while running sprints, I literally stopped, even though I knew he was timing me. I
walked for a minute, and then began again to the finish.
Great job, he said, rattling off my time, but I said to run…not walk.
But my legs were…
He knew where I was going with my complaint and knew better than to hear me out. His goal was my
goal, which was to get me to the other side. So what? He said without emotion. I said to run, so let’s
try that again.
I got that message loud and clear that day and realized how often I chose to settle into my comfort
zone, rather than pushing myself to the end. It was a conscious choice I made regularly, as much as
I wanted to believe it was some higher force. It made me think about how often I choose to stop, due
to the discomfort I was feeling emotionally, or physically. His voice has stayed with me even two
years later and still impacts the things I do. Whether soul searching for new clients, managing the
drama of two teenage sons, or just running up the last hill of the race, the voice is still the
same…your inner strength is there, you just have to choose to use it.
