Let the Running Begin

When I was in 7th grade, I played basketball. Well, I was on a team that played basketball. I didn't get much playing time, but I showed up to practices and did what I could. Our coach was a bit eccentric, and developed an offense he called K.I.S.S. Yep, Keep It Simple Stupid.

I've heard the acronym used several other times since then in business and in life, but I've never chosen to really follow it. Until right now.

My new plan is to just keep this as simple as possible. I learned that hard way during my last streak that blogging everyday was just not my thing, but I still tried to do it. And tried. And tried. And tried. It just didn't work for me.

So my solution? DON'T DO IT EVERYDAY. I'll simplify things and update at least once a week. In terms of running, late night runs have caused problems for me. The KISS solution? DON'T RUN AT NIGHT, especially not outside for every run like the last streak.

Here are my 3 guidelines:

1. Run in the morning whenever possible. I start tomorrow at 6 AM!

2. Running on a treadmill is ok!

3. Blog about the running and causes at least once a week, but not every day.

And have fun.

Thanks for reading.

A New Year and New Goals

In 2008, I grew to understand the benefits of adversity and, in many ways, what some might consider to be outright failure. From May 2007 to September 2008, I ran everyday, at least one mile per day. To me, that was a successful streak. However, it ended and I felt the need to start a new streak. That is what started this blog.

Unfortunately, it hasn't worked for me yet. I spent about a month from when I started in November trying to find the motivation, energy, and causes to run for. The result was a lot of running, a lag in blogging, and a realization that I need to construct a better plan behind it, much more creativity, and benchmarks. I decided to take the day off from running on December 26th and set new goals today on a new streak. The plan is to begin January 5th. I know I can do at least one year, but I'm still set on 1,000 consecutive days.

I wish everyone best of luck with their goals for 2009 and beyond. I hope everyone sees the silver lining in any adversity that may be faced as well.

I look at the "failure" of this start as a key ingredient in what will be my success.