A Snail’s Pace: Run Your Own Race

Life Coaching Tip: It’s my hope that this light, little story will inspire you to stick steadfast with your goals and not let anything deter you—including your own brain! You’re exactly where you’re supposed to be, my friend! Nothing has gone wrong.  It’s all part of the process, so keep moving forward!
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I don’t know what it is about a tiny snail slowly making its way across the path at the park—but when I come across one while on a morning walk—I must always stop and admire it.

I recently met the little guy pictured above and spent some time in awe of his tenacity. I cheered him on as he crept across the path—unwavering and determined to make it to the other side.

Certainly, my fascination was about the snail’s unstoppable resolve to work at its mission—no matter how long it took—until it reached its goal.

But it captivated me for another reason, too. As I watched in amazement, I imagined what a “day in the life” of a snail might be like.

From my perspective, it didn’t look like a day’s journey covered much ground.

But from the snail’s point of view, I’m sure traveling across that path took a lot of effort and must have felt like quite an accomplishment once crossing the “finish line” on the other side.

And then I think about the bald eagle who I sometimes see on my walks gazing down at me in a similar way as she soars across the horizon. She’s often covering so much of an area that I lose sight of her—or she ascends straight up to such incredible heights that she is just a tiny speck in the clouds.

I imagine from the eagle’s perspective, that my morning trek doesn’t look like much of a journey at all. She covers the same distance in a millisecond, with little effort, as she gracefully glides in the wind.

Perhaps she gives me the same respect that I give the snail though, appreciating my endeavors—however small they seem in contrast to hers.

These thoughts made me smile and reflect a bit more.

Here are some of the insights that came to me. I’m sharing them in hopes that they will inspire you to keep going whenever you’re feeling stuck or discouraged:

1. Persistence is critical for accomplishing any goal. No matter how slow your progress feels, if you stick with it, you’ll reach your destination.

2. Run your own race. If you’ve spent much of your life deciding what you will do, or judging what you “should” do, based on what everyone else around you is doing, then isn’t it time to run your own race?

Your dreams were put into your heart for a reason, and you are the only one who can access them. Let my little snail friend’s story remind you to keep moving forward towards your aspirations and go at your own pace. Avoid the comparison trap and self-imposed deadlines that will just slow you down, send you on a detour, or stall you out completely.

3. Perspective is everything, especially when deciding to tackle a big, scary goal. If you look back on some of the big scary goals you’ve accomplished in your lifetime, you might not think of them as “big and scary” anymore.

For instance, if you think about when you first learned to drive or landed your first “real” job, you may have lost sight of how terrified you once were. There’s a good chance you had some trepidation or full-blown fear going on at the time—but now, it’s easy breezy, right?

When treading outside your comfort zone, try to keep an eagle’s broad perspective and look at the whole picture. Remind yourself there’s nothing serious going on here. You’ve got this one and only life—and you’re going to make the best of it!

It makes me smile to consider what that little snail would think if he knew I put his picture in my book and gave him props for his grit and determination.

I’m guessing he would think nothing of it at all, because he would be laser focused on his goal. He might look at me side-angle for just a quick second though and murmur, “You do you, okay?”

Yep, I’m sure that’s how it would go down.

And so, I’m passing it forward to you, my friend.

Run your own race.

Stick with it.

And do YOU, okay?