A few weeks ago, I watched a triathlon on television, as I have done several times over the past decade. Now, I’m no triathlete. I don’t run. I don’t swim. And my idea of bicycling is riding down a paved bike path until I get to the coffee shop. 
But I was fascinated by the event because of how my observations of the race can also be meaningful for entrepreneurs. Here’s why:
Speed does not matter, except for the most elite few. For the other hundreds of participants, the triathlon was a personal challenge of discipline and endurance. The “winning” was in fighting through the obstacles, both mental and physical, to cross the line.
The next step is the most important step. The race is made up of large distances, but each distance is covered one step at a time, one pedal at a time, or one stroke at a time. If you allow yourself to think in terms of miles or hours, it can be too overwhelming to continue. But if you think about taking one more step, to keep moving forward, you increase the chance to complete the journey.
Personal histories don’t count. It’s what you do right now. The commentators spent most of the broadcast focused on a handful of people who had colorful, difficult or otherwise dramatic stories leading up to the race. But to the participants, none of it mattered once the race began. At that point, the challenge was putting one stroke after the other, pushing down one pedal after the other, taking one step and then another. Just keep moving forward.
You don’t stop unless it can only get worse. In nearly every race, some focus is put on someone who is injured who keeps going, at least for a while. As they run, it is no longer a straight line, but one that lurches left and right as they fight to maintain their balance. And we applaud their determination. However, for some, continuing to race would cause further injury. For them, the right decision is to stop. Abandoning a race when all it can do is hurt you without a chance for reward is the right decision.
There’s always another race. For all of the participants, this was not their first triathlon. For nearly all of the participants, this will not be their last triathlon. Whether a participant came in first or last, finished or didn’t, there will be another race just over the horizon. What happened in this one race is not the sum total of triathlon experience for them, nor will this one race define them.
For entrepreneurs, these lessons are equally important. Speed doesn’t matter in most instances. Being first is less important than being great. The next step is the most imporant step. Nothing kills a start up like stopping momentum. It may flounder in direction, but the entrepreneur needs to keep moving, one step at a time. Personal histories don’t count, it’s what you do right now. I’ve hired gold-plated-resume PhD’s who couldn’t deliver, and high school grads who solved big problems. Give me a problem solver. And because they rocked their last job doesn’t mean it’s a free pass at this one. They’ve got to rock again, right now. You don’t stop unless it can only get worse. Keep moving forward, but if at some point you see that it’s certainly going down, shut it down. It’s better to have a quick failure than a long and lingering failure. And the reason? There’s always another race. Whether your last experience was a success or something other, take your lessons from it and then set it aside. There’s another opportunity right in front of you to take hold of.
Keep moving forward.
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