I had never run more than 2 miles at a time. And at 9 am on November 23, I was lined up to run a 5k. About 3 weeks prior, I had a friend reach out to me to ask if I would run with him in a race the week before Thanksgiving. I said yes and acted enthusiastic – but I was more than hesitant. I hadn’t exercised in a long while, I hated running, and I struggled to picture myself being able to keep a decent pace for 3.1 miles. Was I really even capable of running that much? I knew that I should do it, but it felt so hard to even imagine.

As I started running to prepare for the race, I found a few things that helped me face the new and intimidating experience.

Break up the overall goal into smaller goals that seem attainable

Going into the race, I planned on running for 10 minutes and then walking for 3 and continuing this pattern over and over again until I finished the race. Splitting up my timing like this really helped me to see that finishing the 5k was possible. It also gave me peace of mind going into the race because I had a plan that seemed possible – I had ran for 10 minutes at a time before. I could definitely do it again.

To be completely honest, I did not stick to my plan entirely. But being flexible is another important part of facing something new because it allows you to be open-minded and not take yourself so seriously as long as you try your best with your small goals.

Keep a positive attitude

When I think about what keeping a positive attitude means, I tend to think of constantly being happy in every situation. But when it comes to facing a daunting task that’s completely new, fear may override a feeling of happiness to the point where it becomes overwhelming to even try to maintain any level of happiness. 

I think positivity actually has more to do with maintaining hope than maintaining happiness. It’s easier to remain positive because you know better things are to come. If you can set your mind on the outcome – or in my case, on the finish line – it’ll be easier to stay positive throughout the trial itself.

The last 5% is always the hardest – you can’t let yourself give up 

My mom has always said that the hardest part of any task is the last 5%. It’s so easy to convince yourself that pushing until the very end is pointless – 95% is still really good, right? 

During the race, I definitely experienced this. The last part of the run was up a hill, and I felt like I was genuinely going to pass out. I wanted to start walking so badly, but I knew that accomplishing the race in its entirety was important. By giving up or taking the easier route, you’re cheating yourself out of the satisfaction of knowing you did something hard, and you’re cheating yourself out of the fulfillment of a goal, which in and of itself is rewarding. 

Surround yourself with support and take advice

The most impactful moments during the run was when I saw people I knew cheering me on at the end. Even though I wasn’t even relationally very close to all of the people I saw, they were all cheering me on and giving me support throughout the race.

Even if you’re not someone who loves to hear encouragement, it’s so important to have people in your life who are willing to stick with you and give you confidence when you go through something hard or when you’re faced with something new. The people in your life who cheer you on until you finally reach the finish line are the ones who are going to give you confidence to face challenges.

While finishing the race was hard, I’m so glad I did it and I’m so pumped to be able to say that I accomplished my goal. And that satisfaction is possible for everyone as long as you don’t give up when faced with something new.