Pilot #16 - How To Better Hit Your Highs (By Releasing Yourself From Outcomes)

Get the full pilot season of the blog here: charleskunken.com/season0

Our desire to control outcomes is the source of anxiety in Life. What we control is our inputs…

Release Yourself From Outcomes.jpg

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Sometimes I would wake up at 4am to take practice GMATs when I was applying to business school.

It wasn’t so I could get the highest grade possible.

It was so I could guarantee my lowest.

Did It Work?

I’ve been realizing lately that the less authenticity I put into writing an article the more I will check (and care) how many views I get on LinkedIn.

When we haven’t given something our all we are left to hope and pray that maybe we can get away with something.

‘Getting away’ can only be measured on extrinsic results.

Raising The Floor

When I used to run long distances I liked that you could pretty much know how quickly you’d be able to finish a race.

Unlike golf. 90, 107, 92, 99, 88, 110.  @#^$%!

I didn’t love pushing myself like Prefontaine but since I was in my twenties I always did. Eventually I came up with a brilliant idea. Say I wanted to achieve 6:30 per mile splits…instead of going into a race needing to psych myself up to push through pain why not tailor my training until I knew I could run it at 6:20. Then on race day I could just take it easy.

Proactive laziness.

Inputs instead of outcomes.

A Funny Thing Happens

In training for the 2008 Beijing Olympics Michael Phelps practiced with goggles painted black. He could literally swim his races with his eyes closed.

Phelps won 8 gold medals setting 7 world records in the process.

Establishing your downside gives you the freedom you need to stretch to your maximum.

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Worrying about outcomes is the source of all anxiety in life. A desire to control that over which we have none.

Your full heart and soul is all you can contribute.

Then you’ll hit your highs.