Business and Life Lessons From my Morning Runs in Kenya

For the past two weeks, I have been doing morning runs in Kenya in the company of my youngest sister and my 2 nephews. Apart from refreshing my body, I have come to love the effect a morning run has on the mind. I have gathered a couple of lessons from my experience on the road that I would like to share with you.

1. Pace yourself

I am not a fan of morning runs the reason I always opted for the gym (or should I say the trend mill). With the current COVID-19 situation, I have struggled with getting a consistent physical activity. My friend Dr. John Kanyi suggested I try the morning run in Kenya. The first day of the run I tried to keep pace with my nephew which resulted in a knee injury. I had to do walks for the next 4 days before I could jog again. Many times, in life we track our run with other people’s pace. We try to keep up with friends, family or competitors. Do we ever pause and ask why we are running?

2. Know your strength

In my high school days, I was in the cross-country team. I know it is hard to believe that now. A cross-country race does not only measure your consistency but most importantly your persistence. Again, when running with the young men and a woman I have hard to remind myself that I may not keep up with their speed but at least I know I have gas to last me the whole run. My strength is not in my speed but in my staying power. You have got to know what is your strength as a business or as an individual and maximize that. Don’t be distracted by the noises around you.

3. Know your unfair advantage

As you would guess, my running mates are much younger, are less built and of course way fitter. When running against me, that is their unfair advantage over me. They can use that to outpace me any day anywhere. What is your business unfair advantage? When you send that CV, what is going to set you apart from the other applicants?

4. In everything, have your 'Why' very clear

When I embarked on the morning runs, my 'why' was very clear. I wanted to stay fit and possibly get a gym workout alternative. On the other hand, the boys leave the bed because their uncle has asked them to do so. Our motivations are very different. This makes them skip some mornings in Kenya but on my end, I have to be on the road even when my body suggests otherwise. Did you start your business because someone else seemed to be doing well in a similar business? Are you following a certain career path because your parents or friends suggested it?

In conclusion

Always remember that good things take time to build. I know it’s tempting to think that building a career or a business is a sprint, it's not. From my Workpay experience, It’s a marathon. Stay fit. Stay safe. The end.