Success Isn’t a Moment—It’s a Journey
Every Olympian is an alien.
The long days of training. The physical limits they push themselves to. The singular focus on their sport, day in and day out.
The sheer danger they put themselves into every time they step onto the ice, push off with their skis, or go sledding at 80 miles an hour.
And in a moment, at the peak of their careers, at what could be the most important competition of their lives…it could all be gone.
A jump that isn’t landed perfectly. A brush against the wall. A turn you took too wide. One second—or even hundredths of a second—and the dream is over.
Not every moment is a golden one.
That’s one way of looking at things.
But there’s another.
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To be successful—which includes being happy or at least content—you can’t pin everything on a single moment in time.
It has to be the journey.
The outcome isn’t in your control.
We have Alysa Liu, gold medalist, flying across the ice with a smile on her face.
I honestly believe she would have been equally happy with silver, or bronze, or off the podium.
Because she loves what she does.
But also…Nick Goepper, who, at 31, crashed out spectacularly, dashed his gold medal dreams…and has already alluded to returning at age 35 in the next Olympics.
If you love what you’re doing, why stop?
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I don’t discount the heartbreak of disappointment. But one failing does not make you a failure, and these athletes have to be mentally tough enough to separate their performance from themselves.
So do you.
A great outcome is a glittering moment, an incomparable high. But all the days and months and years leading up to that outcome—you put in the work because you love the thing you’re doing.
Because you want to be great at what you do, whether or not anyone is watching.
In business, the comparison to a gold medal might be selling your company. You can make a lot of money, and it’s a life-changing experience.
But the joy of the moment is fleeting, and then….what else is there for you?
Gold medals are awesome. Wins are awesome.
But more awesome is waking up every day with excitement, or purpose, or meaning, or joy. However you want to look at it.
Something beyond the money that drives you. Something more than fear.
Are you doing work that matters?
Are you proud of what you’re building?
As one of my mentors used to say, “If it doesn’t feel like fun, don’t do it.”
Not every day will be a peak (that’s the rule of thirds). That’s the point.
True greatness isn’t defined by a moment—of success or failure.
It’s defined by finding joy in the journey.
