Sometimes you think you don’t have what it takes to accomplish your goals. But armed with the right attitude and the right approach, you can do big things, things that are WAY outside your comfort zone. Like running 100 miles.

In September of 2017, I ran my first 100-mile trail race. Let’s just let that sink in for a minute.

100 miles. Running.

You might be thinking I’m crazy, and I might be, but know that I didn’t just start running two weeks ago and think “Hey, now that I’ve run my first 5k maybe now I should try a 100-miler?” Nope. I’ve been an endurance runner for over a decade. I’ve completed a dozen marathons, several triathlons including an IRONMAN, numerous 50ks (31 miles) and a 50-miler.

I got hooked on trail running after completing my first 50k. I love running through the woods, especially when I’m alone. It’s a very “present moment” activity for me; my brain can’t think about a whole lot other than breathing and where I’m putting my feet, so I don’t wipe out. It’s like my meditation time.

How Can I Possibly Run 100 Miles?

As much as I love trail running and long distances, I had no idea what running 100 miles would feel like. My farthest run before this was 50 miles, which was pretty hard. How could I possibly run twice that distance? I wasn’t sure if I had what it takes to do something this big. I mean, what if I fail? What does that say about me? I had a lot of doubt and fear.

I feel the same way about my business sometimes. How can I possibly succeed at this? It all seems so big! And what if I fail? What does that say about me and my character?

In early 2017 I had to make a big decision about my business. I was a solo entrepreneur running a creative agency. I was doing design work and building websites for clients. I came to realize that I didn’t love the design work and I actually hated building websites for clients. So now what? Something had to change.

I decided I would only do work that I loved and only do things I was really good at. So I started building an online course teaching brand-building to entrepreneurs. I love doing this work! But for me, this new project felt like the business equivalent of running 100 miles. It’s BIG. It’s way outside my comfort zone. There are times when I’m not sure I can make it work, and again I get bogged down with doubt and fear.

In Business & in Running Things Oft Go Awry

They give you 30 hours to complete the 100-mile race. You can run all day and all night, but if you don’t finish in the allotted 30 hours, it doesn’t count. This particular race was a looped course. You had to run six loops, and each loop was around 17 miles.

I started running at 4:00 pm Friday and kept running as the sun went down. I ran all through the night, in the dark and the cold, and then finally saw the sun come up Saturday morning. I ran all day Saturday. I was still running when the sun went down again Saturday evening around 8:00 pm.

For most of the race, I did pretty well. I ran smart. I kept a slow and steady pace. I didn’t push myself too hard, but I also wasn’t slacking. I had to keep moving. That 30-hour cutoff was always on my mind. Then I hit mile 83. I had one more 17-mile loop to go. My feet were killing me; they were super swollen, and I had developed some pretty awful blisters. My insides were wrecked. All I could eat were Saltines and pretzels. I was beyond tired; I had been running non-stop for more than 24 hours. And to top it off, I knew the sun would go down before I finished, so I’d have to run in the dark again. I was pretty beaten down at this point. Doubt and fear came screaming back to me.

I can kind of feel like this in my business sometimes too. I can work hard for days and months trying to build my email list, trying to gain more podcast listeners, trying to create lessons for my online course, and I just can’t seem to gain any traction.