I’m writing this blog today because on Sunday, Feb 14th, 2016, I will run my 10th Marathon.

I still find it hard to believe especially as, when I decided to run my first marathon just under three years ago, my two best friends were sceptical about my ability to run a single marathon, let alone complete 10. I remember their words very clearly, they said: “you’re too fat, you’re too old, and you’re too unfit to run a marathon, why not aim for something easier like a 10k run“.

Yet here I am getting ready for my 10th marathon, and not only will this be my 10th, but it will also be my 4th in 10 weeks.

One of the reasons I have pushed so hard is that I wanted to use my marathon running as an example of how we could use FAST to not only turn around performance but how we could look to build on it and take things to a level we couldn’t have imagined before.

We all have the ability to do more, but often we either don’t believe it, or we don’t know how. This means that our true potential can often go unfulfilled.

On my marathon journey, not only have i pushed myself to new heights I have also helped several others to achieve their first marathons, even thought they were non-runners previously too.

So how did I apply FAST?

It’s all starts with Focus. We need to be clear on our objective; we need to know what success looks like. For me this was something I was very clear on, it was always about finishing the race and finishing it healthy. It wasn’t about running a certain time or achieving a personal best; it’s always about crossing the line healthy. I remember my good friend Simon telling me any marathon you finish is a great achievement.

Accountability – this is pretty straightforward it’s pretty much all down to me, I’m the one who need to do the training, do the preparation and run the race. But by sharing my goals and objectives, e.g. I will run four races in 10 weeks with my friends, this helps increase my accountability. The public commitment is a great motivator as I don’t want to be seen to be giving up on my goals, certainly not as a leadership expert and coach, as that would look bad.

Simplicity – I take a simple approach to training, I start small and gradually week by week build up the distance. Even for the later marathons, I have used the same approach. For the 10-12 weeks before the race I increase the distance on my long run, usually on Sunday, making sure I run 10 miles 15 miles and 20 miles in the preceding weeks so I know that I can do the distance.

I also use the Galloway Run and Walk approach, which helps to keep me healthy, and which involved me running for 2 minutes and the walking for 30 seconds. It’s an interesting approach because it seems counter intuitive, as you would think walking would slow you your pace. But in fact using this approach has seen me increase the distance I can run and also created improvements in my times.

Transparency – This is about understanding what’s involved, know how far you need to go and how you’ve come. For this, there are many great applications and the one I use the most in Nike Plus. What I love about this application is that not only does it keep track of my performance but it also shows me that of my friends so I can see how their training is progressing which motivates me to keep going.

In the 3 1/2 years that I have been running, I have run nearly 3800km.
I have completed nine marathons, (Dusseldorf, Cologne, Vancouver, Athens, Miami (twice), Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach) I have done three half marathons and have helped seven people complete their first marathon, and have raised thousands of $ for charity.

I achieved all of this by using FAST. It’s an approach that I have used to run projects, departments and as you can see to turn myself from a non-runner into a FAST Marathon Runner.

FAST is an approach that can be used to transforms performance of a company, a department a team or an individual.

It’s simple, straightforward and easy to apply. It helps to make tasks easier by making us more effective and more efficient, but it doesn’t make things easy. As with the marathon running, FAST helps, but you still have to complete 26.2 miles to be successful.

People are not afraid of hard work; they’re afraid of failure!

Using FAST you can show people how they will be successful, what they need to do to achieve their goals, and all of which helps to build confidence which is crucial to being successful.

To find out more about FAST & learn how you could apply it to transform your performance, click here and lets get started FAST!

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The only problem is that formal education doesn’t really teach us about mindset, dealing with people or about how to react in times of adversity, all of which are fundamental in achieving real and sustainable success. It was in these areas that my father had a huge impact on my development, and these are the five things that he taught me which have helped me advance my career and that I will look to pass on to my children.

1. Don’t let your history determine your future.

My father came from a family of coal miners going back several generations, in fact, every living male relative of my father worked down the coal mines. But that wasn’t a life my father wanted for himself or his children. My dad decided that education was going to be his escape route, so he worked hard and became the first member of his family to go grammar school and then he completed the equivalent of an electrical engineering degree. This allowed my father to get a good position at a telecoms company and break the cycle of coal mining.

My dad used to tell this story to me often to remind me that anything was possible and that we should set our goals based on where we want to be rather than where we are. He used to say “don’t let your history determine your future.” Following his advice and example, I was the first member of the family to go to University, and then went on to become a Top Leadership Expert, who’d written three books, even though there were no authors in our family.

2. Treat everyone like they’re important.

My father was always a humble man, he treated everyone with respect, whether they were a janitor or managing director. He always used to say, “remember no matter how successful you become you still put your trousers on one leg at a time, same as everyone else. Never demand or expect special treatment. Never treat people badly just because you feel they’re beneath you. Make everyone feel important because you never know who they know, or what they will become.” It’s amazing the impact that this has on people, especially yourself; it helps build trust and respect, and it also makes people more willing to help you in your goals.

3. Do the tough things when it matters most.

My dad was a big sports fan, and he was always most impressed by the players who got the job done when the going got tough. He said these were the people you could depend on. It’s easy to shine when things are going well, but those who are truly the best do their best when the going is the toughest. That’s what will make you stand out. It was this advice that made me volunteer for the tough projects, those that no one else wanted to do, and when we successfully delivered them it was this that helped me stand out and get promoted ahead of my colleagues.

4. Come in quietly, do a great job, leave loudly.

My dad would always say, “don’t tell me what you can do, show me.” In fact, he hated those people who would shout about how good they were and who would then come in and fail. He always said to me, “come in quietly, under promise, over deliver, then leave loudly as it always leaves a better impression.” He always believed it was better to shout about what you’d done, rather than shouting about what you’re going to do.

There’s a fine line between arrogance and confidence and using this advice always helped me stay on the right side of that line. Arrogance can be a real turn-off, but when you’re confident it helps build trust and confidence in others.

5. You sleep soundly with a clear conscience.

If there was one thing my father said more than any other, it was “it’s never the wrong time to do the right thing.” When it came to his values, it was this that was the one that most important to him. He always said, “it’s easy to know what’s the right thing to do just ask your conscience, and if you always do the right thing you will sleep a lot more soundly.” In business there are many times that we have to make tough decisions, one’s that can have a big impact on the lives of others.

These are never easy decisions to make, and nor should they be, but if you can be sure that you have done the right thing, not only will you be able to look yourself in the mirror, but also your colleagues. You cannot put a price on a clear conscience.

Following this advice has helped me achieve some amazing goals, things that others thought were impossible, it’s allowed me to remain humble, earn trust and respect and also sleep soundly at night. This is exactly what I wish for my children and why I will be sharing the same advice.

What five things would you like to pass on to your children and why?

First published in Huffington Post.

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I was reminded of this when I read the following poem by my good friend Pete Leighton. Pete does a great job of explaining simply and beautifully how to be a great parent.

Loving a daughter is about just two things 
Give her roots, then give her wings 
Let her find herself and all she should be
Then show her the futures of all she could be
Teach her constantly to enjoy the day
To grin and laugh come what may
Show her approval so she’ll love herself
And teach her how to live in good health
It’s fun to do but hard to say
I’m teaching my daughter to fly away

If you can accomplish this with your teams and/or children then you are a great leader.

As parents and leaders, I agree with Peter that, the hardest part it teaching them to fly away.

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Do you want to be remembered as a leader who delivered great change, significant improvements or fantastic results, or do you want to be remembered for something else.

One of the things I always strive for is that any changes I implement will still be in use after I leave.

Why is this important to me? It’s important because it means the changes were perceived as beneficial, not just change for change sake.

I have worked with many leaders, who as soon they left, the changes they implemented were replaced, removed or forgotten.

This means that people were only following the new process because of that leaders position, not because they believed the change was an improvement.

If the changes I implement, are rejected the day I leave, then these were the wrong processes.

To ensure that the changes are actually improvements and not just changes, I try to focus on simplicity, simplifying complexity or even better removing it. Making it easier for people to be able to do their jobs and be successful.

I often find where we eliminate complex unnecessary processes they tend to remain eliminated.

Also, given that success leads to success, if you make changes which mean that people are more successful than they were previously, then it’s very likely that people will stick with these changes, as most people like to be successful.

I am a strong believer in stewardship, which means I believe that it’s my responsibility to leave things in a better shape than what they were when I joined them.

I’d like to be remembered as someone who made a positive difference.

What would you like your legacy to be?

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