Everyone needs someone who can push themselves to get more out themselves than they could on their own.
Don Yaeger makes this point in his book Greatness about the importance of surrounding yourself with great talent who can help you pace yourself to achieve more. He says:
“Runners call them pacers—those people who are just a little bit faster and, consequently, make you run a stride or two more quickly in pursuing them. And runners will swear by them. Having someone just ahead whose back is taunting you, or just behind whose footsteps are always drawing closer, can be the biggest motivator in moving a runner forward. As former NFL coach Jan McKeithen famously said, ‘If you cannot win, make the one ahead of you break the record.’
“Do you know anyone in your personal life or professional life who is kind of a pacer for you? Is there someone who challenges you to reach for the next level either through example, rivalry, or encouragement? It’s important to remember that those we associate with can offer us any or all three of these ways of pushing us forward. The question is: will you allow them to do so?
“That’s the secret: you have to recognize those individuals who have the potential to motivate you, and you have to be willing to let yourself be stretched. It’s all up to you as to if and how you let your associations influence you.” –Greatness, p. 37.
In his book 8 Ways to Great, author Dr. Doug Hirschhorn shares this insight from how Roger Bannister broke the four-minute mile. The lesson is one all entrepreneurs can better apply in their businesses. He says: “One of the most compelling illustrations of how setting short-term goals and committing to the process leads to extraordinary achievement is the story of how Roger Bannister became the first person to ever run a mile in under four minutes. At the time, many people believed that running a sub-four-minute mile was humanly impossible, but Bannister had a plan. He ran with two pacemakers. The first pacemaker, Chris Brasher, ran under the four-minute pace with Bannister slotted to run behind him for the first half mile. Then, when Brasher began to tire, Bannister signaled to his second pacemaker, Chris Chataway, to take over. Chataway moved up and ran under the pace with Bannister right behind him until they were two hundred yards from the finish, at which point Bannister sprinted ahead and crossed the finish line in 3 minutes, 59.4 seconds. The point is, Bannister didn’t start out saying he had to run the mile in under four minutes. Instead, he had short-term goals—keeping up first with Brasher and then with Chataway—and when those two things were added together, Roger found himself being the first person to break the ‘impossible’ four-minute mile.”
It takes commitment to surround yourself with pacers. It is easier to just try to do things on your own. But, consider this story of the impact that committed teammates can have on one another from the life of Paul Facella that he had while working at McDonalds as a teenager. Facella eventually worked for 34 years and retired as a regional vice-president, but this lesson is one that really stuck with him. His introduction to the camaraderie that good contests and standards at his first job is a great example of the power of positive competition within teams. He says of that experience:
“I worked my way up to grill person, the key position, after many months and had a pretty good knack for speed and dexterity, always striving to perform up to the standards expected of me. Coworkers and I raced to see who was the fastest at flipping the burgers and putting patties on the grill. I could usually hold my own. But the more important contests were sales. We strove to break any record…hourly, daily, or weekly. There was a bonus if you worked during that time period. And we broke records. Our store became one of the top sales restaurants in the area, and we got quite good at keeping the lines down and increasing sales. It was also important in the status of crew if you worked the ‘record’ hour on your station. We fought to be there when the big crowds gathered for a chance to break the record on our shift. There was clearly some alpha male stuff going on within our group. I became a fixture on Saturdays, as that was our busiest day. One Saturday I took off work for a family event and my coworkers called me at home gloating that they had broken a new record hour and just ‘wanted to let me know.’ Of course, it had the intended effect of making me jealous of them, and I was riled up to ‘take it back’ the following Saturday. It also made me decide to ditch the idea of going to my upcoming high school graduation ceremony and just work instead. Heck, the school could mail my diploma; the challenge of being there for another record breaking was far too tempting. With the team so focused on ‘being the best,’ the competitive spirit was always present.”—Everything I Know About Business I Learned at McDonald’s, pp. 77-78.
Pacers that we all have are competitors. I really like what Vince Lombardi, coach of the Green Bay Packers said about the importance of his competitors in making his team perform better. He said: “The important thought is that the Packers thrived on tough competition. We welcomed it; the team had always welcomed it. The adrenaline flowed a little quicker when we were playing the tougher teams.”
Wayne Calloway, former CEO of Pepsi said: “Nothing focuses the mind better than the constant sight of a competitor who wants to wipe you off the map.”
Choose to find pacers that will help you perform at a higher level and you will accomplish much more than you would have on your own.
Don Yeager says it best in his book Greatness:
“Don’t be content with being good—always be driven to be better….Don’t be afraid to challenge yourself; muscles can grow only if they are worked beyond their current capacity. Surround yourself with people who will pace you….We are who we associate with. The five people you spend the most time with in life are going to decide just how successful you are. Are these five people you are closest to taking you to Greatness? The right ones can make all the difference.”–p. 38.
Nothing will affect where you will be in the next five years more than the people you spend time with and the books you read. Be sure to surround yourself with pacers that keep you on track towards the continual achievement of your goals. You control who you choose to associate with. Be sure that you are associating with those who will help you keep up the pace and who will encourage you when you are tempted to slack off. With that kind of association and focus, you’ll be able to stay on track towards the accomplishment of your goals.
