It sounds really negative to say it out-loud or to someone else- "You'll never be the best". Is there such a thing as being the "best" at something? We can strive to be the best and we may even get really close, but being the greatest at something is really just an opinion. Sure, a lot of people may agree with you, but not every one- you'll always have a few that may agree that they were really good at something, but definitely not the BEST. For example, I could say that Michelle Kwan is the best figure skater of all time, many would agree with me, but a few could think that Peggy Fleming was the best or maybe Sarah Hughes- it's all just an opinion; you can't actually crown someone the "best" at a particular activity for the rest of eternity because there will always be someone better. 

So, you may be asking what brought-about this ray-full-of-sunshine viewpoint? I got a little down on myself yesterday because while I LOVE where I live it's kinda freakishly populated with really really good athletes. Like Olympiads, ultra runners, iron men & women, sub-3 hour marathoners, etc. Even when these athletes say they're not "really" athletes, they're still able to pull-out sub 3:30 marathons and mountain bike up the ski mountain and back down with little-to-none training. It is really inspiring, but it can also be a little disappointing. 

I've always been one to really work SO hard at something and for it to turn out only mediocre. Sure I've never had a DNF and been relatively injury-free (some may say these are pretty lucky endeavors in itself), but I've also worked my ass off to shave 30 minutes off my half-marathon PR and 45 minutes off my marathon PR. It could seem pretty judgy (doesn't it always seem this way when you're on the other side of the window pane looking in?) to say that most of these 'athletes' don't work as hard as I do and get leaps and bounds ahead of me, but it really feels this way. 

I know they always say like things will taste better the longer they've marinated or the hard you work, but don't you just sometimes wish things would come to you with a twist of a wand like in Cinderella (seriously what was Disney teaching me when I was younger?!)? I was stuck in a negative-Nancy viewpoint and just felt like giving up was easier than working hard;

I was looking at the entire mountain I had to move rather than just looking at the hill directly in front of me. 

And maybe sometimes we just need to settle. No, no, no. I don't mean this like "OK go ahead and settle on the fact that you're never going anywhere in life, those 5 last pounds are never coming off, you're never going to make any money might as well start selling your sole etc.- type of viewpoint". I mean it as maybe we need to be OK with where the chapter of our life is currently- I really struggle with this A LOT because I'm such a go-go-go chaser of dreams and big things, but sometimes I miss smelling the flowers and how I truly felt in each chapter of my life because I was SO focused on the NEXT BIG THING.

I've had to realize that there will always be someone better/faster/stronger/fitter/prettier etc. than me and be OK with that- I'll never be the best though. These are the things that make us improve ourselves and strive for improvement everyday. Without goals or others pushing us to be 'better', we would always just settle and never chase anything down- our running would stagnant, our lives would stay stuck on repeat, and your work would never lead you anywhere in life besides where you currently are. 

I think this will continue to be a work-in-progress type of thing for me because I am such a competitive person and really always want to be "the best" at something or just give up entirely. I'm working on just continuing to improve and not look at the big-picture all the time, but rather just focus on what my job needs to be today, this week, month, training cycle, hour, etc. 

That's enough of my thoughts and rants today- any thoughts?