I usually save stories of my endurance-running exploits for my running buddies, but my most recent race experience, Leona Divide 100k, is different. The race in remote Green Valley, California, was the first ultra marathon I’ve successfully completed in almost three years, the pandemic having put the kibosh on such social events for a spell. For this reason alone, it is near and dear to my heart. Leona Divide took place the Saturday after Easter. For Christians, the Easter season is a time of rebirth and renewal, and I’d be lying to say such notions weren’t floating through my head—life affirming thoughts that I could still pull off such feats after a prolonged absence from the sport. Yet, the experience contains lessons that go far beyond the realm of endurance sports.
Let’s focus on the importance of having an explicit spectrum of goals—“A,” “B,” and “C,” if you will—when approaching the bargaining table. Precious few of us have the luxury of demanding that everything go our own way without exception. A more realistic approach is to have a series of goals—good, better, and best—that we enumerate for ourselves before undertaking any difficult negotiation or embarking on any great venture.
