How to Eat an Elephant
I recently returned from a wonderful vacation in the U.S. I
spent some time with my family, visited some friends, and
spent three weeks in Alaska, climbing Mt. McKinley. Mt. McKinley,
or Denali, is the highest mountain in North America.
Before I started the climb, I asked a climber who had just
flown off the mountain if he had any last-minute advice.
"Climb one day at a time," he said wisely. Our lead guide, who has six summits of Mt. Everest,
reinforced this sage advice when he asked us, "How do you
eat an elephant?" The answer, of course, is "One bite at a
time." I'm taking this for granted, because I have never
eaten an elephant, nor do I plan to. It made me think,
however, that we all have our own "elephants" to eat.
Sometimes it is best to remind ourselves to "eat" them one
bite at a time. Our unforgettable climb began at 7,200 feet where we
arrived by aircraft at the Kahiltna glacier. The thought of
ascending to 20,320 over a distance of about 15 miles
(somewhat steep) was a little daunting that first day. After 5
days, we had only reached 11,000 feet but had covered
more than half of the horizontal distance. This meant that the
remaining elevation gain would be quite rapid. It was
important to travel slowly, both for acclimatization purposes
and to become stronger rather than weaker as the climb
continued. We reached the summit 13 days after we landed on the
mountain. At times we traveled no faster than 1/4 mile per
hour, breathing at a rate of 2-3 breaths per step as the
amount of available oxygen gradually diminished. There
were times when I thought I could only take one more step.
So I would take it, and then I'd take one more, and one
more, until I had climbed for two more hours. Every day I stayed focused on that day. I didn't think about
all the climbing that lay ahead, just what my task for that day
was. At the beginning of each day, I knew I could do what
had to be done, whereas if I thought too far ahead, I might have
doubted my ability to finish. ACTIVITY What is the elephant in your life? Do you have a task that you
have been putting off because it seems to big too tackle? What
about a change you want to make in your life that would require
time, patience and courage? Write down at the top of a sheet of paper what it is that you
want to do. Make a timeline for completion, and break the
task into smaller, less intimidating steps. Continue breaking the
task down until you think you can manage each individual step. Now start eating that elephant! If you would like some support "eating your elephant," please
don't hesitate to send me an email! Jenni Fogle, Personal Coach
http://www.vitaricca.com Please email jennifogle@vitaricca.com to subscribe to my free monthly newsletter or for more information about how coaching can enrich your life!
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