In life there are many mountains and towers to climb to accomplish a goal. It may not be easy but when you get to the top, the air is so much sweeter when you breathe in the taste of victory. I’d like to share with you how I survived my climb up the CN Tower back in October 2013. For starters, it wasn’t easy.

They say that every journey begins with the first step. I remembered being asked to participate a few weeks earlier to raise money for the United Way. I was a little out of shape at the time but here’s how I survived the 1,776 steps.

 1)     Train With An End Goal In Mind: I knew that my cardio was not as strong as it needed to be, so I created a schedule where I would run on the treadmill for about 10 minutes three days a week. I gradually increased it to 20 minutes, four times in the last week.  When I was not working on my cardio I was working on my flexibility. I am in my forties and I knew that such a run would place excessive strain on my muscles and joints. The things I could do when I was in my twenties, now takes me a little longer to do or recover from. Yoga was a great solution for me to get prepared. As well, it helped me clear my mind. I am a firm believer in luck favouring the prepared. In accomplishing any goal, it is important you are prepared to do whatever it takes to achieve it.

 2)     Do Your Research: I like to be informed when I am working on accomplishing my goals; it makes the process so much easier. I talked to people who had completed the climb and adjusted my training accordingly. A friend shared with me his experience a few years earlier when he did it with a friend. At the beginning of the climb the friend took off like a bullet but by the fourth floor he was physically and mentally spent. I learned that keeping a consistent pace was necessary for success, so I adjusted my training accordingly. Remember that knowledge is power when you are working on achieving a goal.

 3)     Delay Gratification: I love cheesecake and a good glass of wine like the next person, but I knew that I would have to go on a diet and shed the excess weight I had gained over the years. As much as I hated doing it, I cut down my meal portions and I stuck to my exercise routine. Getting up early when your body wants to sleep was never a great feeling but a necessary step in accomplishing my goal. What do you need to give up in order to achieve your goal in business or your personal life?  All great athletes will share how they had to give up so much before they could reach the top.

 4)     Show Up: It may not seem like rocket science but simply showing up to face a difficult challenge at least gives you a fighting chance. I have yet to hear of any team winning an event without showing up. It is about casting your fears aside and being present in mind, body and spirit that will determine your level of success. On the day of the event I had to get to the tower before 7 am. It was dark and cold when I arrived and to make matters worse, I blamed myself for going to a friend’s 50^th birthday party the night before and staying late. I looked at the enormous structure and I remembered saying to myself “What am I doing here?” I continued my way into the auditorium where I was surrounded by a sea of beautiful people, half my age, with 0% body fat, all wearing the latest training attire. It made me feel a little more nervous. How could I beat these people who were in the prime of their lives? Then it dawned on me; it was all for charity and there were people depending on me. I was not racing them, I was racing myself. I started to feel my confidence return; I continued to focus on my training and the knowledge I had acquired and used them as a compass for my success. I soon met my teammates and we all agreed on one thing; we would complete the challenge and reach the top of the CN Tower. No quitters; only winners in raising the funds for charity.

5)     Persevere Through The Pain: I remembered when we started running I needed to distance myself from the slower people to allow myself more room to run freely. By the fifth floor I started to feel pain in my joints; it felt as if someone was hitting them with bamboo sticks. On the 10^th floor my muscles were starting to cramp up. They felt as if someone was slicing them with a knife; I had to resort to using my arms to pull me along the way. I thought to myself, “Why on earth am I putting my body through all this torture and pain? Was it really necessary?” Then I remembered I was doing it for charity and I pressed on. Oddly enough I found myself passing the same young people I feared. Many of them were starting to lose steam which gave me more of an advantage. I was given the gift of more breathing room to continue my quest. There was no water in sight to soothe my dry burning throat; my lips started to feel dry and cracked but I continued to press on. My body screamed for me to stop and rest but I knew if I stopped, it would be all over. I convinced myself to keep on going even when it was at a slower pace. I continued to push through the struggle. After a while my body started to condition itself and I found myself sailing passed more people. If it was not for a bottleneck I encountered on the last four flights I may have been able to go a little faster. In the end, I honoured my word and I reached the top of the CN Tower along with my other team mates; we all successfully completed the challenge!

 6)     Set A Timeframe To Accomplish Your Goal: Few of the people I spoke to shared with me that they were able to complete the climb in about 30 to 35 minutes. Measurement is the only way of knowing if you have truly succeeded in achieving your goal. I had set a goal of climbing the tower in 25 minutes but I pushed through the pain and was able to complete it in 22 minutes and 45 seconds!

By training with an end goal in mind, doing research, delaying your gratification, persevering through the pain and setting realistic timeframes, you too can accomplish your goals.

Turn your towers and mountains into molehills to achieve your dreams!