After cycling from Land’s End to John O’Groats, Les Jones explains some of the lessons he learned along the way.
I have recently completed the challenge of cycling from Land’s End to John O’Groats (Lejog).
I did it with four great mates from the dental sector – Chris Barrow, Sheila Scott, Ashley Latter and Simon Tucker.
We went under the banner of ‘Fivegoforth’.
It was tough…really tough, but it was also exhilarating, enjoyable and hugely rewarding.
In essence, it was a project, much like any other project, and it got me thinking about the key lessons I learned along the way that could be applied to your business.
So, I’m here to share these with you over a series of short blogs.
Remember to enjoy the views
Land’s End to John O’Groats is a long way – we cycled just over 1,000 miles in 15 days.
There’s no denying, it was hard work – we had a destination to get to each evening and an overall goal of completing the journey.
Sometimes, it was a case of full-on, heads down pedalling – we would just be concentrating on the next 20 yards of road ahead whilst looking out for potholes and other hazards.
The pace would be good and we’d be ticking down the miles, but at the same time, we’d be missing the scenery that was all around us.
The more we got into the ride, the more we realised that it was as much about the journey as it was about reaching our destination.
We started to stop more often, take more pictures and cycle more with our heads up taking in the magnificent scenery of our beautiful country.
This is a great analogy for what happens in many businesses and dental practices.
People getting sucked into the coalface of the day-to-day and losing sight of the bigger picture.
Or being so driven and ambitious to keep succeeding and achieving more, that you fail to stop and appreciate what you already have.
It’s all about the journey
More often than not, it is the journey that delivers the greatest riches, and that was true on our mammoth cycle ride.
Crossing the finish line was a great moment and one that will stay with me forever, but the journey was laden with memories that far outweigh those final moments – the camaraderie and team spirit, the banter and the laughs, the quirky moments, the wonderful people we met along the way, the interesting towns and cities we passed through and the stunning scenery from Cornwall to the Highlands of Scotland.
The achievement is just a trophy…a statistic, but the journey is where the memories lie and the greatest satisfaction and fulfilment resides.
So, whatever journey you’re on, be it personal or business, take some time out to stand back and appreciate where you’ve come from, where you are right now and what you’ve got – you’ll be surprised how much you take for granted.
You can still sponsor the Fivegoforth team, just head over to the donations page.
Read some of the other lessons from Lejog:
