Wednesday Wellness
Inspiring Insights with Shane
Setbacks to Successes
I recently had a conversation with Shane Jackson around the topic and asked if he would share with us some of this thoughts. As many are also aware, he is an avid triathlete. Walking by his office on the 4th floor you will see trophies and pictures from him and other team members in action! He has an inspiring story from a previous race in which he experienced a setback and then was able to translate that into a success.
1).
First, thank you for visioneering workplace wellness and seeing that healthy initiatives are locked in place. You take wellness personal as you are in great shape and keep yourself committed to a training goal. What type of training do you enjoy most and why?
2).
Thanks. At the end of 2012 I was in the best shape of my life. I had trained very hard all summer for a half ironman and was in a bike accident 8 days before the race. Surgery, physical therapy and six weeks of sleeping in a chair really set me back in training and basically eliminated my offseason strength training. I trained hard this year and while I didn’t quite get back to the shape I was in last year, I still had a good race. Some of the motivation was a feeling of “unfinished business” in wanting to go out and set a new personal record at that distance.
However, the real drive this year was total gratefulness for being able to train. Last year I trained so hard that by the end I was burnt out and begrudgingly doing the workouts just to get through the race. The wreck really helped me realize what a privilege it is to be blessed with a healthy and functional body. Many people can only dream about doing running or riding a bike and here I am able to do it. I thoroughly enjoyed every workout I did this year and race day was really just a celebration of life for me. To cap it off, I had the honor of racing alongside and in honor of several of our wounded warriors. I didn’t quite hit my goal for the race time, but still set a personal record and despite the immense physical suffering you endure in that kind of race I enjoyed it more than any race I have done.
3).
It's evident you place associate wellbeing equal to phenomenal service to our clients and customers. Can you speak to that and give us a glimpse into your vision for continued and elevated workplace wellness?
I think the two are highly aligned. People who take care of themselves personally are much better equipped to take care of their customers. Plus, I believe that people who have discipline in their personal life are much more likely to have discipline in their professional life.
I think we have just started down our journey of creating an environment that enables and encourages people to live well in every aspect of their life. I think we have done a good job of providing lots of opportunity for associates around physical activity, but I think we can do much better in an area that is frankly more important – nutrition. I am very excited about what we will be doing in the new Ciao and am eager for that to open. I am also excited about the new groups that have formed to provide fun and accountability around common interests – from walking to boot camp to racquetball. Living Well and being fit doesn’t mean everyone should do triathlon (although who wouldn’t want to???), it is about finding something you enjoy that results in fitness and health. I tell people all the time to get rid of words like “exercise” and “diet.” For many people these have negative connotation. Find something that is fun to you and then it will be easy to get in shape. Find healthy foods you like and then you’ll never have to go on a diet. Life is too short to be miserable and there is no need to be miserable trying to be healthy. There are too many fun activities and good foods that can give you the results you want.
And that is living well.