How to Prevent Triathlete Fatal Flaws
No matter how good you think you are or others know you are, if you perform a fatal triathlete flaw, then all the good you developed in training, all the greatness you displayed while racing, and all the positive reputation you earned becomes tarnished.
Fatal flaws are limiters to triathletes, your professional career, and your life.
First step is to recognize types of fatal flaws: 1.) personality traits, 2.) too much action, 3.) lack of action, and 4.) under-developed abilities. Next, know how to make decisions to avoid them. Finally, understand your accountability to prevent fatal flaws while pursuing your life’s ambitions. Here, we’ll focus on triathloning though recognize the process is portable to other endeavors.
The write-up is not about you being perfect but preventing and minimalizing impairment when problems occur and to capitalize on resulting opportunities.
Here are examples of fatal flaws pertaining to personality traits of some triathletes:
Inconsistency – On race day, superstar Kyle shows up and shines. But at other races, his evil twin Lyle wears his brother’s kit and puts on a shit show.
Procrastination – “I cancelled my hard run for today. I pushed out the long bike ride for later. I need to check the pool schedule for the next open swim session. Sure, I’ll get my workout in sometime.”
Selfishness – “You don’t really need me at rehearsal do you as long as I show up the next day right? I’ll definitively be there for our wedding night though.”
Self-Doubt – “I’m not sure about swimming in open water without a black line.” “I’ve never even run a marathon, let alone after swim and bike legs in a race.”