Key Lessons To Learn From The World’s Fastest Man – Usain Bolt

Success for me is just continuing to do great things. I am not fully successful. For me, I will be a great athlete if I can do this year after year.”- Usain Bolt

USAIN BOLT needs no much introduction. From a regular young boy in a small town in Jamaica, he grew to become the world’s fastest man. His achievements has earned him a place in the history book after smashing world records, winning all 3 sprint titles. He contested in 3 consecutive Olympic games, bagging 9 gold medals, endorsement deals and establishing his own business chain.

Asides all these great achievements, Usain is just like any one of us. He has had his own setbacks and challenges. His career was plagued by injuries and suffered disappointments at its early stage making him almost lose track of his goal and visualize failure. However, he never allowed all these to discourage him. Instead he drew motivation from these setbacks. He always kept fighting and knew what he wanted to achieve.

Who knows? Without these, he might not have gotten to where he is today. As his coach Glen Mills said- “You must lose in order to win.” He had to sit back with his coach and analyse the situation, and from there knew what he had to do to get better.

Attaining such height is no easy task. It requires motivation, determination, focus, sacrifice, and critical thinking.

Here are key lessons to note from Usain Bolt’s success:

Stop dwelling on the beginning, focus on the end

“There are better starters than me, but I’m a strong finisher.” – Usain Bolt

If you take a look at a lot of Bolt’s races, he doesn’t usually have a good start. However he doesn’t dwell too long on this or allow it to affect his performance. He has learnt to focus on what is most important which is winning the race. He knows he is not a good starter so he works on his strength by building up his speed and uses this to work positively for him. The start is not always smooth however we shouldn’t allow this determine the end result for us. We have to focus on improving our strengths, managing our weaknesses and getting better. No matter how bad you have started, there is always an opportunity to finish well and strong.

Set your goals and be clear about it

“You have to set yourself goals so you can push yourself harder. Desire is the key to success.” – Usain Bolt

Set goals for yourself and do not be afraid to publicly declare them. This will only push you to work harder to achieve these goals. Usain Bolt publicly declared that he wanted to be the best sprinter in the world and he did not fail to accomplish that.

Equip yourself

“I always had to keep improving my skills in order to remain competitive and keep winning.” – Usain Bolt

Bolt did not achieve this level of greatness by being comfortable and confident in his ability to always win. He had to work and train hard for it. You need to understand that life is a long learning school. Even Richard Branson, the mega entrepreneur knows this. The day you stop working on improving yourself and your business is the day you have failed. Always remember that here are people behind you working hard to take your spot.The world will not wait or slow down for you because you are experiencing a low moment. Therefore, you need to work hard and put in efforts towards your development.

Don’t allow fear overtake you

“I know what I can do, so I never doubt myself.” – Usain Bolt

Fear is so bad that it limits you from doing what you have to do to achieve your goals. In fact, it changes how you view yourself. Usain Bolt never allowed fear take over him and he remained confident all through and came out successful. Do not allow yourself get intimidated by others in your industry, instead focus on your goals and work towards it.

Authencity and personality is key

Think about why you love Usain Bolt. It is not just his speed. It is also because of his personality and how authentic he appears to be. He is always smiling and playing even when he is about to start a race. He shows that he enjoys what he is doing. Despite all his fame, he still complains about trainings, admits to fast food cravings and celebrates after a huge win like he should.

At the end of the day, it is not just the skills or competence that wins people over. Your ability to connect and relate with them on an intimate level, and most importantly compel a positive action towards your business is what matters.

Remain yourself, be true to your business and goals and work hard towards achieving them.