No Human Is Limited
"I always say that no human is limited. I know that it is possible for me to break the barrier. I am very excited about the months of preparation to come and to show the world that when you focus on your goal, when you work hard, and when you believe in yourself anything is possible." — Eliud Kipchoge
Recently Eliud Kipchoge broke his own world record in the marathon. He covered 26.2 miles in 2 hours, 1 minute, and 9 seconds. This bettered his previous record by 30 seconds, and the second-place finisher in the race by more than 4 minutes.
Kipchoge is 37, a father of 3, and has multiple professional obligations. He's probably the greatest athlete in the world right now, but he is also all of us. He is one of my greatest inspirations because of his belief that "no human is limited.” It’s a mantra I have used as motivation so many times in recovery from alcohol addiction, because I believe in sobriety we are finally able to achieve our full potential.
Kipchoge says there are 4 things we can do to become limitless:
Get out of our own way;
Be clear about our goals;
Spend our extra time and energy on the pursuit of our goals, and not on wasted efforts; and
Surround yourself with people who want to see you succeed.
While Kipchoge is talking mostly about athletic achievement, these four principles also apply to sobriety:
Get out of your own way. Alcohol is limiting – it stunts emotional and physical development, impairs judgment, clouds decision-making, paralyzes action, and diminishes motivation, among so many other negative effects. In sobriety we regain our ability to lead ourselves effectively; we make better decisions, respond instead of react, learn to work with our emotions, and regain the motivation necessary to act on our ideas. Sobriety removes a major obstacle to personal growth.
Be clear about our goals. To me, there is a difference between being alcohol-free and being sober. Sobriety is about more than just not drinking – it’s about becoming the person you were always meant to be. That requires both the ability to set clear personal and professional goals, and also the ability to take action and to flourish towards those goals. In sobriety, we can gain clarity of our values, purpose, and goals so that we can envision the person we desire to be.
Spend our time wisely and deliberately. Low energy and poor time management are two of the biggest costs of active addiction. Not only are we bad about setting goals, but we lack the necessary personal resources to make progress toward them. With clarity of mind and renewed energy and focus, we can better manage our time and commitments, finally taking the conscious action necessary to become our best selves.
Surround yourself with people who want to see you succeed. As we say in The Luckiest Club: “only you can do this, but you cannot do it alone.” Being in a community where people have your back and your best interests in mind is critical to not only getting sober but also to fulfilling your potential. A supportive community provides camaraderie, accountability, safety, inspiration, and cheerleading. In sobriety, we celebrate together and celebrate each other. Is there anything more unlimiting than that?
I believe that we’re all running our own marathon, figuratively if not literally. Like Eliud Kipchoge, you can transcend any limitations that lay before you in your race. “No human is limited” – that means you, too. If you want to be in a community that will help you along the way, we’d love to have you in The Luckiest Club. We’re just a bunch of badasses who believe sobriety is the greatest adventure you’ll ever go on. You can find us fulfilling our potential here. We hope to see you soon!