KM: Today I’ve come to a beautiful suburb of Kansas City to speak with a woman who has just done something a bit unusual. Nancy, can you tell me what you did last Saturday?
NO: Thanks, Keith. I appreciate you coming to visit with me, but was it really so unusual? I just got up early on the morning of my birthday and started walking.
KM: It was a bit more than that, surely!
NO: It was the culmination of an idea that was planted in the late summer of 2014. I have a dear friend in Phoenix who challenged me to run a marathon six months hence. He was putting together a training schedule and knew that I walked 5K’s every month with my friends, and said I should join them. At the time, I had lost about 20 pounds and was still far from my goal, but he thought I could do it.
KM: So, did you start training right away?
NO: No. I have a bone issue with my feet and I am unable to run more than a few steps before they become painful, so I knew running was out of the question. I just kept at my monthly 5K’s and my Jazzercise classes and really thought no more about it. But then, something happened.
Through another friend in New Mexico, I learned about a program called Master Key Master Mind Alliance, and began working on my “stinkin’ thinkin’ “ in September that year. What I learned in that six months changed the course of my entire life.
KM: Can you tell me more about that?
NO: I can boil it down to the fact that it’s a system of self-discovery that taught me how to train my own conscious and subconscious mind in order to become the best I can be, and to design my life however I want.
I released self-doubt, fear, and low self-esteem. I lost 50 pounds and am healthier than I was 30 years ago. As I released the negativity, my self esteem began to grow. At the end of the class, I was so grateful for the opportunity to become a Guide. The MKMMA had done so much for me, I was humbled and excited to be able to help others as well. I know that to really learn, you need to teach, and being a guide has moved me farther along my own path. I’ve learned so much from my tribe by reading their blogs every week.
Sometimes simple thought are so profound. One of my tribe members blogged about changing the lamps in her bedroom, and how order on the inside creates order on the outside, so I started reclaiming the garden in my yard that had gotten away from me in past years, and it has helped me with balance in my life overall.
KM: I can certainly appreciate that you’ve put a lot of time into this garden. It’s absolutely wonderful.
NO: Thanks so much! I love spending time out here. I do a lot of reading, studying, and meal planning out here, in addition to hosting small get-togethers and dinners for friends. We love to cook out, and the garden is just perfect for all those things.
KM: So let’s get back to last Saturday. You got up and went for a walk?
NO: Like I said, the seed was planted over two years ago, and when I started working on the Master Keys, the thought of walking a marathon kept bubbling up from time to time. It became a symbol to me, sort of like climbing Everest and planting a flag at the summit. I began investigating some local events and added some 10K’s in with my monthly 5K’s – – then of course, half-marathons follow the 10K’s and I scheduled some of those.
Again, the problem came because of my feet. The marathons have a six-hour time limit, which would cause me to have to go at a 13 minute mile pace for the entire six hours. I knew that wasn’t an option, so I mapped out a course here in town, starting at my own front door. I got great advice from my friend in Phoenix about what to eat and what supplements to take before, during and after the race. I let my family and friends know the route and about where I’d be at any given time and I started walking at 4 a.m. Different ones would join me for a mile, or an hour, or whatever they could do throughout the morning, and we took a lot of great selfies along the way.
KM: Was it difficult? Did you want to quit?
NO: Yes, it was very difficult, and no, I didn’t want to quit. When I make my mind up to do something, I finish it. I no longer have the habit of failure in my life. The times when I had companions were great, but so were the times of solitude – especially those first two hours in the morning. I love being up before the birds and witnessing the dawn of a new day. You know, maybe it was unusual. When you’re in a race of any distance, the people and the hype and the music all help keep you going. I was mostly alone and had to dig deep to keep moving forward.
KM: Do you have any advice for anyone who may want to change their life?
NO: Absolutely, do it, go for it! The only thing standing in my way was me. I do not believe in coincidences. I wanted to change, I was ready to change, and Mark J., my Master Keys teacher showed up. In my opinion the two most powerful words in the English language are “I decided.” So, decide what your life will be, and then get about the business of creating it!
“Do. Or do not. There is no try.” – Yoda – The Empire Strikes Back