London Marathon #5: 16 weeks to go

Happy New Year! It's interesting listening to the different "takes" on coming into a new year, emphasis on new, as no-one has ever lived through it, we don't know what will unfold over the next twelve months. Some people look at it through a "world weary" lens, the "same shovel, different shit" camp. Others look at it through a "hopeful" lens, seeing it as a chance to reinvigorate, refresh, renew. It's a choice! More on that later...

This week's program is in the books:

• Tuesday: Tempo run to Oropendola Waterfall, Costa Rica

• Wednesday: Recovery run in Tanzania, at the base of Mount Kilimanjaro

• Thursday: Interval run around Lake Naivasha, Kenya

• Friday: Recovery run through the old town of Bucharest, Romania

• Saturday: Long run on more of the Nakasendo Trail, Japan

• Sunday: Easy, progressive run around the streets of town

• Monday: Walk to Granite Lake, Lake Tahoe, California

My self-leadership learning this week was about how we view the world and what that means for our state of wellbeing. How we interpret the world, in turn, determines how we react to what happens to us, and around us. We can share the same experience as the person next to us but what we see, and our individual reactions mean our "truths" can be very different.

Case in point: Melbourne Cricket Ground, Boxing Day, 2002, first day of the test match against England. Hovering near the entrances to the pitch are hundreds of excited little kids dressed in Milo Cricket outfits, ready to have their moment of glory and play in front of thousands of people. The gates open and they flood out onto the ground, my son, Lewis, is among them. He played his little heart out in that short window of time. He had the best day! Mind you, his sister was less enthused! As we left the ground, we walked past a big red double decker bus full of English supporters. They were shouting out of the windows and when they spotted my son in his green and gold cricket gear, he became fair game. Most of what they called out is not repeatable, but Lewis turned to me with a big smile on his face and said, "Mum, look they're cheering for me." I said, "They sure are mate."

Choosing our lens...

• Rather than imagining everyone is a critic, imagine everyone is a cheerleader

• Refuse to take on the negative energy of other people, influence them with your positive outlook

• Rise above a situation by extracting yourself from the emotion of the moment, look for the funny side (if appropriate), or the broader context

• Look for the good in people and situations, it's easy to find fault

"It's not what you look at that matters, it is what you see" - Henry David Thoreau