The Olympics Shocked me (and 4 lessons about life and business)

mo farah olympics rio success
Mo Farah, one of the best runners in history. Photo by Al King. No changes made to image. Image license.

So I was watching the Rio Olympics 2016 10,000 meter final. The whole race takes over 30 minutes.

Being a long-distance runner, I could relate to how tough it was to keep up your endurance. These people were gasping for air.

About a quarter of the way through the race, one of the runners tripped and fell. He got swept up by the crowd and fell behind.

Most people don’t know that they put actually put metal spikes on your shoes to make you run faster. He almost got sliced up too.

This doesn’t happen often, but I can understand how it can in the Olympics. Everyone’s pushing each other, it’s crowded, and it’s an important event.

After it happened, the camera replayed it a few times, and everyone shook their head and said it was a huge error. This guy lost unnecessary time because of that.

When I saw that, I thought, “Wow, that sucks. This guy is screwed.” And I had no idea that it happened to Great Britain’s Mo Farah, the guy who ended up winning the event.

Mo did not overreact to the fall. Yes, it cost him a few seconds. Yes, he had to use extra energy to catch up in this event.

But he did not give him. He still believed he could win. And he prepared enough ahead of time.

Here’s the video of what happened:

What’s even more crazy is that he won the Gold Medal by less than a second.

Here’s what I took as life lessons from this event. Let it help you in growing your wealth and success:

  1. Do not overreact to unexpected bad events. Just quickly recover and keep going.
  2. Do not lose hope or belief that you can succeed because of an unexpected bad event.
  3. The world is not always fair. You can still be #1 with starting off with more disadvantages than everyone else.
  4. Prepare ahead of time so that you are so much better than your competitors that you still win even after unfair, unexpected setbacks.

Now, I want to hear from you.

What do you think about what happened? What did you take away from this?

mo farah olympics rio success
Mo Farah, one of the best runners in history. Photo by Al King. No changes made to image. Image license.
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By Will Chou

Will Chow holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology and has over eight years of experience in digital marketing, working with businesses ranging from small startups to globally recognized brands. As an expert in SEO, copywriting, and content strategy, Will specializes in crafting data-driven campaigns that drive traffic and improve search rankings. Passionate about personal growth, [Your Name] combines scientific principles with real-world strategies to inspire readers to take actionable steps toward self-improvement. Drawing from their work with small startups and global brands, Will shares insights on mindset, productivity, and goal-setting, offering a unique blend of analytical rigor and practical advice. Their writing reflects a commitment to empowering readers to navigate challenges and achieve their full potential. When not writing or coaching, Will enjoys reading 3 to 5 personal development-related books a month. He has read over 400 so far. Connect with Will on Good Reads or Instagram @nolimitswill to explore more tools and inspiration for living your best life.

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