My career background is primarily in the marine industry where I began as a sailing instructor for children and adults and progressed to managing the editorial team of a cruising powerboat publication as well as the education component of the magazine’s event series. Whether I was teaching, writing, or coordinating seminars, much of my focus was helping people establish a comfort zone on the water. Being on a boat has any number of fears associated with it and it was important to understand the fears of others in order to help them overcome those fears and feel at ease on a moving boat in the water.

Teaching others to find a comfort zone on the water required repeating the same maneuvers, actions, and routines in controlled circumstances in order for new boaters to understand that boating is not just safe but also enjoyable. In boating you can slowly add more and more responsibility to the helmsman or crew to expand their level of comfort while also showing them how to maintain control.

When I think about how I’ve progressed in running, it’s been with much of the same pattern I taught others in sailing. Continue reading →