Penn and I are huge Olympic nerds. We love to watch them live (despite the productivity drawbacks of having them on in the workday) and we have already loved all the amazing stories coming out of Paris. (I mean, please tell me you’ve also gone down the rabbit hole on Stephen Nedoroscik.) It’s incredible to watch these athletes work their whole lives to compete and potentially medal at the Olympic Games.
However, more often than not, there are tons of incredible stories we don’t see. Stories about people who have worked their whole lives, but do not make it.
How do these people keep going?
Success Isn’t A Straight Line
On this week’s podcast, we interview our friend, Olympic Silver Medalist, and a U.S. pole vault record holder, Sandi Morris. Sandi barely missed going to the games in Paris this year. She placed 4th in qualifying, and will still be the team alternate if anything were to happen. Despite all of that, she isn’t letting that stop her from getting ready for future competitions and LA 2028.
“If you give up, you are guaranteed to fail,” Sandi explained. “Don’t stop pursuing it if you enjoy it. Just because things don’t work out in life, doesn’t mean you stop trying.” Sandi believes that success isn’t a straight line, there are ups and downs along the way. She has learned from her failures and uses them to motivate herself for the next adventure.
Another Golden Retriever
When I see Sandi talk about pole vaulting, I can see the light in her eyes. She really loves it. I hope my kids both find the thing in their lives that lights them up like that. Despite this setback, Sandi has an amazing positive outlook. (She’s a golden retriever like Penn in that way.) I am in awe of both her mental and physical toughness.
Sandi offers words of encouragement, especially to younger athletes just starting out. We also discuss life behind-the-scenes in the Olympic Village and adorably entrepreneurial story on how she got started in pole vaulting to begin with.
Listen to the podcast and let us know what Olympic games you’re watching!
