As I train for my first marathon (the 2012 Marine Corps Marathon) I realize that there are so many things to learn from the training that apply to leadership. Here are my top 5 picks:

• Think big - I only started running 3 years ago. Before that I would work out and eat healthily, but I hated running and would look at coworkers and friends who ran as crazy. Somehow, however, I began running and then signing up for races and then signing up for the marathon! I thought bigger than I ever imagined possible and am now training to run 26 miles!.
  
• Surround yourself with people who can support you - once I started running I realized that after running about 6-7 miles I got really bored. I needed the support of other runners who could push me when I was tired or unmotivated and vice versa. I joined a road runners group and got a trainer  made up of people who had already run a marathon before to help me chart the path to my goal.
  
• Persevere through the ups and downs - marathon training has good days and bad days. Some training runs I feel great and some I don’t. It is staying committed to my goal, just like any leader would need to do, in order to keep going through the ups and downs of training and not quit.
  
• Work hard as there are no short cuts - marathon training takes discipline to ensure that you put in the necessary mileage each week to be fully trained. It also takes commitment to doing speed work and tempo work as well as the long runs to be really ready for the big day. Skipping out on runs or not doing the speed work won’t get you there and I don’t want to be ill trained on the day of the race.
  
• Stay mentally strong - as everyone tells me the marathon is more of a mental than physical exercise after a certain point (as is any leadership challenge). It is being able to shift out of the negative state of mind of self-doubt or uncertainty and stay focused on the end-goal to keep me moving to the finish line.
  

So what leadership trait out of the ones above can you put into practice to make you a stronger leader? How can you push the envelope to reach the goals you have in mind?

“Commitment separates doers from dreamers.” John Maxwell

Are you someone who has had a vision or thought, but never followed through on it? Are you someone who has taken some steps towards your vision, but stops when the going gets tough? Or are you someone who perseveres and commits to a vision and sees it through even in the toughest of circumstances?

A true leader is one who commits 100% to his vision and his values knowing that conviction is the only thing that will inspire his own potential and that of others who follow him. 

John Maxwell, in “The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader” says that the three traits below are the ones which are part of committed leader:
-Commitment starts with heart - having a passion and true love for whatever you want to achieve. If you have true heart it will take you through the hard times.
-Commitment is tested by actions - It is one thing to say you have a vision, it is another to put in the effort day to day when you may not be seeing the results yet. 
-Commitment opens the door to achievement - it is only when you keep getting up after being knocked down that you can truly reach your goal and make a difference.

I believe that commitment is such an important cornerstone for a leader. It truly distinguishes the people who truly are devoted to what it is that they do and those who are dabblers. Dabblers keep jumping from thing to another and never go deep in anything. True leaders go deep in one or two things and make an incredible difference there. Commitment is that willingness to go deep in what it is that you are passionate about.

What are you willing to commit to? Are you taking the necessary actions to commit to those goals? Are you getting up even if you are knocked down in order to achieve true leadership?