A Miser

Newsletter #5

Brett Meyer
December 22, 2023

Season's greetings!

I hope you all are well! Thanks for being here for our fifth newsletter. Can this be considered our family Christmas card, as well? Anyway, I’ll jump right into it with some life updates!

Updates:

I took an interim position as Director of Student Engagement at FHSU.
I’m averaging 84-90 miles of running a week for the last 11 weeks.
The partnership with Altra ended this month… No free shoes at the moment.
On February 9th, I’ll target a fast indoor mile at Boston University.
In late January, I’ll run an 800m at a meet here in Kansas.
I hope to compete in the Indoor US Championships on February 16-17th.
And last, but not least… Kelly and I are expecting a baby boy in April!!! Psalm 127:3 "Children are a gift from the Lord. They are a reward from Him."

Lately, most of my time consists of working, running, and a whole lot of learning. Here are a few recent lessons I’d like to share.

As life rolls on, I am constantly reminded of how valuable time is. Time never stops and it's not forgiving. Much of my life is about time and trying to do my best to be intentional and not waste a minute. I’ve realized this from running lately. My college coach, Coach McCullough, has always encouraged his athletes to read the book Once a Runner by John Parker. It’s now one of my favorites. In it, the author describes a runner as a “miser” - I thought it was spot on.

“A runner is a miser, spending the pennies of his energy with great stinginess, constantly wanting to know how much he has spent and how much longer he will be expected to pay. He wants to be broke at precisely the moment he no longer needs his coin.”

John Parker

Some think that the lifestyle of a miser means you are miserable. I would argue that the runner is truly alive, enduring, learning patience and practicing discipline every step of the way.

Poet Jack London understood this and proclaimed in 1916, "The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time."

Time is something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. At this point, we are a society that scrolls on our phones and minutes later we generally can’t remember what we just looked at. Is this how we want to spend our time? As Kelly and I begin to think about how our lives will change as we welcome our first child into the world, it becomes even more pertinent that we are intentional about how we spend our time. Even now, sometimes it really does feel like there’s not enough time in a day. With running, a day in the life for me outlines why I need to be a miser.

Monday - AM run + PM run (15 miles total)

Tuesday - Recovery 60-minute run (8 miles)

Wednesday - AM (5 miles) + PM aerobic workout (11 miles)

Thursday - AM run + PM run (13 miles total)

Friday - AM (4 miles) + PM aerobic + speed workout (10 miles)

Saturday - Recovery 70-minute run (10 miles)

Sunday - Long run 90-100 minutes (16 miles)

Factoring in work, coaching, spending time with my wife, sleeping, reading… There’s not much time to spare! If you break down your weekly schedule, are you surprised by how much time you don’t or do have? Food for thought!

What is a leader?

At work the other day, we had the privilege of sharing about college to some first graders visiting campus. It was fun to share and to see their childlike wonder. When they were asked about the characteristics of a leader, ten hands shot up! “Pick me, pick me!” I wish college students were that eager to answer questions in class!

Their responses were great. The first two to respond said, “A leader is being a good listener,” and, “A leader is a good role model to everyone.” I think they’re spot on! Everyone appreciates a good listener. That was my favorite answer. How cool that it’s leadership traits like that that even young kids recognize. People just want to be heard and for their leader to be interested in what they enjoy.

Effective listening is more than simply avoiding the bad habit of interrupting while someone is speaking or finishing their sentences. It's being content to listen to the entire thought of someone rather than waiting impatiently to respond. Not only will becoming a better listener make you and me a more patient person, but it will also enhance the quality of our relationships. We all enjoy talking to people who truly listen to what we are saying. According to Simon Sinek, a great leader listens and then says, “Tell me more,” rather than sharing their opinion first.

I’m thankful for that first grader who inspired me to be a better listener! My favorite president said it this way: “Nobody cares about how much you know, until they know how much you care.” - Theodore Roosevelt. Another leader I admire, Coach John Wooden, speaks to the other student’s point about being a role model: “No written word nor spoken plea can teach our youth what they should be. Nor all the books on all the shelves. It's what the teachers are themselves.”

Competitor

Kelly and I watched the latest season of the show Hard Knocks and enjoyed these coaching nuggets that apply to all of us. The message shared by the head coach of the Jets, Robert Saleh, described types of competitors. This is how he presented the concept to his team:

There are commanders, you've got competitors, contenders, and you've got survivors (…) I promise you, everyone in this room falls into one of these categories.

At the bottom, are your survivors. A survivor is someone who does just enough to get by. They coast through the day and do not maximize their mental capabilities. This group loves taking the easy way out. They love it, and they are so miserable that they will do everything they can to bring you along with them. The sad part is, every organization has at least one, and I promise you, you can't hide.

The next level of competitor is a group of contenders. A contender is someone who is motivated by external factors like playing time, money, fame, or the people they are competing against. They will only reach their potential if the external motivators are threatened.

The third level, the one we seek, is a group of competitors. A competitor is someone who is internally motivated to be their best regardless of the situation. Their place on the team does not matter. Money does not matter. Fame does not matter. They are always trying to absolutely be their best. They can't be swayed because they are already maxing out their potential. This dude is trying to PR every day of life. They have a championship mindset. When you have a championship mindset, you embarrass the bad ones and you make the great ones look normal.

The final one is the commander. They have all the traits of a competitor, with one exception. They bring people with them.

Robert Saleh

What type of competitor are you? Throughout different stages of my life, I believe I have fit into each of these categories… just not yet a commander.

Story Time

My junior year at FHSU just ended. This was the year I jumped in distance from the 800m to the mile. I had run 4:06 in the mile and 3:43 in the 1500m (~4:01 mile). The outdoor season was over but I was still feeling in good shape, so I messaged the meet director at the St. Louis Festival of Miles. Somehow, they let me into the professional heat with a 4:06 mile time… Jafet Molinares, Troy Winenger and I drove to St. Louis, with our slogan for the week, “Why not?”

Once we arrived at the hotel, the hotel desk clerk shared with us that they didn't have my name on the athlete list. I begrudgingly called the meet director and he shared with me that he forgot to add me to a room. He then talked to the hotel clerk and she handed me a key. She said, “You will be in a room with another runner. His name is Garrett Heath.” Instantly, I got sweaty. Garrett was the veteran in the field with a 3:52 mile PB, but he was best known as a cross-country runner who never lost to the legendary Mo Farrah. I was intimidated and did not want to share a room with an elite athlete of his caliber.

As the weekend went on, I found that Garrett was a very humble and easy guy to talk to. I think he enjoyed my naivety because I asked him so many questions about running. He would usually start his response with a laugh and then share with me that I was thinking too much about this sport. This was such a special weekend because this is where my hope of running after college sparked. In the race, I broke the 4-minute barrier for the first time and snipped Garrett at the line! That's not the point of this story though.

I learned lessons from Garrett that weekend that I’ll keep with me forever:

Pancakes are great fuel for runners.
Professional runners lean on each other.
It's okay to have pizza and a beer after racing. (That blew my mind!)
…and many more great nuggets!

The most important lesson I learned that weekend is to be bold for the gospel, as I don’t feel that I was. I remember Garrett had a book on his nightstand that was titled something along the lines of, “How to Find Happiness” or “Searching for Joy”... I looked it up, hoping it was a book about the gospel. Rather, it was a self-help book. The Holy Spirit was nudging me to share the Good News with him; I felt that I should share what has brought me joy. But, every time I had an opportunity, I chickened out.

It still bugs me that I never shared the best news to mankind and didn’t boldly proclaim it to a brother who was searching for it. After the trip, I thought about that book he was reading and had multiple conversations with people about the sport of track and field. When you think about it, running is a selfish sport. Everything is about “YOU”. I believe it can lead us to focus more and more on the self and rely on our success to satisfy us.

So far in my professional running career, I have not met many professing believers. This makes for a great opportunity and is where Hold Fast Running comes into play. As Christ-following runners, our purpose in this sport is not to just run fast but to use the platform God has given us to spread His message.

We’d love to hear from you! If stories or points from the newsletter resonate with you, feel free to send me an email. ☺️ We hope you are all well and that you get to enjoy friends, family, and the little things in life this Christmas season.

Hold Fast

Work Hard

Be Humble

Brett