A HUGE Lesson from the Indy 500
by Mark Henson, chief imagination officer, sparkspace

Sunday, I checked off one of the things on my bucket list. I attended the Indy 500. Never been there before. Probably won't go back. But it was a most excellent experience. Worth doing once in your life.

Since it's a holiday week and I know you've got a lot to do, I'll skip the buildup and get right to the point.

Don't give up.

Rookie driver JR Hildebrand had the race in the bag...until the final turn when he hit the wall and destroyed the right side of his car.

Think about this for a second. He drove 499.75 miles, made 799 left turns, was moments away from winning the race and he HIT THE WALL.

Don't give up.

Dan Wheldon was pretty darn sure he was going to come in second, but he kept his foot on the accelerator and beat Hildebrand in the final two seconds of the race.

If you feel like you're not winning right now, don't give up.

I don't know why, but I have the feeling you needed to hear this today.

P.S. And always remember, you really only race against yourself.

Sparkspace archives:
Don't Be Afraid To Ask - 10/26/11
The Secret to Winning More Often - 06/22/11
The Half-Crazy, Uber-Positivity Generator - 01/14/11