Have you been watching the Olympics? 

I’ve been thoroughly enjoying them, especially the triathlon, which took place yesterday. For many years I was a triathlete, having competed in my first race as a 15-year-old. 

I continued competing in college as part of the Penn State Triathlon Team, which was more club-like than an official team. In fact, it was through my love of triathlon that I met my wife. We were both competing in long-distance Ironman events and were part of the same tri club. The countless hours of swimming, biking, and running together brought us even closer together. 

One of the things I love about triathlon, given how complex it is, is that you never really know what's going to happen, and a race is not finished until it’s truly over. The men’s triathlon event at the Olympics exemplified this perfectly. 

Coming off the bike with a very narrow lead, Alex Yee from Great Britain set a blistering pace for the 10K run, the final leg of the competition. Within minutes, the announcers were calling him the person to beat. Soon after, they spoke as if he had the gold medal secured, with everyone else competing for silver and bronze.

But towards the end of the event, Alex began to fade, and a new leader emerged. The announcers shifted their focus, treating the new leader as if he had the gold all but assured. They even said it would take a dramatic turn of events to change the outcome at the top of the podium. 

What no one expected was that the tables would indeed turn. With just a few hundred meters left, Alex returned to form, blazed past the leader (Hayden Wilde from New Zealand), and never looked back. He won the gold. Watching the event, it seemed impossible that he could have reclaimed the top spot.

The key takeaway from this event, and one that resonates deeply with me, is the importance of not fixating on an outcome, especially when doing something that you really care about.

In our day-to-day lives, we often think we know how things will turn out, but there are countless factors we can’t control or foresee. Instead of stressing over the final result, it's far more productive and fulfilling to throw your heart and soul into whatever it is you do and let the chips fall where they may. 

Often, this is exactly what it takes to make the seemingly impossible possible. The final result, even if you are dreaming of gold (or a promotion), is ultimately up to factors beyond your control anyway. 

So, as we navigate through our careers, let's remember this lesson from Alex Yee's incredible comeback. Rather than fixating on what we think the outcome should be, let's focus on our level of engagement and attention. By doing our best along these lines, we might just surprise ourselves (and others) with what is achieved.