I crossed the finish line of my first half marathon last weekend, and I’m still a little surprised I have two working legs to prove it.
Okay, that’s a slight exaggeration. But after six weeks off from training due to knee pain and a spring’s worth of physical therapy, finishing felt like its own kind of miracle. Personal growth isn’t always a straight line. Sometimes it’s a 13.1-mile detour through your own doubts, with a brief walk break around mile eight when your knees start sending you strongly-worded memos.
I ran the Frederick Half Marathon with a couple of friends from work, which made the whole experience about ten times better. And even though I came in about six minutes off my target time (thanks, knees), I’m genuinely thrilled. I finished. I have a baseline. I have room to grow. PR incoming on the next one.
But Then I Heard About Sophia
The same weekend I was running my half, the city of Cincinnati was hosting the famous Flying Pig Marathon. And 23-year-old Sophia Dick was also lining up for her first half marathon. Except somewhere along the way, she missed the turn where half marathoners peel off from the full marathon course.
She kept running. And running. And eventually she realized she was getting further from the finish line, not closer. When she asked another runner what was happening, they delivered the news: she had missed the turn.
At that moment she had two choices. Turn around and call it a day, or keep going.
Sophia kept going.
When Overcoming Setbacks Looks Like a Wrong Turn
Think about what that moment must have felt like. You start the day excited — maybe a little nervous — for your first half marathon. Then confusion sets in. Then the reality that you’re facing something far bigger than you planned.
That’s the full emotional range of overcoming setbacks right there. Excitement, confusion, fear, and then a decision. Sophia chose to keep running.
She didn’t just survive it, either. She ended up running alongside a pacing group led by Harvey Lewis, an ultramarathon world record holder who was completing his 100th marathon that day. (Yes, his 100th. Meanwhile I was celebrating my 1st half. We’re not the same, Harvey.) Lewis was actively coaching the runners around him, not just setting pace, but sharing wisdom, offering encouragement, and helping people push through the pain.
Sophia finished with a time of 3 hours and 30 minutes. And she said something afterwards that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about:
“I think it was a good mistake. It really helped me realize that sometimes the wrong turn takes you further than the right turn ever could.”
The Personal Growth Mindset That Changes Everything
That one sentence is a masterclass in personal growth mindset.
Most of us treat mistakes the way we treat that one kitchen drawer. We know it’s a mess, we don’t want to deal with it, and we definitely don’t think it’s going to teach us anything. We see mistakes as evidence that we’re not ready, not good enough, or not cut out for the thing we’re chasing.
But Sophia’s story flips that script completely. The “mistake” didn’t disqualify her from something great. It delivered her to it.
Now, I’m not saying every wrong turn leads to a marathon finish line. Sometimes a wrong turn is just a wrong turn, and you turn around. That’s okay too. But what made the difference for Sophia wasn’t just her attitude.
It was also who was running beside her.
Why Goal Achievement Tips Only Get You So Far
There’s a difference between following in someone’s footsteps and having someone actively coach you through the hard parts. You can read every goal achievement tip on the internet (and there are a lot of them), but when you’re at mile 15 of a race you never signed up for, what you need isn’t another tip. You need someone who’s been there.
Harvey Lewis wasn’t just a pacer. He was a coach. He was instructing, encouraging, and adjusting in real time to help people reach a finish line they didn’t know they could reach. That’s what a good coach does. They don’t just believe in you, they equip you. They help you perform at a level you couldn’t have imagined on your own.
Big goals, the ones that genuinely stretch you, almost always require the wisdom of someone who’s walked the path before. Not because you’re not capable, but because you can’t yet see what’s possible from where you’re standing.
Your Next Step: Don’t Run It Alone
Maybe you’re in the middle of your own unexpected marathon right now. Maybe what looked like a manageable half has turned into something much bigger than you signed up for. Maybe a wrong turn has you wondering whether to quit or keep going.
Here’s my question for you: what if the wrong turn is exactly where you’re supposed to be?
And what if you just need the right person running beside you to help you finish?
I’d love to be that person for you. I offer a free 20-minute strategy call where we can map out your big goals, figure out where you’re stuck, and start building a path forward. No pitch, no pressure. Just a conversation about what’s possible for you.
Because sometimes the best thing you can do is stop running alone.