I used to think about one of the first things I thought about when exercising, and which was the impetus for this collection or collection of essays, is that physical exercise may be one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life.

This is in response to me, thinking about applying for MBA at that time and those personal essay questions that we often get what is your biggest achievement what is the most challenging thing you have done? What would my answer be to these? And I must have been in the middle of a PT session at the time because - Physical exercise came to mind.

I have been a relatively accomplished, working professional in my life until then - climbed the corporate ladder (unwittingly), got into a good position at work, relatively in control of my own schedule and a relatively higher above average pay. Life has its ups and downs, but all things considered. I think my career trajectory has been a pretty smooth sailing - gaining recognition from my peers and working up the ladder pretty quickly to get into a position of opposite influence, relatively young to my peers. I was also a relatively healthy kid - naturally skinny, so never had to worry about losing weight or going on a diet, and I had never broken any bones as a kid either. I was very fortunate to have escaped the ER room at least from what I can remember for the most part of my childhood and adult life.

However, I realize this was all mental challenge and mental achievement, and I had never pushed myself to be challenged physically as such. Doing weights for the first time with a physical trainer in the gym was my first time experiencing physical pain. And it was agonizing pain. I was feeling agonizing stress over the simplest of weights. It would really put a regular gym bunny to shame.

However, the learning I’ve got from it was that actually you can push through it - overcoming physical pain was a lesson in a small way for myself that you can persevere through challenges no matter how big or new. It exercise the new muscle (literally), It was a good challenge and break from what I was used to, and it also made me appreciate a new form of learning a new modality of learning. It wasn’t something that I could “ use my brain power” and “figure my way through”. It was a totally new skill I was learning, and it was a humbling experience as well. It allowed me to realize my limitations, which has continue to be a theme in my future physical endeavors, and also illustrated to me the importance of an a greater appreciation for the different modalities of learning. You thought you knew it all with everything you had in your brain, but it gave me a greater appreciation for all those people putting in the physical work, those people doing the physical work, and those people working in the physical workspace. We take in information and learn differently. That is no my way or your way right way or wrong way. I’m more importantly there’s no better or worse way just a different way. and each has its own right to be appreciated. I guess I was humbled because it was completely something that I wasn’t able to do myself and I have never faced that challenge before you were able to overcome anything and everything that came your way previously, but when it came to this physical challenge - I had to relearn how to overcome this challenge.