3 Reasons Why Slow and Steady Really Does Win the Race

Everyone knows the story of The Tortoise and the Hare. There are different versions of it, but the one I remember as a kid depicted the rabbit more as a cocky, impatient antagonist. I remember the other animals even hating on the turtle because they couldn't believe that he would win the race against the hare. Of course, the turtle won, but I feel like there were more lessons in that story than just "slow and steady wins the race".

In the picture above, I was 17 years old. In many ways, I was more like the hare during that time in my life. I was one of the best saxophone players in my high school band. I was a drum major who always competed in the All-Region and Area Band auditions. I was also an academically exceptional student that was in the top of the class. I strove for perfection in my journey to becoming the best.

The rabbit was the same. He raced every animal who dared to challenge him, and won. He boasted about being the best and he truly believed that no one could beat him in a race. He had the same drive and ambition that I possessed. There is nothing wrong with that either. (Well, maybe the boasting.) Racing is what he loved to do and I am sure that he would never let anyone beat him again, especially the turtle. He learned his lesson: don't sleep on people.

I would like to think that I was a little bit smarter than the rabbit because I definitely wouldn't have underestimated my opponent. I was, and still am, more modest than the hare would ever be. However, at the age that I am now, I've started to transition more into the tortoise.

Reason #1

The tortoise focused on his own self, despite what everyone around him believed. He knew what he was capable of and he focused only on his goal: winning the race. He knew he was physically slower than the rabbit, but he also understood his opponent. He knew the rabbit would underestimate him in some way. He used that to his advantage and made his way across the finish line first.

As I got older, I didn't start slowing down immediately. I went to college, tried new things, like the marching band, the on-campus church choir, became a Cub Camp Counselor (for an extremely short amount of time), joined a fraternity, and got my degree. Of course, there were more things in between, but all of that happened in the time span of three years. College moved at the speed of light and I was running right along with it.

It wasn't until the day I graduated that a part of me started to scream at my internal conductor to hit the brakes. Luckily, I did so, or I would have smashed into an emotional, mental breakdown.

Some things that I don't always see people discussing in today's world are the outcomes of moving at high speeds like the rabbit did. We live in a world of "I want it and I want it now". In many ways, you can get what you want by moving quickly. Deep down, I wanted to graduate really fast and get out of college, and I did. The rabbit understood consistency, hard work and he certainly had motivation. In fact, I think the turtle possessed those characteristics too. To graduate I had to be consistent, hardworking and dedicated upon completion of my degree.

However, once I graduated, I realized that I missed a few vital things that I should've taken advantage of while I was in college. When you are moving at a fast pace, you tend to overlook things. You sleep on the things that can either help you or hurt you. Similar to how the rabbit slept during the race and allowed the turtle to pass him up. I overlooked internships/job opportunities and making connections that would better prepare me for life after graduation.

After college, I went through a long period of rejection and feeling like a complete loser, even though technically I had won. Right? I went to college. I graduated. Everyone was congratulating me, while inside I felt like a failure because of how many rejection emails I was receiving.

I was moving at the speed of light toward a future that I couldn't see because of my lack of focus on the vital things during university.

Reason #2

For a while, I would say that the 17 year old version of me, the rabbit, and the turtle, were all more confident, focused, and sure about themselves than I was after I graduated college. Thankfully, though, I was able to get out of those depressive feelings and slowly take on the characteristics of the turtle.

The turtle understood that there is more than one race. There is more than one path to take. The tortoise taught me that the best race to run is the one you race against yourself. If he had looked at the rabbit and noticed how fast it was moving, the turtle could've felt bad for himself and given up on completing the race.

After graduating, LinkedIn was a place of sorrow for me. It exposed me to so many other runners ahead of me in the race. I had the mindset of the rabbit, but I was still far behind. Until I had deleted LinkedIn from my phone and started running my own race, I wasn't able to see good qualities in myself. I was too focused on what others were accomplishing. I was the rabbit, but in the place of the turtle at the start of the race.

The turtle focused on taking one step at a time. I learned that I needed to take the steps of obtaining an internship first, building the connections, creating a portfolio, adding more to the resume, and so on. All of these are necessary in my journey to creating my career. If I stay focused on each step, I shouldn't have time to look at what others are doing.

Essentially, the turtle knew how to mind his business.

Reason #3

The last and most important thing that I think the turtle understood was to never give up. There were times when I felt that applying to jobs was pointless. Obviously, it's not. We need jobs to financially sustain ourselves. However, after getting rejected so many times, I did mentally give up.

I stopped applying for a while because I was tired of the same outcome. If the turtle had given up, he wouldn't have won the race. Luckily, I mustered the confidence to keep going because my race isn't finished.

Even when I do completely get into my desired career field, my race isn't finished. One thing I am learning is that a job is not equivalent to a career. A job is only a piece to the entire puzzle. A career is like a journey.

If I give up, I am turning my back to the endless possibilities of what my life would be in my desired career field. Although, I received many rejection letters, I learned to view them more as redirection letters. I no longer attach my self esteem to the outcomes of job applications. I send them in and I let it go,

I am learning to be patient and trust the journey that I'm on. Although it hasn't been easy, I still summon the motivation to keep going. The race was not easy for the turtle, but he didn't stop until he crossed that finish line.

If any of this ramble writing spoke to you in some way, I want to also remind you that you are amazing and I am proud of how far you've come in life. No matter what, keep going. God is always with you. Whatever He wants us to do in this life, it will be done, so take comfort in that even when you feel like you have no idea what you are doing. God knows. And He is good.

Until the next post!

Jefferson K. Coe