Which is most important?
Why are you the way you are? Legitimately – what has caused you to become the person you are today? The good, the bad and everything in between.
The classic discussion, or, debate, is the distinction (or lack thereof) between the nature and the nurture of a human being. Which has the greatest impact? Is it the same for each and every person alive? Do we get a say in the matter?
We are all familiar with those who are born directly into super-stardom, right? Top of mind being children of famous athletes who go onto attain their own fame via the exact same avenue – LeBron James’ two sons have now become two of the greatest prep basketball talents the world has ever seen and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is following directly in his father’s footsteps in the NBA.
In a similar vein, the greatest female ultra-distance runner of all time, Courtney Dauwalter, is quite transparent about her laid back approach to training. While other athletes obsess over minute details and fine tune their diets, Courtney can be found running whenever and however much she feels called to on any given day, whilst following a “whatever sounds good” diet, including candy and beer on a daily basis.
Now, these examples are not to say that said athletes have had everything handed to them with regards to their eventual success, but more to draw the conclusion that they were born with a little extra something – something that not everyone possesses.
I should likely begin by stating, for the record, that I don’t have the answers – I’m afraid no one (really) does.
I do, however, have my own theories. My own conditioned thoughts on the matter – developed through my own experiences and those of others alike.
Born with it, or not?
Let us take for example my own life, for a moment.
I find that while some of my attributes certainly have nature to thank (or to blame) – much of what I am, or what I’ve become, is thanks to the nurturing of the environment(s) around me.
As a basic example: I was most certainly not born into the stereotypical “runner body.”
I am not tall. I am not thin. I don’t have long legs. The body with which I was provided was not naturally built to run hundreds of miles. Yet, here I am.
So, then, what has allowed me to do such a thing? To become an ultra-distance runner?
In short, there is no “one thing” – no secret sauce, if you will.
I’ve found it much simpler to describe what It’s not, rather than what it is that has propelled me into this world of ultra running.
A favorite quote of mine, originating from freak of nature ultra-endurance athlete, Nedd Brockmann, whom I’ve discussed in a previous post, goes as such:
“No genetic makeup allows me to do what I do.”
These words, coming directly from the mouth of the 24 year old Australian native who traveled the entire distance across the continent of Australia by foot – in just 46 days. How far is such a distance, you might ask – just shy of 2,500 miles, or 4,000 kilometers. Insane, I know.
If a man of such great accomplishment is quick to state that he was in no way naturally inclined to do such a thing, how does he explain what he’s been able to complete thus far as a human being? Better yet, given such a stark example of a man made by his own experiences, what does that spell out for us? What are we capable of, despite the body we were born into?
You have to make it happen
It’s a question worth asking – “what are we capable of?”
In a world full of the mis-guided and mis-fortuned alike, it’s a question not often addressed. It’s a subject that is, in many cases, avoided like the plague, covered up with a gross blanket statement – something to the tune of “I’m just not a ____ person.”
Use your imagination to fill in the blank.
What you were born into should have no hold on what you choose to become.
If you’re not naturally a “morning person,” who cares? Become one. Your genetic build is tall and lanky, but you desperately want to look and feel strong? Change your habits, prime the environment around you, and do what it takes to achieve the physique you desire. You come from a long line of alcoholics? You don’t have to be one.
What I’ve come to realize is that the conflicting sides being discussed, nature and nurture, are really not all that conflicting after all. While the Bronny James and Vlad Jr’s of the world do exist, and exist in great part by the nature of their being – these folks are anomalies.
When staring down the nature of the life you were provided, it’s important to understand the power that lies within you. The power to make a change, at any moment. To take a different path, and to become something outside of what you were “born to be.”
The nature of who you are is in no way mutually exclusive to the nature of who you will become. Your future lies in your own hands. Remember this, and you’ll make things happen.
Forged in Fire 
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