The Marathon Monk’s secret to writing daily emails

A while back I read a book by Mipham Rinpoche about his experience running marathons. I actually don’t remember a whole lot from the book. One thing I do remember is his descriptions of runs he would go on to train, often in weather, in mountains, and other ‘treacherous’ terrain. 

The thing I remember the most is a lesson that neatly applies to learning anything that takes any amount of craft and dedication. 

One of the first things Mipham talked about is how long it takes to get into good enough shape to be a runner. And I don’t mean your physical fitness and cardiovascular stuff. That comes relatively quickly if you’re healthy already. 

But the actual bones, ligaments, and joints in your lower body need to adapt and strengthen to take the abuse of running dozens of miles every week. 

And this doesn’t just take months. 

It takes years. 

2-3 for most people if I remember correctly.

Which means it takes 2-3 years of dedicated practice before you can even begin to train like an elite runner. 

Writing emails, or any other content for that matter, isn’t a whole lot different. It can be tough to get going, but after a time you find the rhythm and settle in. Just like a runner. 

But with email it doesn’t take 2-3 years of dedicated practice before you can settle in. It only takes 2-3 months at most. So dedicate an hour each week to writing some emails to your list and before you know it you’ll find you’re “in the groove”. 

And if you don’t, that’s ok too. Just hit reply and send me your contact info and I will spill the beans on what it would take to get me on your team. 

Tyler McCune

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