Daily Gratitude: This is a different way to look at “letting go”, not having to always be in control. Freedom in your mind is a great way to think about things you can’t control. Nowadays when I have something i am really excited about and might be somewhat difficult, I first calm myself down and then make a list – I put down every factor. Take a race for example. Things that impact success at a race include weather, sleep, nutrition and hydration, navigation perhaps, traffic, clothing, weight of your pack (if you need one), training and general fitness, injury or recovery, your thoughts, etc. You get the picture. There are a lot of factors. So the next thing I do is circle the things I can control. Of the lists I just gave you I can control: navigation (well other people can control that – for me um not so much), clothing, weight of my pack, my training, and my thoughts. The others are not always in my control. The narrowing of the list allows me a number of items to pay attention to. I can concentrate on those things and not worry about the weather or traffic etc. I didn’t add sleep to the list of things I can control because in my case the amount of sleep I can try to get is based on my times. Plus, just because I can lie down doesn’t mean i will sleep. Anyway, try to make these lists when you’re faced with challenges. I hope it will take some of the burden off you and maybe allow your mind some freedom.