Ep. 34 – Resilience, Adversity, Risk & the Champion’s Mindset – with Juliet Starrett
This week’s episode is part two of the Champion’s Mindset series and I’m talking to Juliet Starrett, a lifelong athlete, attorney, entrepreneur, and Crossfit affiliate. Juliet rowed in high-school, joined the U.C. Berkeley crew team, and paddled for the US Women’s Extreme Whitewater Team from 1997-2000, winning two World Championships and five national titles.
In episode 24 we spoke with Juliet’s husband, Kelly Starrett, about their entrepreneurial journey co-Founding MobiltyWOD.com – the ultimate guide to resolving pain, preventing injury, and optimizing athletic performance – and their endeavor to combat sedentary living.
“People need to sweat the small stuff. They need to show up on time, they need to send professional emails, they need to be pro in everything.”
Juliet’s freshman Crew coach, Jenny Hale, set an expectation that her rowers would show up, give their all on and off the water, be efficient, be prepared, and be professional. It didn’t matter that these college freshman were basically kids, they were expected to be pros – and the champions among them rose to that expectation.
“To be a champion you have to be doing something that you’re interested in. Focus on it, cultivate it, because that’s what’s ultimately going to bring people joy.”
Juliet believes that a lot of an individual’s mindset is mutable, or liable to change. It is possible to develop some aspects of a Champion’s Mindset, which Juliet says is composed of two parts:
- Someone who’s willing to take risks.
- Someone who responds well to adversity.
Other aspects of a Champion’s Mindset are immutable, because not everybody is a born competitor. You can’t necessarily learn the drive to surpass the person in front of you.
“Can you disassociate from your physical pain and strategize and say I now need to push myself even harder than the plan I had so that I can surpass this person? Not everybody has that.”
Juliet has responded incredibly well to extreme adversity. In college she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, and managing her thyroid levels is a lifelong challenge. Then, when she was pregnant with her second child, Juliet was diagnosed with placenta previa. She lost ¾ of the blood in her body and required nine blood transfusions. She was healthy and fit before going to the hospital, and then she was back at square one.
“I went down to do a pushup and I just fell to the ground and I could not push myself back up, and I remember being like, ‘Oh my god, it’s on. Here we go. Have to start somewhere.’”
Less than two years after her daughter was born Juliet competed in the CrossFit Games. Through grit and training, she went from not being able to do one pushup to competing in extreme fitness.
“Resilience, the ability to deal with adversity, risk, having a growth mindset – I think all those things are so mission critical to being able to manage this entrepreneur life.”
This is a very powerful conversation with a lot of very powerful advice, and I appreciate Juliet taking the time out of her day to be featured in the Champion’s Mindset series on The Impact Entrepreneur Show. You can learn more about resolving pain, preventing injury and optimizing athletic performance at MobiltyWOD.com; participate in programs at San Francisco CrossFit; or fight for children’s health at StartupKids.org.
—
Don’t be a podcast junkie…
Resources:
- Learn more about Juliet: MobilityWOD | San Francisco CrossFit | Startup Kids
- The Power of Community by Allison Wenglin Belger
- Grit by Angela Duckworth
- Mindset by Carol Dweck
- The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch and Jeffrey Zaslow: Book | Video
This episode is brought to you by SY Partners and Unstuck, helping you make a change by identifying the things holding you up. Their new program “Life Courses” are based on decades of learning about what inspires people to change. It is created by SYPartners, a transformation company that helps individuals, teams, and organizations become the best version of themselves, so they can create massive positive impact in business and society.
To start making your change, visit Life Courses by Unstuck on the web.
—
We are also brought to you by the Lawton Marketing Group. A full service advertising and design agency serving companies and entrepreneurs at all levels. The are your one stop shop for all your website, logo, social media, print, app design and reputable management needs.
Visit LawtonMG.com for more info.
Production & Development for The Impact Entrepreneur Show by Podcast Masters