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Explaining the concept of sharing to elementary students can be a tall order. Whenever I speak at schools, I try to get kids to understand the breadth of what it means to share. They typically struggle with the idea that people can share more than just their possessions.

Right now, every elementary teacher and anyone who is a parent of a child that has siblings is smirking, because they know exactly how tall of an order it can be to get kids to share their toys. Imagine the difficulty of convincing kids they need to share more than just their toys in order to be a good teammate!

Nevertheless, that is exactly what must happen.

Good teammates certainly have a willingness to share their possessions, but they also need to have a willingness to share intangibles like their time, their knowledge, and their talents.

Interestingly, whenever I speak at corporate events, the necessity to share these intangibles is a concept that the adults often struggle to accept. They are protective of their personal life and reluctant to drop their guard long enough to engage in this type of sharing.

Which brings me to the story of Colin’s 30-day challenge.

I first met Colin while playing basketball overseas. At the time, he was slightly older than most of the other members of our team, and served in the capacity of player/coach.

I found him to be inspirational in both of those roles.

Colin was almost always the smallest player on the court. Yet despite his age and his lack of height, he was routinely our team’s leading rebounder. This was no minor feat, and undoubtedly due to his unmatched level of energy.

I lost touch with Colin over the years, but through the wonders of social media, I was recently able to reconnect with him.

It was through this medium that he threw down a challenge to his friends.

Colin had suffered a brain hemorrhage that nearly took his life. To commemorate the one-year anniversary of surviving his life altering event, he committed to forming a new habit and decided to run at least three miles every day for the next thirty days.

When he completed thirty days, he just kept going. Eventually, he reached 163 consecutive days. This is when he issued his challenge.

Colin announced that his new goal was to reach 200 consecutive days—a number that would coincide with his 50th birthday. He planned to complete this final run in Rome, Italy, at the top of the world famous Spanish Steps.

On day 163, Colin asked his friends to take the week and come up with an activity to do for the next 30 days, and then join him the following week in the final stage of his journey. The activity could be anything (playing a musical instrument, learning a new language, knitting, etc.), with the only caveat being the activity had to occupy a minimum of 30 minutes each day and had to be done for 30 straight days.

I accepted and decided to commit to logging 10,000 steps every day. (*FYI…I set Fitbit my stride length to equal one meter, which works out to be a 10k per day.)

Like Colin, when 30 days arrived, I kept going…and have continued to do so each and every day since. I am now to the point where the thought of not completing this daily activity is incomprehensible.

Along the way, I lost a few unwanted pounds and experienced a genuine improvement in my overall health.  However, just as Colin did, I also found myself more surprised by the ancillary benefits of making this commitment.

He stated what he noticed the most was how much mental strength he gained, knowing that he made himself run even when he really did not want to do so. Me too.

It was not always easy. I battled snow and rain, and even saw the task through to completion sometimes in airport terminals and hotel hallways. But I stuck with it…and I formed a new positive habit in the process.

The added bonus for me was that I got some of my best thinking done during those 10,000 steps. As some of you are aware, I am in the midst of putting the final touches on my next book, and I came up with some great ideas as a direct result of the time I invested in my commitment.

When Colin finished on day 200 at the top of the Spanish Steps, he had a run a total of 788 miles—the equivalent of 30 marathons.

He is a remarkable man, and a living example of one of the primary tenets of being a good teammate: When your individual efforts inspire others, you are a good teammate.

Colin’s willingness to put himself out there and publicly share his experience inspired me. And now, I hope it inspires you. What activity can you commit to that will positively impact you and your team? 30 days will go by quicker than you can imagine. But don’t be surprised if when they do, you also just keep going.

Remember: Good teammates care. Good teammates share. Good teammates listen. Go be a good teammate.

(P.S. Colin, wherever you are today…thank you for being a good teammate and thank you for sharing.)

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