Long-distance cyclist and writer Mark Beaumont has spoken candidly about his transition from growing up on a remote Scottish farm to finding himself propelled into the world of sporting triumph and celebrity.
Speaking to on the Go Radio Business Show, the endurance athlete, who holds the record for cycling round the world in less than 79 days, said: “The reality is everyone has a special individual superpower, which just needs nurtured and promoted. The thing I always come back to is this idea of quiet confidence. It’s not arrogance. It’s not being an alpha and sort of throwing your weight around. It’s a quiet confidence.
“I was home-schooled. It was a tough environment to grow up in. My two pals were my two sisters. We never really left the farm. But what it did give me was an incredible sense of self. I had to milk 60 goats before breakfast every day. By the time I was eight I was skinning rabbits and making my own shoes!
“I look back at my childhood and what I was given before the age of 10 was a huge sense of resilience.”
He recalled being bullied when eventually he went to school.
“The first two or three years at high school I sort of gently got bullied into shape. My point is it didn’t hurt me long-term. It was absolutely fine. But those things gave me that quiet confidence and independence as a kid.
“I remember many times going through university and afterwards where, if I had an idea, I didn’t care what other people thought. I didn’t care if the crowd was going that way, I would do it.
“I know I’m not the the smartest guy in the academic sense. I’m not the strongest guy in a physical sense. The success I’ve had over the past 20 years is having the quiet confidence to do things that other people doubt themselves with.
“Opportunities very rarely land on your lap, you need to create them. Learn to be comfortable in your own skin. Learn to interact intelligently in different situations. But never lose your sense of self. You know, you need to live with yourself more than anything else. If you spend your entire life trying to please other people, you’ll please nobody.”
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