I Am Underwhelmed by Arbitrary Achievements

sharks-9820-1920x1080Some of you aren’t going to like this. Just be warned.

Twitter and Facebook were abuzz today with the news that 64-year-old Diana Nyad completed a 110-mile swim from Cuba to the United States. Somehow this was newsworthy. Someone decided to swim an arbitrary distance, and somehow it’s important.

This is always the reaction I have when I hear that someone decides to run a marathon or has run a marathon. Somehow a marathon is seen as an achievement. I love the idea that people use the goal of a marathon to get in shape, to have a training regimen that makes them healthier. But in the end, if you don’t hurt yourself while you’re training, your accomplishment is that you ran 26 miles. An arbitrary distance determined by some dude in Greece a long time ago.

Look, I’m all for people setting arbitrary goals and accomplishing them. It’s better than floating aimlessly through life. But why the press? Why the publicity? If you personally feel driven to swim 110 miles, go do it. Don’t make a big deal about it. Just go do the thing that means a lot to you and nothing to anyone else.

Now, it would be different if Nyad were raising money for some sort of cause. Then there’s a reason to draw attention to her achievement. But it’s clear from her website that she’s just raising money for herself. She asked people to donate so she could achieve her own arbitrary goal.

I kept looking for some greater purpose, some reason for this to be newsworthy. The closest I got was Nyad’s list of three things she wanted people to learn from her experience (this is an exact quote broken down into three points):

  1. One is, we should never, ever give up.
  2. Two is, you’re never too old to chase your dream.
  3. Three is, it looks like a solitary sport, but it is a team.

I’m sorry, I just don’t get it. The first two points are paint-by-numbers inspirational sayings. The third is specific to long-distance swimming. Thanks for the tip, Nyad.

Look, if you want to go swim or climb or run a certain distance, go do it. Push your body to the limit. But remember that just because it’s important to you doesn’t meant that it’s important to other people. (For friends who run marathons, your health is important to me. Your fulfillment with life is important to me. But you running an arbitrary distance is not important to me.)

Am I being overly cynical and perhaps even hypocritical, especially considering that I spent the last year raising money for two board games I designed? Perhaps. But I make board games so other people can play my board games and enjoy that time they spent with other people. I feel like I’m adding something to the world. All Nyad left behind were a bunch of hungry sharks that didn’t get the memo that she wasn’t using a shark cage this time around.

Okay, here’s your chance to tell me why I’m wrong. I’m all ears. Especially since I’m in the middle of setting the world record for ear-wiggling. Feel free to donate to the cause and contact the press, because my arbitrary goal of wiggling my ears nonstop for 4 hours should be considered an accomplishment by all people.

21 thoughts on “I Am Underwhelmed by Arbitrary Achievements”

  1. You’re right, 26 miles 385 yards is not that much more impressive than 25 miles 280 yards. But running a marathon isn’t easy. And swimming from Cuba to Florida is even more difficult. So yes, I think you are being overly cynical.

    I actually had no idea about the three lessons that Nyad had proposed. Even if she had set the goal arbitrarily and tried to keep it to her self, I would have found it very impressive.

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    • Oh, I have no doubt that running a marathon is hard. I’m impressed by people who are able to run for 5 miles, much less 26. I just don’t care. 🙂

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  2. I would be cautious about comparing arbitrary distances to that of marathon distances. Fact is, marathon distance is pretty much a benchmark of extreme endurance. Like your body can only store so much energy to do so many things. After that and you are doing something that your body simply isn’t made to do. And that is tough. It isn’t about just being in shape and putting in the time to reach a certain distance. Your body literally starts to malfunction and it becomes a matter of willpower, not endurance. I know this isn’t addressing your thesis, I guess I would just advise against using marathons as a supporting argument. Marathons are remarkable. I think people who run them are also crazy. And I would never do that to myself. Include here: mountain climbers, astronauts, and chess players..

    In Diana Nyad’s case, I don’t know enough about her feat to judge if it is remarkable or not (and I’m not really interested to find out). I will say this: many athletes also don’t understand the fascination “normals” have for their achievements–it was just something to do. They would have done it whether facebook cared or not, or whether others were impressed by it or not. I think the fascination, in my case at least, is with the human body’s abilities. I think it is remarkable that a human being can run a marathon. I think it may be remarkable that a 67-year old human can still swim that distance. It’s not putting anyone up on a pedestal. It’s showing what we are all basically capable of. Not just our bodies, but our minds. Isn’t that cool?

    As far as promoting and raising funds for herself via a website, I am agnostic. Professional athletes all do this. Is the source of the funding important? Corporate versus private?

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    • Patrick–Interesting. So your point is that a marathon is not actually arbitrary–it’s a benchmark of extreme endurance, as you say. That makes sense. And I agree that it’s tough, really tough. No argument there.

      I guess it is cool when people push the limits of the human body. Yeah, I’ll agree with that. 🙂

      As for promotion, I was just surprised that Nyad wasn’t using all that press to do some good. She was in the water for how many days? How about Charity: Water?

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      • I guess I am not as surprised as you are. I think true charity and altruism are almost non-existent in society. Look at any number of celebrities for more examples. And if she were to use her notoriety at this point, would that seem self-serving (the same way I often think it seems self-serving when celebrities do charity)? I’m not really disagreeing with your point. But I might suggest that all of us pass up chances to do good on a daily basis. I don’t think lack of press is an excuse for that. Anyway, I think I am getting off-topic and will stop.

        I know several marathoners which is why your original post piqued my interest. And actually, this is the first time I have heard of Diana Nyad. But if my facebook and twitter were flooded with “OMG THIS PERSON IS COOL” I would feel annoyed as well (probably regardless of anything).

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  3. I am always proud of my friends that run marathons because they accomplished a goal they set for themselves, but also mildly appalled that they ran 26.2 miles because it is, as I understand it, basically universally accepted as being bad for humans (extreme, hard on joints, etc). So am I impressed that they ran 26.2? No. But am I proud that they did what they said they were going to? Yes.

    Do I care about Nyad? I like Patrick’s comment that it reminds us how able the human body is. In that way, I think I enjoy hearing stories of triumph. But is it technically newsworthy in my journalistic opinion? No. But neither is half of the news.

    Lastly, this happens all the time. Do I care that so-and-so is the first pitcher in MLB history to hit a grand slam? No, it’s a random achievement, benchmarked only by assuming pitchers are bad at hitting (I made up this example). But they get press, more money, and lots of people enjoy knowing that fact, which I don’t totally understand.

    *end rambling comment*

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    • Emma–I agree that I’m proud of my friends when they follow through with their goals. But I would do the same for any distance. 26.2 miles means nothing to me. If a friend wanted to run 5 miles for the first time and they got in shape and did it, I’d be really proud of them–perhaps even more proud of them because they forged their own path.

      I’m a sports fan, but I totally agree about random sports “achievements.” Especially since I think people forget sometimes that sports are just entertainment. Athletes perform for our entertainment every week. There’s no greater meaning to it than that, as much as ESPN wants us to think otherwise.

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      • Yes exactly, I am proud of 5 miles the same as 26.2, whatever their goal was.

        I’m a sports fan too! I love watching sports just like I love listening to music, but I could care less which athlete/musician used to be with which team/band or whether that play/song was the first of its kind, etc. The random facts do not matter to me, but I love the act of witnessing sports or listening to music.

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        • Again, I think for me 5 miles is not impressive the way 26.2 miles is. So many people have run marathons now that maybe it seems like old hat. But so is climbing Mount Everest then? Maybe I am conflating pride with impressiveness. In which case, yes, you can be proud of any achievement no matter how trivial. But I still argue you should definitely be more impressed with accomplishments made under extreme duress. And that it doesn’t have to be toward the individual, but toward the potential in all of us.

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          • Patrick–Well, obviously 26.2 is longer, but when a friend sets a goal and achieves it, I’m proud of them for doing that. The exact goal itself doesn’t matter to me–it matters to them.

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            • Right. I think I was just making a semantic distinction there, mostly for my own benefit. I don’t think I disagree with you or Emma in your terms. I’m still trying to work out what the exact difference is in my mind between feeling proud and feeling impressed. As an example, going back to the body thing, I can be impressed by the human body, but should I feel proud of it? At this point I am just thinking aloud.

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              • Patrick–Well, for me, pride is tied to actually knowing the person. I’m proud that a friend accomplishes a goal, but I have no connection to a stranger accomplishing a goal. However, for me personally, I’m not impressed when a friend runs an arbitrary distance. I’m proud, but because the number of miles associated with the goal doesn’t matter to me at all, I’m not impressed. There are things that impress me, but that’s not one of them. 🙂

  4. When I saw the “news” about Nyad swimming that distance yesterday, my first reaction was to just scroll to the next story as quickly as possible, because I also don’t really care about this “achievement.” Sure, it’s cool that she was able to set a goal like this to push herself and finally achieved it, and I doubt I’d ever be able to swim such a long distance in that amount of time, but I don’t really think that it’s newsworthy– at least not at the level of attention that this story has gotten the last 2 days. Also, setting this goal in the first place seems a little extreme to me because putting that much strain on your body and swimming in the open ocean just don’t seem like the smartest of ideas.

    In my opinion, there are much more important stories or issues out there that could have gotten more attention (even though by now I’m sure some people are sick of hearing constant updates on the situation in Syria, but those updates at least seem more important than a silly human interest story).

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    • Katy–I have to agree with you here…I don’t think it’s newsworthy either. Especially since she’s tried the same swim several times. I think she made it within a few miles of shore one time–isn’t that enough? Why use all that time and all those resources to get a few extra miles? There’s just something self-centered about it to me that is a real turn off.

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  5. Damn, dude. I think you were nicer to Miley. 🙂

    I’ve got a better quote that might sum it up:
    “Every time a scholar, an athlete, a writer, an artist, a scientist does what has never been done before, the entire human race evolves” – liner notes to Tool’s “AEnima”, probably by Maynard James Keenan

    Nyad gets attention because it’s a feat that no one else has done before, she persevered despite a number of limitations, and was able to achieve it. Yes, it’s totally arbitrary that Cuba happens to be set where it is relative to Florida. Same with the guy who tried running around the world about 12 years ago (he didn’t quite make it). She didn’t have the most inspiring quote, and her fundraising was for herself, true. Would you have been less inspired than, say, if it was the US men’s Olympic swim team trying to raise money to go to 2016 Olympics by doing the same swim? That actually kinda makes sense if you are because of your strong goal-orientation. When you see something – anything, really – that grabs the attention of many, is your first response to ask “why is this worth my attention?” That’s a very critical view – and I don’t mean it in a bad sense, we could all stand to be more discerning of ourselves and our role in our world and the world’s role in us.

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    • Ha ha…good point about Miley.

      Oh, don’t get me started about the Olympics. I think I’ve ranted about that on a blog entry or two.

      I like that quote, though. I guess I just don’t see much value in humans spending their time trying to swim 110 miles. It seems like we’ve evolved past that. Couldn’t she have spent that time and money actually helping people? Perhaps that’s what entertainment is–you’re making people feel things like joy and elation by watching you do something improbable.

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  6. I wholeheartedly agree. I don’t care. Not because I don’t think it was an incredible feat, but because its not news. No one denies how difficult this was. Few of us can probably imagine the pain from jellyfish stings that cut short her previous attempts, how miserable a body must feel submerged in salt water for that long, the sunburn, the discomfort of the protective gear she wore this time and the bruises it caused inside her mouth, the fear of the sharks and creatures in the night she couldn’t see. Good for her. Reach your goals. Be proud of yourself. But why the press? Because she thinks of herself as amazing and thinks its important that we do too. That’s off-putting.

    Also keep in mind, she’s not the first person to swim this distance. She’s the first to do it without a shark cage.

    Supposedly. Are we really to believe she’s the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage?

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    • Yes, Emily!!! Well said. My favorite line: “Are we really to believe she’s the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage?”

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  7. As a marathoner, I know there are plenty of people who don’t care about my race, my training, etc. However, I post to receive encouragement from those that do care, to keep myself accountable, and to encourage others to try something they thought might be beyond their abilities. I have discovered over the last few years that distance runners are a very supportive group and encourage each other even those they don’t know. (As a side note, while the news covered Nyad’s feat extensively, the only places I saw it on FB were pages dedicated to distance running and other endurance sports. ). I have made some great friends through my running experiences- people I would not have met otherwise.

    Many people are raising money for various charities as part of their training and many races directly benefit a charity. Nyad’s next swims? They will raise money for people affected by Hurricane Sandy, the Moore, Oklahoma tornado and another one that escapes me right now. So, while this swim was not for a cause other than to finish something she really wanted to achieve, she will be using her name to help others.

    Now, I am off to run. 😉

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    • Julie–I’m glad a real-life marathoner chimed in. 🙂 I always applaud your efforts from a distance on Facebook when I see that you’ve run another marathon. Again, it’s not because of the marathon itself, but because you’re pursuing and accomplishing something that’s important to you. It’s neat that distance runners provide such a supportive group.

      It’s great to hear that Nyad will be using her next swims in the future. Given that she already got attention for other 100+ mile swims, I don’t understand why she couldn’t use the press for this one to support a charity, but I guess that’s just who she is.

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      • Part of me wonders if she was trying to ensure she could complete it after having to suspend it before. Maybe now that she’s completed this, she will be able to raise more money. I could see people thinking ” well, if she hasn’t done it before, she won’t make it now”. Who knows!

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