Impact Investing in Oneself

There is certainly something invigorating about a challenge with your peers. It transcends that competitive edge where one wants to outperform the other, but also unleashes the Ubuntu spirit, that “I am, because we are” and that your struggle is my struggle. This is powerful.

The challenge was designed so that one competes to stay active, and this is what sets it apart. It isn’t about how “fit” a person is but about resolve - about stretching oneself - which requires great determination. It’s about firing the greatness within oneself.

Of course, there is that Personal Legend, that purpose and that human story; from enduring life’s obstacles to health struggles. The past couple of years had been a difficult journey for many, with the feeling of camaraderie absent. I love this saying by one of the athletes: “Time to walk a new path, time to climb a mountain”. This resonates across hearts and minds.

As I write this, we’re well past the halfway point, with the motivation stronger than ever (as well as the office banter!).

This isn’t just a challenge; this is impact investing in oneself.

Q & A

What does the challenge involve?

Each athlete works out for 30 minutes (consecutively) 6 days per week for three months.

1 day’s rest is allowed in a week, with a reset every Thursday (the week runs from Thursday – to Wednesday).

Athletes are notified every week (on Thursdays) if they qualify for the new week.

The challenge rules, guidelines, integrity & indemnity are stipulated and agreed upon once joining the challenge on the Strava application.”

HOW DID IT COME ABOUT?

This might sound like a cliché, but it started off with a fitness bet by our Private Equity team, and the idea evolved and, let’s say, was outsourced to Operations to perform the “Back-office” functions. The challenge started the day after we decided to proceed, on 15 September 2022, and will end on 15 December 2022.”

WHAT HAS THE RESPONSE BEEN?

Overall, the response has been encouraging and, of course, exciting, with 25 athletes entering the challenge. Although we had way more interest, we decided to keep it to 25 athletes. Apart from a few technology issues, we managed to sort everyone out by day one and the athletes have been recording their progress since then. The excitement also comes in when using the application, as one can view the workouts of other athletes, their posts, how many activities have been performed and more.”

WHAT HAPPENS AT THE END?

The winner will receive a prize (still to be decided), and individual prizes will be awarded to standout participants.”