Originally Published in 2024
When you ask former Olympic triathlete Debbie Hansen to share the most important things she’s learnt throughout her career, her answers have little to do with the technical side of her sport. There are no running tips, swimming strategies or cycling advice, but a carefully considered list of lessons that could apply to any industry or individual. “Success is all about mindset,” says Debbie, who’s also a mother of two. “In sport, or anything we aspire to in life, there’s going to be hurdles along the way, but having resilience, true passion and a greater goal in mind will get you through and leave you stronger on the other side.”
They’re lessons Debbie picked up as she navigated a career in the highly competitive multisport. Having cracked into the circuit early through the Weet-Bix Kids Tryathlon, she amassed a collection of international titles and achieved a lifelong dream of competing in the Olympics in 2008. There were disappointments along the way –she missed out on bronze at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne by 0.1 second –but Debbie used those experiences as motivation. “Even though I didn’t win the medal there, it gave me the belief that I could really do it on a world stage,” she says. To prove her point, the determined athlete won her first ITU World Triathlon Cup in Ishigaki, Japan a week later.
Retiring from the sport in 2012, Debbie went on to help redevelop the Pinnacle Programme, opening the formerly sport-focused initiative to a broader audience. These days, she’s the personal development manager with the NZ Hockey Players Association, concentrating on the athletes’ off-field wellbeing. “I’ve always wanted to support players to be the best version of themselves outside of their chosen sport –what is their passion and purpose outside of who they are as an athlete?” she says. “Supporting them with their career and education, mental health and wellbeing, financial management and self-development.” Debbie’s approach centres on overall wellbeing and dips into her life experience, including eight key lessons she’s learnt along the way.
EIGHT KEY LESSONS FROM DEBBIE HANSEN:
1.Work hard for your dreams. If it were easy, everybody would do it.
2.Plan. Be prepared. Doing the small things right will be the difference between being good and being great.
3.Surround yourself with good people. People who will support and challenge you to achieve your goals.
4.Be accountable.Take ownership of your actions, see them through and take responsibility for what happens –good or bad.
5.Control your controllables. Put your energy into what you can control and take it one step at a time. You can’t control all situations, but you can control your attitude.
6.Ask for help. Talk to someone that you trust, and know that it’s okay to ask for help when you need it.
7.Network.Putting yourself out there can be awkward, but you never know when a connection will become an opportunity.
8.Enjoy the process.So often, we get caught up in the outcome. Focus on the small wins along the way.