Triathlon

What’s the most embarrassing thing to happen to you?

Embarrassing In-Flight Mishap: The Unfortunate TV Incident

So actually really like telling this story, even though it is embarrassing and I still haunts me to this day, but I was coming back from a race in tongue young South Korea and I was sitting next to this Korean man who didn't speak any English and it was a 14 and a half hour flight. We're about 45 minutes into the flight and I see him struggling with his TV not being able to turn it on. He's just tapping the screen over and over again and like looking really closely at it like trying to figure out how to turn it on and because the It was a touch screen and had like a little button on the bottom. You had to turn on first before you could like start searching for anything that you want to watch. I figured I would help him because I'm sitting there watching whatever movie I have and I see him with his blank screen and just tapping the screen like looking really close tapping. So I'm like, okay, I'm going to help this guy out because he's a bit older. Maybe doesn't know how the technology works. I don't know. So I just reach over and I press the power button for him, too. Turn the TV on farm, and he swats my hand away. And I'm like, whoa, like and he just gives me this dirty look and I'm like, okay, like I kind of just go back to watching whatever I was watching and he's there. Same thing. Just tapping the screen and I ended up falling asleep and like waking up a few hours later and me to get up to use the restroom. So I tapped him to say sorry. I need to get up to use the restroom or whatever and so he gets up and when he gets up and I slide across his seat. I see that from my vantage point sitting in my seat. His TV screen was completely blank. But then when I moved over to go out to go use the restroom. When I passed his seat, I can see that the TV was fully on. And so, in my mind, I was helping him turn on his TV, but then, from his Vantage Point, his TV was on, and he was tapping, like, trying to figure out something to watch. And then I just leaned over and turned off his TV, and he was like, and I could not explain. Lane to him because he didn't speak any English and I didn't speak any Korean. So like I couldn't explain to him that I was trying to help him. We're all he knows is that for some random reason? I just leaned over and turned off his TV.

I was sitting next to a Korean man on a 14 and a half hour flight and I tried to help him turn on his TV, but he swatted my hand away. Later, I realized that from his vantage point, the TV was already on and I had just leaned over and turned it off.

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I have a story that is both embarrassing and haunting to this day, but I actually enjoy telling it. It happened during a 14 and a half hour flight back from a race in Tongyeong, South Korea. I was sitting next to a Korean man who didn't speak English. About 45 minutes into the flight, I noticed him struggling to turn on his TV. He kept tapping the screen and looking closely at it, trying to figure it out.

Since I saw that it was a touch screen with a small button at the bottom that needed to be turned on before using it, I thought I would help him. I reached over and pressed the power button to turn on his TV. However, he swatted my hand away and gave me a dirty look. I was taken aback and went back to watching my own movie.

Later, I woke up from a nap and needed to use the restroom. I tapped him to apologize and let him know I needed to get up. As he got up and I slid across his seat, I noticed something strange. From my seat, his TV screen was completely blank, but as I passed his seat, I could see that his TV was fully on.

It dawned on me that from his perspective, his TV was already on, and he was tapping the screen to find something to watch. I had mistakenly leaned over and turned off his TV, causing confusion and frustration for him. Unfortunately, I couldn't explain the situation to him since we didn't speak each other's language.

It was an embarrassing moment where I thought I was helping but ended up causing more confusion. The language barrier made it impossible to clarify my intentions, and all he knew was that I randomly turned off his TV.

Do it for the story: The ultimate advice for a fulfilling life

I always like to say, do it for the story and so if you're making a decision in life you always ask yourself. Would this make a good story what? I want to tell the story at a dinner table or what? I tell this story to someone and if the answer is no, then maybe don't do it. But then if you said yes, this is going to make a great story or this would be a great chapter in my life book or whatever then that's something that you should pursue.

When making decisions, ask yourself if it would make a great story. If the answer is yes, then pursue it.

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My single best advice in life is to always consider if something would make a good story. When making decisions, ask yourself if it's a story you would want to share at a dinner table or with someone else. If the answer is no, it may not be worth pursuing. However, if you believe it would make a great story or a memorable chapter in your life, then it's something worth pursuing.

What do you believe to be true that goes against conventional wisdom?

Unconventional Wisdom: Skip Swim Drills, Swim More!

I believe that you do not need to do swim drills to get better at swimming. I think you should spend the time actually swimming, the just more swimming. You do the better because people who focus on drills or just wasting time where they could be actually doing more yards and building up strength. If you build up strength and your aerobic capacity in the water, then you're able to hold proper technique longer. But if you're doing drills, you're not implementing the aerobic capacity. Acity and the strength that you need to maintain proper technique. So it's counterintuitive. But that kind of goes against a lot of coaching philosophies is perfecting your Technique and then starting to swim more. But I think it needs to be the opposite. You need to swim more and then yeah, focus on drills. After when you're able to hold technique for longer because your obit capacity is better.

Swimming more is better than focusing on drills when trying to get better at swimming as it builds up strength and aerobic capacity which will help maintain proper technique.

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I believe that you don't necessarily need to do swim drills to improve your swimming. Instead, I think you should spend more time actually swimming. People who solely focus on drills may be wasting valuable time that could be spent swimming more and building strength.

By building up strength and aerobic capacity in the water, you can maintain proper technique for longer periods. If you solely focus on drills, you may not be developing the necessary aerobic capacity and strength required to sustain proper technique. This perspective goes against conventional wisdom, which often emphasizes perfecting technique before increasing swim volume.

In my opinion, it's more effective to swim more and then incorporate drills once you are able to maintain proper technique for longer durations due to improved aerobic capacity. It may seem counterintuitive, but I believe it yields better results.

What is one of the best investments you’ve ever made? (Could be time, money or energy etc)

Unleash Your Social Savvy: The Best Investment I Ever Made

One of the best investments that I ever made was to have a small range of knowledge on almost every topic so that you had something to talk about with everybody that you come in contact with that way. It's easy to be more personable and you make more connections and you can make more friends that way. It's just a lot more fun to be able to be involved with almost any conversation by just having a little bit of knowledge on each thing and you'll eventually run into somebody who is an expert on. That thing and if you have the base knowledge for it, then you can ask them follow up questions and then learn more about that topic just by knowing a little bit. So that's a recommend investing time in just a whole range of different topics and just finding out the base knowledge so that eventually you can find out more meet. Lots of people.

Investing time in learning a small range of knowledge on different topics can help you make more friends and connections.

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One of the best investments I've ever made was dedicating time to acquire a small range of knowledge on various topics. This investment has allowed me to engage in conversations with a wide range of people and make connections more easily. It's enjoyable to be able to participate in almost any conversation by having at least a basic understanding of different subjects. Additionally, when I come across someone who is an expert in a particular area, having that foundational knowledge enables me to ask follow-up questions and learn more about the topic. By investing time in gaining a broad base of knowledge, I have been able to meet and connect with many different individuals.

What are some of the top highlights of your life?

Triathlete defies odds: From coma to podium victory

One of the top highlights of my Triathlon life is back in, I guess it was 2014. I had had a heat stroke into seizures and was actually in a coma for 19 hours and didn't think I was going to survive and then ended up coming out of that game, my memory back and all good. And then I ended up having a race at the end of that year. The doctors cleared me and said you're able to race again. So I raced and I was actually on the podium, my wife Jews. Then my girlfriend at the time but now that we're married but we were both on the podium, we both won the race, it was a world trap on Continental cup, and Kelowna Canada, and that was definitely one of the highlights of my Triathlon life.

One of the top highlights of my Triathlon life was winning a race in Canada with my wife in 2014, after having had a heat stroke into seizures and being in a coma for 19 hours.

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One of the top highlights of my life was in 2014 during my triathlon journey. After experiencing a heat stroke and seizures, I ended up in a coma for 19 hours. I didn't think I would survive, but miraculously, I regained my memory and recovered fully. The doctors eventually cleared me to race again.

At the end of that year, I participated in a race. To my surprise and joy, I not only competed but also ended up on the podium. What made it even more special was that my girlfriend at the time, who is now my wife, also won the race. It was a world triathlon Continental Cup held in Kelowna, Canada. This achievement stands out as one of the most memorable highlights of my triathlon journey.

How do you deal with disappointment after a poor performance? Particularly when you’re around others nailing theirs.

Overcoming poor performance: Embrace growth, not comparison!

Yeah, dealing with poor performance is really challenging and the easiest way to get past that. Especially if you're around people who are nailing, their performances is seeing a pattern and growing from that. And knowing that, okay, I'm capable of more than this. I need to figure out what went wrong here and don't just continue doing the same thing and hoping for better results. If things are not working, then you need to change something. And if others are nailing, Things. That doesn't mean that you should copy what they're doing because they're nailing it that might not work for you. So figuring out what works for you and then just continuing to do that process over and over again.

Dealing with poor performance is tough, but you can grow from it by recognizing patterns and understanding that if something isn't working, you need to change it. Don't just copy what others are doing, as it may not work for you. Keep figuring out what works best for you and practice it over and over again.

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Dealing with disappointment after a poor performance can be challenging, especially when you see others around you excelling. The key is to recognize that there is an opportunity for growth and improvement. Instead of repeating the same actions and hoping for better results, it's important to analyze what went wrong and make necessary changes.

Comparing yourself to others who are succeeding may not be helpful, as their approach may not work for you. Instead, focus on figuring out what strategies and methods work best for you personally. By understanding your own strengths and weaknesses, you can develop a process that suits your individual needs and continue to refine it over time. Remember, the goal is to learn from your mistakes, adapt, and keep moving forward.

Tommy Zaferes answers your Triathlon questions. See all the advice Tommy Zaferes has and get answers to your own Triathlon questions.

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Pro photog for World Triathlon, SLT, & PTO. Pro triathlete training partner. Husband of Katie Zaferes.