Little Ms. Popular

Ok, so my post title is dripping with sarcasm, because according to the #RWCoverContest I'm not really all that popular.  But that's ok.  Really it is.  And from the second I entered the cover contest I knew this is exactly what would happen.  I mean there are hundreds, if not, thousands of people who entered this contest.  Not to mention I entered a few weeks after the contest started.  In my opinion, if they are going to have a voting portion of it, let every entrant have the same fair amount of time to get votes.  I was on vacation when my Runner's World magazine came, then I didn't pick it up & get entered for another week or so.  By then, some people had hundreds of votes & I was way behind the game.  Anyway, Runner's World.....just my input on the subject.

Luckily, voting and getting votes is only a portion of the contest.  It is not the sole deciding factor of who gets to be chosen to be on the cover of Runner's World.  Not everyone realizes that.  I had a few people nicely try to tell me "youuuuuu know.....you're not anywhere near the top of the leaderboard."  Yes, dear friend, I knew that. But I didn't want some voter number to determine if I would continue on with enthusiasm or just give up in despair.  I refuse to let the final numbers define who I am.

Truth is, there are A LOT of excellent candidates.  Some of them I recognize as bloggers I follow.  One is a personal friend of mine.  I had actually hoped that there would be no personal competition with someone I knew.  When I saw her entered I took a deep long breath and clicked on her name.  I was curious to see what her answers were....ok, total lie.....I wanted to see how many votes she had, even though (I think) she entered after me.  Yeah, she clearly is quite known and popular.  I'm not going to lie, it IS tough and hard not to take it as a personal blow when I see the numbers.  Not that I don't want her to win or get a lot of votes.  She is a pretty amazing person and runner.

I knew there was a voting issue right from the start.  I had A LOT of people tell me they voted for me.  Probably a good 50 people.  But at the end of that first day I only had 15 votes.  So either a lot of people lied to me (it's possible, but I doubt it) or there was a voting issue.  As days went on and I talked to others I heard a lot of the same things.....that they had tried to vote for me, but got an error or the page shut down.  Or I think that some people think they voted for me, but are actually doing it wrong and their vote doesn't count.  Either way, I realize that 50 people and their extra votes does not boost my count to take me even into the thousands, but it would at least be nice to get a true accurate idea of how many people voted their love & support in honor of me.

Not long ago, maybe a few months, there was another contest for a running trip to win and a blogger I followed posted about it being a popularity contest.  In that contest it was the voting totals that determined the winner.  I commented on her post and encouraged her to not focus on the number, but rather the impact she does make on people either through her blog or in real life.  I know I have to keep my focus on the same thing.  My own family & friends have already reminded me of that.

One day, in response to someone's reminder of my low vote total, I posted my daily reminder to vote & stated that I was nowhere near the top of the leaderboard, but wanted everyone to continue to vote.  I received some very nice comments about how I'm at the top of THEIR leaderboard and that's all that matters to them.  Or that I'm always their #1 runner.  Etc, etc.  It touched my heart to receive that feedback.  Yesterday I had someone post and tell me that I was a great role model for my community and no matter if I get on the cover or not I'm still an outstanding runner.   Awwwwwwe, I seriously wasn't fishing for such comments, but it's a real boost to hear such feedback from others.

Voting ends at the end of this week.  It is only a portion of the final decision of who to pick to win this contest.  Good luck to the judges!!  Wow, do they have an amazing job in front of them.  So many deserve to be chosen and being that one or not doesn't diminish any of their amazingness.  I want to continue to hold my head high and encourage any and everyone to vote.  My vote total WILL NOT determine if I'm worthy or amazing or a role model or a runner.  It just a number.  Do I wish I had thousands and on top of the leaderboard?  Heck ya!  But if I don't, I'll continue on to be the best amazing runner and person that I'm always striving to be.

You can continue to vote for me HERE.