Start-up Coach & Ironman: Different Fields, Same Skills

Start-up coach Michael Stucki, of ETH ieLab (ETH Innovation and Entrepreneurship Lab) and Innosuisse, trained extensively to fulfil his dream and become an Ironman this October at the World Championship in Hawaii. An impressive 2’500 athletes showed up at the starting line, of which 57 were Swiss. I (Sybille Zimmermann, Innovation & Entrepreneurship Lab/ieLab team member) was recently able to catch Michael (not running, thank goodness) and ask him some questions about what ostensibly looks like a crazy sport.

Michael Stucki: I’ve always liked sports, especially running and biking. As for swimming, to be honest, I wasn’t all that good. My first triathlon race was an Olympic distance - which is just a quarter of the distance of an Ironman. I didn’t have a coach or any kind of training plan, but despite my limitations found it to be a great sport. So I set about training, and was surprised at how quickly I improved. The progress encouraged me to set some serious goals, which can also get your heart pounding! In 2015 I met my coach and mapped out a plan to achieve my dream of one day becoming an Ironman at the World Championship in Hawaii.

Well, I won’t deny it’s a lot of hard work: 10 hours of training per week - at least. Wherever possible, I try to combine the sport with my private and business life. If we are invited over to friends, for example, I bike there. If they happen to be by the lake, when I arrive, I’ll jump in and do a kilometre or two. Running is very easy wherever you are or at any time of day – over lunch or early in the morning.

Don’t get me wrong: like anyone else, I occasionally struggle with motivation. Sometimes I don’t want to get up and out to train, especially when it’s really cold and dark or very hot. Sometimes, it’s also just pretty boring. But I always keep my goal in mind, and so I push past my ‘inner laziness’ and do it anyway. It ultimately boils down to mindset. You have to stay focused – especially if you’re in pain, like I was the last 10 km of the marathon. It’s important to have a strategy in place to deal with those dark moments. You have to tap into your very last reserves. One of my favourite strategies is telling myself I only have 30 minutes left to reach the finish line and my goal. The support of my wife and friends is also very important: I honestly couldn’t do it without them.

Twelve months ago, I participated in the Half Ironman WC in South Africa and did surprisingly well. That gave me the confidence to give the full Ironman Hawaii a shot, so I signed up for IM South Africa in April 2019 in order to qualifiy for the IM Hawaii. To maximize my relatively short preparation time, I spent one month training in Australia to get in shape, and ended up 14th in my age group. When my name was called out the next day during the Hawaii “Kona slot” allocation, I was over the moon!

To actually be there, fit again after an injury in May, with my wife and friends as supporters, was overwhelming. Hawaii is the ideal climate for me, and very beautiful. I was still a little nervous, but to be honest, I just really enjoyed the whole day. Swimming went really well – biking was also very good – but I knew that this time the running part would be difficult. I also knew I wanted to finish. Focusing on how hard I’d already worked for this dream helped activate my energy. Crossing that finish line with the crowd cheering and my wife and friends waiting for me was the most amazing feeling. And the beer at dinner was definitively one of the best I’ve ever had.

As a coach for start-ups, I share my experience with a lot of young and talented people, guiding them through the first phase of starting a business. Becoming a successful entrepreneur requires skills similar to those required for Ironman: exact planning and preparation, training new skills, massive stamina, and support – which for start-ups comes in the form of a team and investors. An excellent coach or advisor is also crucial. And finally, keep in mind that no matter what obstacles you encounter, you must never give up or lose sight of your overall goal.

At the moment, I’m focusing on my jobs and on fully recovering from an ankle injury that happened in spring. As for triathlon racing, I’ve signed up for my “home race” - the Half Ironman Rapperswil (Switzerland) in June. Beyond that, time will tell.