Tom “Pacer Tom” Perri is living with stage-four cancer and has completed more than 300 marathons since his diagnosis. He recently crossed the finish line of his 809th career marathon. But this episode is not really about running. It is about identity, purpose, and what it looks like to keep moving when life changes the course on you. Shawn breaks down why your circumstances do not have to become your entire identity, why purpose matters in hard seasons, and why sometimes determination is simply taking the next step instead of trying to solve the entire road ahead.
Tom Perri has spent decades running marathons and helping other runners reach their goals. After being diagnosed with stage-four cancer in 2019, he kept going.
Since then, he has completed more than 300 marathons, run a marathon in all 50 states after his diagnosis, and continued serving as a pacer for other runners.
In this episode, Shawn talks about:
Key takeaway:
You do not have to know how the entire story ends. You just need to know the next step.
Question to sit with:
What are you facing right now that feels too big because you are looking at the entire marathon instead of the next step?
Raw thoughts. Real perspective. No filter.