When the 29-year-old  Cole Brauer landed in A Coruna, Spain, on Thursday, she became the first woman to race nonstop around the planet. She spent months navigating her 40-foot boat, First Light, over three seas and 30,000 miles to reach the finish line. The only other female participant in the Global Solo Challenge was her. She is not the first woman to round the globe or the first to do so nonstop, but she is the first to do so as part of a competition, and she, therefore, established the record for the quickest solo female circumnavigation, clocking in at 130 days. Thanks to satellite communications, she was able to stay in contact with staff handling logistics and her army of more than 400,000 social media fans wherein nearly half a million people followed her posts. Her feed detailed how she dealt with bad weather, waves, injury, dehydration, and much joy along the way.

Upon her return to A Coruna, she celebrated with a champagne shower, a cappuccino, and a croissant; all well deserved undoubtedly.

( Source: Google Images) 
Insights About the Route ~ 
Her itinerary carried her from Spain via the Atlantic Ocean, along the west coast of Africa, hugging the Southern Ocean from the Cape of Good Hope to Australia, the Horn of Africa, and back to Spain. The 29-year-old now makes up the small number of persons who have completed the journey. The only other female participant in this year's "Global Solo Challenge" was her. From Spain, Geoff Bennett communicated with Brauer. When she first left, it took about two weeks to adjust. She had spent so much time with her team and so much time with her family. Then, all of a sudden, there was no weaning-off period. She just kicked off the dock and went along. From the beginning, she was good at being alone, but now during her sail, she was completely by herself and there was no one to confide with. She didn't tell very many people this, but she cried every day for the first two weeks.  When she thinks back on it, the thing that could have been the hardest was losing the personal interaction she had.

What She Felt After Reaching The Destination ~ 

And that is exactly what the finish was also. And so it wasn't the biggest relief. But she did love seeing her family and my friends once again. And that was such a wonderful moment. She would say lighting the flares was such a wonderful moment too, because it's something that sailors, when you see a sailor finish this big important race, that is the tradition is to light flares and hold them over your head. And to have that moment, it's such a dream come true.

( Source: Google Images) 

Her Viewpoints On Sailing As A Male Dominated Sports~ 

She believes that since everything is so much influenced by masculine energy, it's not only about women but also about males. Because they fear losing their identity or not being recognized in society, even guys who may be a little more feminine have had to suppress that aspect of themselves. She believes that it's more about providing feminine energy to balance out the extremely male-dominated sport than it is about being merely a woman. She was expecting a certain type of approach—that being a woman should allow you to be who you are, even in the middle of the ocean. When dealing, you shouldn't have to worry about if someone is judging you with a boat bursting at the edges. She thus believes that understanding is crucial for young women. To pursue your dreams, you don't have to lose yourself!

What's InStore For Her Up Next Voyage~ 

It happens every four years. So, in 2028, she is planning on doing the Vendee Globe, but it is tenfold on sponsorship money time and energy. And it's — that race is so well-known that it's dominated by the French, the French sailing community. And so coming in as an American, an American woman, it's never been done before. And so her hope is to be the first American woman to race in the 'Vendee Globe in 2028' too!

( Source: Google Images) 

Takeaway From This Success Story ~  SHIFTING YOUR STRESS MINDSET

Probably very few people view all situations with the "stress is harmful" approach. At the same time, many people could benefit from improving their stress mindset. Research studies show that stress is most likely to be harmful if, because of stress, you feel inadequate, you feel out of control or have a sense of meaninglessness, or you are isolated from others (McGonigal 2015). I have framed these three categories as the “three H’s” of stress risk: helplessness, hopelessness, and hiding.

• When you are overwhelmed with life stress, do you feel helpless, like there’s nothing you can do?
• Do you feel hopeless—a sense that life will always be difficult for you?
• Do you want to avoid or hide from stressors by escaping into food, alcohol, work procrastination, neglecting daily chores, isolating from friends, or bottling up feelings?

As a new strategy, why not get help from your most energizing, core qualities that are already within you? Your character strengths!

MANAGE YOUR HOPE~
Go for your defining advantages. We lose sight of our essential strengths while we're feeling gloomy. We lose sight of the fact that our assets can support us. Make use of one of your strongest suits now. And tomorrow is another one. If you have a high sense of beauty, take the long route home from work and enjoy the fresh air and breathtaking scenery as you cruise through the countryside with your window down.

OVERCOME HELPLESSNESS~
Focus on your qualities of endurance, caution, or leadership, and do one action that will give you a sense of control. For now, only one item. Prudence can help you mentally plan one thing to accomplish, leadership strength can help you take command and lead yourself away from ideas of damaging helplessness into empowerment, and persistence can help you execute that one action and finish that one activity, no matter how tiny. Utilizing your inner powers to finish that one task might start a good chain reaction that leads to more control.