Think back to the toughest challenges you've ever faced - the longest grind, the lowest low... What would you do if, almost as soon as it ended, you were told you had to do it all again? 

For Kath Koschel, former New South Wales cricketer, this question isn’t hypothetical. She’d already faced loss of her fiancé and was overwhelmed with grief. And after months of rehab following a debilitating back injury, she wanted to get back on the pitch, but couldn’t. She still wasn’t able to lift her toes, which means she wasn’t able to bat. So her doctor suggested she give triathlons a go.   

So as if she hadn’t faced enough punishment yet, she fell headlong into training, eventually deciding that a normal triathlon wasn’t good enough. No, she was going to train for the ultrawoman event. WTF! 

But as she crossed the Sydney Harbour Bridge on a morning training session, she was struck down by a passing car, and sent to surgery, yet again.  

How do you face down the most brutal of curveballs, when you barely survived the first time?  

Kath Koschel is the impressive force behind the not-for-profit organisation The Kindness Factory which has expanded to The Kindness Curriculum, available in many schools in Australia and beyond.

+++ 

Curveball is a production of Deadset Studios. On Curveball you get the lowdown on how people grow in extraordinary times. Host Kellie Riordan takes you inside the someone’s curveball moment. They’ve been thrown a challenge, dealt a tough hand, the stakes are high. A decision could change the course of their life.  

Keep up to date with Curveball by following @_deadsetstudios on Twitter and @deadsetstudios on Instagram.  

Want more from your leadership journey? To get more wisdom and life lessons from top leaders delivered to you directly, sign up to Curveball’s LinkedIn newsletter!  

Find out more about the show or suggest a guest by visiting www.curveballshow.com   

This was episode was produced by Rachel Fountain and edited by Liam Riordan. 

The executive producers are Rachel Fountain and Kellie Riordan. 

We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the land on which this show was made. 

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.