What The Boston Marathon Taught Me About Australian Culture

For those who don’t know, I was lucky enough to be able to go and support a long-term member of One Life on her dream — something we worked on together for nearly three years. Jade had qualified to run the Boston Marathon, one of the most prestigious races in the world. And being there to watch her finally live that moment was something special.

There are so many things about the trip that will stick with me forever.

Watching thousands of people line the streets to cheer on strangers.
The energy on race day — you could feel it in your chest.
The passion of the runners, the volunteers, the crowd.
The pride on people’s faces walking through the city in their Boston gear.
Even the simple stuff — the food, the random conversations, the way the whole city seemed to come alive for one event.

But this moment — this particular experience — I think deserves its own discussion.

It started a few days before the race. Jade and I had been to a metal concert (as you do) and afterwards, we grabbed some food. We ended up sitting next to a couple of runners who were also prepping for Boston.

Naturally, the conversation turned to racing and upcoming events. And Jade, in typical Aussie fashion, casually mentioned that she had qualified and secured a spot in the New York Marathon.

Their jaws dropped.

“Wait… you got into New York?” one of them asked. “That’s massive.

They were genuinely surprised — not at the achievement, but at how casually she said it.

And there it was — that first real moment where the cultural difference slapped us in the face.

See, in Australia, that response is normal. We downplay. We make ourselves smaller. It’s not that we aren’t proud — it’s that we’ve been raised to be careful about how we show it.

Be ambitious, but not too loud about it.
Celebrate your achievements, but not too openly.
Be proud, but definitely not too proud — or someone might think you’re full of yourself.

It’s something Jade and I spoke about a lot over the next few days. How hard it can feel to be loudly proud of what you’ve achieved in Australia. How we seem to love cheering people on — until they start doing really well.

Because then the praise gets quieter. The tone changes. The compliments become jokes.

Even after the race, the cultural difference kept showing up.

Jade would walk through the city in her Boston jacket and strangers would yell across the street — “Congratulations!” “You should be proud!” “Well done!”

No hesitation. No sarcasm. No tall poppy energy. Just raw, honest celebration of effort and achievement.

It was refreshing. And, honestly, a bit confronting.

It’s called Tall Poppy Syndrome, and it’s ingrained.

And the thing is — I truly think most people in Australia, including myself, fall victim to this mentality. On both sides.
We’ve all been the one who downplays something we should be proud of.
And we’ve all probably (even unintentionally) withheld praise from someone doing well — whether it’s from comparison, discomfort, or just not knowing how to express it.

But having said that…
I really don’t think it matters what’s ingrained in the culture.
It matters what we do from this day forward.

So — how do we cut this shit?

Start by being proud of yourself.

Doesn’t matter what about. Big or small.
It doesn’t matter what somebody else is doing or how it compares.

And if you catch yourself downplaying something — pause. Would you let your best friend do that? Would you let someone else write off their own progress like that? Probably not. So don’t do it to yourself.

So here’s the lesson I brought home:

You don’t shrink by letting others shine — and you don’t need to dim your own light just to make people more comfortable.

Own your wins. Let people celebrate you.
And be the kind of person who celebrates others — loudly, genuinely, and without conditions. Because we need more of that.

You’re allowed to be proud. And you’re allowed to say it out loud.

Let’s make that the new normal.