The Greek Island of Santorini is perhaps the most majestic place on earth.  White sand beaches.  Jagged cliffs.  Breathtaking sunsets.  A little slice of heaven.

Many years ago,  three  buddies and I embarked upon a glorious adventure through the Greek Islands.  Once we arrived in Santorini, we set out to explore the expanse of this paradise.  After consulting with a few locals, we decided the best way to cover the entire island was to rent motor scooters in the seaside port.

None of us had experience with these scooters but we were eager to learn and even more eager to head up to the cliffs.  After a brief tutorial on the basic difference between the gas and the brake, we felt confident enough to head out on the highway.

Our scooters were lined up single file outside rental place.  My friend was first in the queue and the workers gave him the green light to engage on our quest.  Unfortunately, he gave it a little too much gas.  The scooter “wheelied” up in the air, my buddy was thrown off,  and the bike slammed into the wall directly in front of the rental place.  We didn’t make it more than 20 feet without crashing the first bike.

Pandemonium ensued.  The scooter rental workers were up in arms.  Cursing in a combination of Greek and English, they demanded immediate payment.  They grabbed our credit cards.  They commandeered our Passports.  They were all concerned with payback and retribution.  All except for one.

The main guide, a long-haired, laid-back Santorinian, was above all the hysteria.  He earnestly approached my buddy.  And his broken English kept everything in perspective.

“I am glad you are okay, my friend.  That is most important.  You break bike?  No problem, we get new bike.  You break you?  NO NEW YOU!”

Thank you, brother!

We all make mistakes.  We all dig ourselves a hole.  It’s okay.  Everything can be fixed.  But we have to take care of ourselves.  If something happens to you, NO NEW YOU!

A Healthy Perspective is Key

In our work lives, we don’t always get it right.  We blow a big sale.  We fail to prepare for a lesson.  We lose a big game.  We let our client down.  We come up short in crunch time.  People will come out of the woodwork to point fingers, cast blame and demand restitution.  We have to take accountability and accept our failures in the moment.  But we also have to maintain our perspective.

Our failures aren’t fatal.  No mistake is beyond repair.  We are all human. Those same people  clamoring for blood have all been in our shoes.  But when civility goes out the window, we have to stay above the madness.  As long as we are healthy and confident, we will have an opportunity to silence the critics.  We will regroup and do better.  We will move on and crush our next challenge.

Strength Comes From the Inside

The same is true in our personal lives.  We may make an error in judgment.  We face an addiction.  We may suffer a major financial setback. We may sever a close personal relationship.  These setbacks can be both mentally and physically devastating.  Our health can take a major hit as we struggle with the reality of our situation.

Friends can provide a steadying hand.   Family can help circle wagons.  We need all the support we can get and we can’t do it alone.  But at some point, we have to look inward.  Our best bet for getting our lives back on track comes from our own inner strength.   We have to shake off the doubters and forgive ourselves.  Then we have to get back to work.

Salvation lies within!–Warden Samuel Norton

We can claw our way out of any hole.  But we have to take care of ourselves.  We have to be healthy and strong enough to keep fighting and scratching for a better life.

Resilience Requires a Little Selfishness

Sometimes resilience is counter-intuitive.  We must help others achieve their goals.  We must support our friends and family.   We must be a positive force in the universe.  But if we want to stay resilient, we also have to be a little selfish.  We can’t ignore our health. We can’t beat ourselves up for our past mistakes.  We can’t allow others to tear us down.  We have to bulletproof ourselves from the outside world.

So let’s give ourselves  a break.  Let’s drown out all the negativity and noise around our shortcomings and accidents.  Let’s try to keep everything in perspective.

We can bounce back from any mistake.  We can rebuild our lives and move forward.  We just need to focus on the most important people in our lives.  And that includes focusing inward.

Remember, there is only one of you.  And if you break you, there is NO NEW YOU!

Stay safe.  Stay positive.  And stay resilient!