Fortune #32

Simone Biles arrived at the Tokyo Olympics under extraordinary expectations. During competition she developed what gymnasts call the “twisties,” a loss of spatial awareness while rotating in the air. At that level of gymnastics, a mistake is not merely a lower score; it can cause catastrophic injury.

Biles withdrew from several finals and explained the mental-health and safety reasons. Some criticized her. She returned for the balance beam and won bronze, then stepped away from competition for about two years, continued therapy, and rebuilt on her own terms. In 2023 she returned to win another world all-around title.

Her boundary was not a wall that ended her life. It was a guardrail that preserved a body and future to which she could return. Biles did not choose comfort over responsibility. She assessed that the present condition was unsafe and accepted the public cost of saying so. Stopping protected the resource on which all the work depended: herself.

You need not wait for a crisis before setting a boundary. Choose one that can be communicated: an hour when messages stop, work that requires information before acceptance, or a protected break. State it without apologizing for having a body and limits. A healthy boundary does not reduce your care for others; it prevents that care from consuming you completely.