The Promise, The Pain, and The Comeback: My Journey Through a Spine Injury

Mak
Oct 28
2 min read

A Promise I Have to Keep

A while ago, I made a promise to someone important Mr. Arnold Schwarzenegger. It wasn’t just a casual commitment. It was personal. It was about showing up, no matter what. At the time, I didn’t know that promise would be tested in ways I couldn’t have imagined. Not by business challenges, not by market shifts but by my own body.

A spine injury stopped me in my tracks. Literally. The same person who’d been leading teams, closing deals, and motivating others suddenly had to learn how to sit, stand, and move again. And let me tell you when life strips you of momentum, it forces you to confront your identity. Who are you when the grind stops? Who are you when you can’t perform, can’t lead, can’t operate at full speed?

When Strength Gets Redefined

We live in a culture that glorifies hustle and output. But lying flat on your back, staring at a ceiling, unable to do what you normally do that’s when you learn what real strength is.

It’s not in the muscles. It’s in the mindset. It’s in the decision to stay faithful when frustration is louder than hope.

My spine injury humbled me. It reminded me that leadership isn’t about how much you can carry but it’s about how well you can recover.

That promise to Mr. Arnold Schwarzenegger became a mirror for my character: would I still show up, even when showing up looked different?

Purpose in the Pain

In the middle of that pain, I had a lot of quiet time with God. And He made something clear: your purpose doesn’t pause when your body does. Sometimes He slows you down not to punish you but to prepare you. Because when you’re forced to stop, you start seeing differently. I began to see how often I’d tied my identity to performance. But God doesn’t measure us by productivity. He measures us by perseverance. And here’s the truth: your spine might break, your business might fall, your plans might shatter but your purpose doesn’t fracture. It bends. It stretches. But it survives.

Resilience Is Rebuilt One Step at a Time

Recovery taught me something about leadership no MBA ever could: Resilience is built in small, stubborn steps.

Some mornings the victory wasn’t in big breakthroughs, it was just getting out of bed without pain. Other days, it was walking a few steps further than the day before. Progress was invisible at first, but discipline kept me moving. That’s when I realized resilience is less about bouncing back and more about rebuilding forward.

The same principle applies in business, leadership, and life: