This year, I had the privilege of closely watching a 12-year-old girl train for her first U14 tennis tournament. Her goal was simple but enormous for her: to win a single match in the older category.
She trained with a consistency that few adults could match. Rain, wind, cold, boiling Mediterranean heat. She trained even when seasonal flu left her body sore. It didn’t matter. She showed up. Day after day, in all weather, in all conditions.
But here’s the truth: most of the time, she lost. Not because she wasn’t talented or strong enough, but because the other girls were more experienced. They knew how to build the point strategically. They moved her around the court with purpose, waited patiently for her mistakes, and understood the rhythm of the game in a way that only comes with time. And despite her fight and determination, she walked off the court without a win.
And yet… the very next day, she was always back on court. Working on the forehand that had gone long, the serve that had fallen short, the footwork that had let her down. She never let a loss define her. She used it as fuel. Watching that kind of determination so closely taught me something about resilience and consistency you can’t learn from books, seminars, conferences or motivational speeches.
Resilient and consistent people don’t escape failure. They experience the pain, the sting, the weight of disappointment. But they don’t stay down. They accept setbacks as part of the journey, they focus on what they can control, and they filter every choice through one simple question: “Is this helping me, or harming me?”
Because resilience isn’t about winning every time. It’s about refusing to stay down. It’s about coming back, again and again, even when the scoreboard says you’re not ready. It’s about trusting that if you keep showing up, the wins will come.
And they did. A few months later, after more weeks of practice, she stepped into another tournament. This time, she trusted her training, stayed calmer under pressure, and finally closed out her first U14 victory. Not a championship, but a breakthrough. A turning point.
And soon after, another win followed. Proof that resilience and consistency don’t just create one bright moment, but they build momentum. Each victory, no matter how small, is a reminder that persistence pays off, and that every setback was quietly concrete the way for success.
The wins in life will come. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but if you keep showing up, they are inevitable. And when they do arrive, they taste sweeter because of every loss that came before.
Marios Mouzouris
Lead Consultant, Human Resources at Cronje & Yiannas Actuaries and Consultants Ltd
The views expressed above are solely of the author and do not necessarily represent the view of Cronje & Yiannas Actuaries and Consultants Ltd
