Simone Biles: Communicate a Pause Without Promising a Return Date

The Lesson

You have agreed to help with a volunteer project, but you need to step back from this week’s work. You keep postponing the message because you do not know when you will be ready to return. Meanwhile, the organizer still assumes you will complete the task.

You can communicate today’s decision before you know the whole future. A clear message tells people what changes now, what practical arrangements need attention and when they can expect another update.

What Simone Biles’s account offers

After withdrawing from the Tokyo Olympic team final in July 2021, Simone Biles spoke directly with NBC’s Andrea Joyce. In NBC’s account of that interview, Biles acknowledged what she was dealing with, expressed pride in her teammates and explained that decisions about subsequent events would be considered day by day.

The communication lesson is limited and practical: she described the present situation without committing to a complete future schedule. Her circumstances in elite sport were specific to her. They do not tell us what another person should decide about health, work or sport.

Biles is also the coauthor, with Michelle Burford, of the autobiography Courage to Soar. The practice below is an original SelfGrowthVideos communication exercise, not a script from her book or a method she endorses.

State the change people need to understand

“I might be less available” can leave the organizer unsure whether the work is covered. “I will not be able to lead Saturday’s session” names the actual change.

You can share a brief reason if you choose, while keeping personal details private. The practical information may be enough: which commitment you cannot fulfill and whether any work or materials need to be returned. You do not have to provide a public account of your personal circumstances to write a useful update.

Separate an update from a promise to resume

“I’ll check in on Thursday” promises a message. “I’ll be back on Thursday” promises participation. Those are different commitments.

Choose an update you can reasonably give. At that point, you might be ready to return, need a longer pause or still lack information. Say what you know. If you cannot yet set an update date, explain how the other person can plan without assuming your return.

Discuss the practical handoff

Someone may need the room booking, lesson notes or contact for a supplier. Identify what is yours to hand over and agree on the recipient. Do not volunteer another person to replace you without their agreement.

A pause can affect other people, and they may need to reorganize. Clear communication helps expose those arrangements. It does not guarantee that everyone will welcome the decision.

Reflection

• Which commitment am I actually pausing?
• Who needs to know so they can plan?
• What practical information do they need?
• Which personal details do I want to keep private?
• Can I offer a check-in without promising that I will resume?

Practice

This is an original SelfGrowthVideos exercise for an ordinary activity such as a voluntary group, study project or personal collaboration. Choose a real situation or practice with a fictional one.

Draft a message with three parts:

1. Present decision: name the activity or task you are pausing.
2. Practical arrangement: explain the work or materials that need a handoff.
3. Next update: say when you will check in, or clarify that others should plan without counting on your participation.

For example: “I need to step back from leading Saturday’s volunteer session. I can send the session notes to the organizer today; please confirm who should receive them. I’ll update you on Thursday about whether I can take on a later session. Please arrange this Saturday’s cover without counting on me.”

Read your draft for accidental promises. Have you implied that you will return by a certain date when you only mean to reassess? Have you assigned work to someone who has not agreed? Revise those parts before using the message.

Review

After the conversation, check whether the other person understood which commitment changed and what happens next. Record any arrangement you actually agreed to.

At your check-in, review your present situation rather than assuming the pause must end. Give a clear update, and confirm any new commitment before others plan around it.

Go Deeper

Visit Simone Biles’s teacher profile for more context. For changing a learning plan around real commitments, explore Allyson Felix: Adapt Your Practice When Your Responsibilities Change. For a useful principle about clarity, try the project-feedback lesson connected to Brené Brown.