Some days, the story of the day is perhaps a bit bland. But, even still there is something to be drawn from it. Days like today for me rise up and smack you in the face like Vogon Slapsticks.

We already knew that our manager was out for the week, and one of my peers was at home uncertain of whether he had CoV2 or not. Nevertheless he felt horrible and, to his credit, stayed home. My other peer had not been feeling well of late, and when I saw him this morning I knew he had to go. He is the most senior of us in the position, and I had confidence that he and I could handle the day between us. Only 16 appointments on the calendar would have been a walk in the park for the two of us. He was gone before the first appointment arrived.

Frankly, I was terrified. I've only been doing this for about six months. I still struggle to get through the day with 8-10 customers per day. I was staring at the mountain wondering how to get to the top. We made a few phone calls, and I got some help from the dealership I came from (which is part of the same ownership group). Although he was not familiar with our systems enough to navigate customers through, he was generous about answering the phone and greeting people who arrived. This bought me precious time to process people through the system and the shop. The techs were all supportive, knowing that I didn't need complaints about who got the better work today. They were great.

Frankly, it was the same sort of fear that I had my first day as the medic of an ambulance crew. I was the guy. I couldn't CALL 911....I WAS 911. Granted, nobody dies if their car doesn't get fixed, but all the responsibility was on me to make today happen. I wasn't ready for it, but I did it anyway. I defaulted to my emergency plan:

1. Don't panic. Breathe.
2. Think.
3. Formulate a plan.
4. Execute the plan.

So that's what I did today. I did something that terrified me. I made it through just concentrating on doing the next right thing. I made some mistakes, and covered some mistakes made by others. Stretched to the point of breaking a few times, but I didn't.

This is not a brag. Nor is it false bravado. I simply learned that there is still more in me than I think, sometimes.

It is my firm belief that every human has this ability: to stretch oneself just a little bit more. To reach just a little deeper inside and find that little extra. I don't think I gave that mystical 110%. I do, however, think I found another half inch toward 100% and I have much more to find before I get there. As I have said previously, I have failed spectacularly so many times in this life that I no longer fear it. Today, that worked in my favor.

Optimism wins again.