Roger is the King of Tennis, the most admirable Champion, a Legend, the fans’ Favorite everywhere he goes around the world, the Greatest Of All Time (a.k.a the GOAT). He is, in fact, a lot more than a tennis persona or an athlete. He truly is an inspiration, which is clearly evident when you read through some of Roger’s famous quotes:

I’m rested. I’m fresh. I’m confident too. Confidence is a huge thing. Then, great things do happen

This quote came out recently during Wimbledon. RF emphasized how he now keeps the balance between family life, rest and playing the big tournaments, while focused on self-belief and positiveness. The message here is, if you believe in your ability, once you are confident, great things might happen.

When you do something best in life, you don’t really want to give that up

That’s an interesting one as it came up while RF was over his peak, when he stopped winning almost everything and the likes of Nadal and Djokovic had managed to push him back quite a bit. The media started to hassle Roger about retirement, noting he is getting too old to stay at the top. Roger in return kept on playing, making a statement, and noting how much he loves the game and he’s not over yet. Evidently, he got back to top form.

I’m a very positive thinker, and I think that is what helps me the most in difficult moments

Sport, as well as life itself, has lots of ups and downs. The difficult moments surely hit us periodically. The question is, how do we handle those moments.  What do we do physically and mentally to overcome a disappointment or a crisis, to get us going and put us back on track. How important is the concept of Positive Thinking and believing in the Law Of Attraction (meaning, when you think positively it attracts positive things into your life).

There is no way around the hard work. Embrace it. You have to put in the hours because there is always something you can improve. You have to put in a lot of sacrifice and effort for sometimes little reward but you have to know that, if you put in the right effort, the reward will come

This is so true and I actually found myself using this phrase while encouraging my own kid to work harder, on his homework, his piano practice, as well as his tennis training. Even if you’re good at something, there is so much more work to do to get better and better. Push yourself to new heights, do your personal best, break your own records. There is always room for improvement. Hard work is the key for success, and if a champion like RF keeps working hard to get even better, the rule most definitely applies to the rest of us, common people.

A man who wins, is a man who thinks he can

How can you possibly win if you don’t believe in yourself? How can you achieve anything without following your dreams, pushing back the doubts and believing anything is possible. The sky is the limit.

Once you find that place of peace and quiet, harmony and confidence, that’s when you start playing your best

This is a good lesson for all of us, to try and find the sweet spot where everything falls in the right place, and you get to the point where you feel you are in a position to execute something you’ve been planning to do for a while, having the confidence that it is yours to grab. It’s on your racquet, take it or leave it.

I fear no one, but respect everyone

What a champion. No fear with shear respect to all – players, fans, umpires, everyone. We often see lack of respect from people, or we might tend to disrespect others in some situations. Why do we do that? Is it our human nature? Is it us being egocentric and arrogant? The lesson here is, if you want to gain respect from others, you are expected to respect all that surround you. Sounds easy? give it a go on Monday morning.

I always believe if you’re stuck in a hole and maybe things aren’t going well you will come out stronger. Everything in life is this way

What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Every obstacle, every letdown is a lesson, a step in our journey. Once we get over it we gain more experience and knowledge which would help us achieving our ultimate goals.

You look at the big picture, you have to step away to come back strong

The big picture concept is pretty amazing and so easily ignored by many. Most people are so focused on short term satisfaction of immediate needs. And when something doesn’t work, they tend to completely fall apart. We need to take a step back and look at the big picture, a concept Nitche discussed in his books. Our problems are likely to be tiny compared to other problems other people are facing around the world. Also, the issue at hand is likely to be so minor when you look at the things you did achieve in life, or what is really important. Put things in context, even if you lose sometimes it’s not the end of the world. You will get over it, you will have your comeback. You will win where it matters the most.

I always look at the long term and by doing that, obviously, I can stay calm through the storm

You have to believe in your long term plan. Anything else is just a short term hiccup. Keep working on your short term goals to motivate and inspire you, but appreciate that those are baby steps that should lead you, if you plan it well, towards your long term goals. It’s interesting, that only when I got to my mid 30’s I actually started to think long-term. Rather than what do I want to do now, or next month or next year, I’ve started to think about where do I would like to see myself in 5 or 10 years. In moments of failure and disappointment, whenever I reflect on what just happened, I stop and think – how would that matter in a week, a month, a year? I often come to the conclusion that it’s not going to matter much on the long term.

I’ve always been aware that the image you patiently construct for an entire career can be ruined in a minute

We work hard all our lives to be in the position we are today. One stupid or inappropriate mistake can throw everything you have been working on for so long, to the trash. Stay focused. Stay safe. Do the right thing. Be a Champion!

You can throw your hands up
You can beat the clock
You can move a mountain
You can break rocks
You can be a master
Don’t wait for luck
Dedicate yourself and you gon’ find yourself

THE SCRIPT feat. WILL.I.AM