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MESSAGE #621 HERE’S THE SECRET…

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“I try and keep my strategy simple, I stay very intense during a match and completely focused. I never think about an opponent until the moment we play, and then my focus is on where to serve and how to hit cross-court and down the line. I try not to complicate my life by spending too much time analyzing a player in advance.”
-PETE SAMPRAS

That’s the secret.

The beauty of Sampras’ simple strategy is that when you focus on your strategy, it is impossible to think about all the negative things, like the last point you lost, or “What will happen if I lose?” We often are victims of paralysis by analysis.

Focus is critical, but make sure you focus on the right things – the things you can control.

And be like Pete.



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MESSAGE #595 DIFFICULTIES…

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Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Sandy Mittleman in Boston.

“Adversity causes some men to break; others to break records.”
-WILLIAM A. WARD

I love this quote.

Someone once said, the only people without problems are the ones in the cemetery. We all have problems, they are a part of life. We cannot avoid problems, but we can control our reactions to them.

Some people break, fold, or run away when they are under pressure.
These are the losers.

Other people thrive under pressure; they love it. They increase their intensity and focus. They break records.
These are the winners.

It’s not pressure, it’s perception.

In my book, “Game. Set. Life.” I talk about how at the end of a set, when the pressure was greatest, Pete Sampras rose to the occasion and improved the level of his game. That’s why he was #1 for so long.

To be just like Sampras, you have to think just like Sampras.



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MESSAGE #495 HERE’S THE SECRET…

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Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Ian Rubel.

Recently, I have spent quite a bit of time with Bob Ryland, the first black professional tennis player. In our conversations, we talk about playing and teaching tennis, the experiences he’s gone through, and life.

Mr. Ryland has seen it all. He lived through segregation before Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King and Malcolm X. He has coached some of the best players in the world. Earlier this week, Bob and I were sitting at his kitchen table in his apartment overlooking the New York City skyline when he told me the secret.

“You gotta work hard. If you want to become as good as the Williams sisters, you have to train like the Williams sisters. They are not more talented than everyone else, they just work harder. And don’t give up.”

So you have to put in the work. There is no substitute. Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard. There’s plenty of talented people out there, but it’s the ones that work hard and keep going that succeed.

“Arthur Ashe wasn’t a great player. I wasn’t a great player. Ivan Lendl wasn’t a great player. We just worked hard,” said Mr. Ryland.

Pete Sampras said the accomplishment he is most proud of is finishing number one in the world, six years in a row. He said, “To me, greatness lies in going out there day after day and getting the job done.”

So work hard at practice, at work, at school, but remember something else that Bob Ryland said…

“Have fun!”


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