Is Emma Raducanu Inspiring? WHY?

I'm fascinated by human behaviour and the questions around why we do what we do. I've qualifications in hypnotherapy, psychotherapy and NLP. I do a podcast on the habits of human behaviour (you should totally listen). And one of the things that I am most interested is in the intersection of inspiration, motivation, aspiration and action.

So, since Emma Raducanu won the US open on Saturday night (Irish time) I've been thinking about this a lot. And I've been looking at the range of posts on social media from everyone from the Queen of England to just about everybody else, and the one word that keeps popping up again and again is "INSPIRATION". But are you inspired? Should you be? And if not, who is (and who should be)?

What if I were to frame the victory this way

Professional tennis player whose job it is to win tennis matches, wins tennis matches (with the support of a team of professionals and the backing and funding of a large organisation).

Of course, I'm being facetious (and of course I had to Google how to spell that word...again) but it does seem odd that grown men and women should be inspired (in the true sense of the word) by an 18 year old tennis prodigy.

All the dictionaries seem to have subtly different definitions of Inspiration. But let's take this one, from the Collins English Dictionary:

I think that most people who called Emma's victory inspirational meant it in the context that her victory made them want to do or achieve something. And I get that. The Queen of England for example used it in that context of inspiring future generations of tennis players saying:

“I have no doubt your outstanding performance, and that of your opponent Leylah Fernandez, will inspire the next generation of tennis players."

Imagine of you are a small kid, particular in the UK. You want to pick up a tennis racket and get out there. You could be next. You could be the next Emma Raducanu! And they could. But I couldn't. I'm a 40 year old man. I am NOT going to win the US Open. Ever. So how could this 18 year old girl possibly be an inspiration to me?

But I did feel inspired....a bit. WHY?

The honest answer is I don't know. That's why I'm writing this post, to see if you have any ideas (please share in the comments!). Here are some of the vague notions I have so far;

1. The Underdog Theory (AKA The Fairytale Theory) - By any stretch, Emma Roducanu was the underdog. Nobody had ever gone from the qualifiers of a major tournament to get to the final, let alone win it. And so we can look at this as being proof that the crazy notions or dreams we might have for ourselves, well, they might not be THAT crazy. Didn't some 18 year old whipper snapper just win the US open having never won a WTA event before and having qualified just 3 months after doing her end of school exams. Sure, if she can achieve the impossible, SO CAN YOU!!
2. The Nice Guys Finish Last Theory - I started a discussion the other day on my timeline about the perception of Kindness and Niceness in life and in business. As someone who considers myself a nice guy (usually), I think there's a resonance with the fact that Emma seems like a genuinely nice person. And there's a kind of affirmation that good things can happen to good people; that you don't have to be an asshat to get ahead in the world. And there's a striking parallel in the fact that Novak Djokovich was playing in the men's final the next day. There's a perception that Novak isn't particularly liked. Certainly not in the same way as Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Do you think he's as liked as Emma Raducanu? I'd say not. So I think there's something inspiring about just seeing someone who is nice rise to the top every now and again.
3. The Mental Health Theory - Emma Raducanu's win comes off the back of her pulling out of Wimbledon a few months ago with breathing difficulties. I don't think she (or anybody else) has ever directly said that this was a mental health issue but certainly it was widely perceived as one. The perception was that she "couldn't handle" the stress, pressure or anxiety caused by being in that situation and that spotlight. And generally speaking, people seem to have loved the fact that she pulled out and put her health and mental health first. It's similar to Simone Biles at the Olympics this year. People love when high profile figures (as she now is) lead by this sort of example. And we're sort of in awe of it. Like, I said over and over to my wife "Imagine being able to keep your cool and keep playing like that with all those people watching and with so much on the line".

But even taking all that as read, am I inspired? I felt good, sure. But did her win make me "want to do or achieve something". Truthfully, no, and certainly not immediately. Actually, though I'm not proud to admit it, it actually made me a bit sad for all things I can no longer do or no longer achieve. I felt an odd sense of deflation, wrapped up in a some jealousy with a side portion of self-loathing. I suspect I'm either alone in this, or certainly there will not be many volunteers putting their hands up to say "I felt that too". But that's what I felt like, watching this incredible athlete. I felt like a failure. There is a line from an opinion piece in the Guardian which sort of captures it:

It’s hard to admire gen Z without a twang of discomfort. They present qualities – strength under pressure, maturity, humility – that the middle aged should have nailed down.

And it wasn't just that she is better at tennis than me (clearly) that sent me into a tailspin. I read about her parents, and all the extra curricular activities she's been exposed to (and by all accounts is very good at...motocross for crying out loud) and I suddenly started questioning my parenting. Why weren't my kids out playing tennis on a motorbike while juggling fire (she doesn't do that as far as I know....yet) and speaking Mandarin (she does do that).

This isn't the first time I've felt like this. When I was a kid (and still) there was an annual tradition in our house of watching a TV show called "The Late Late Toy Show". For the most part, this was all about kids playing with toys. But in between they would roll out some performing kids, and historically, a musical prodigy or two. And as this precocious little so and so played the piano like a concert pianist, my mum would say something like "well maybe if you practiced more that could be you". But even then, we both knew that wasn't true, and that's even more so now.

The last time I remember feeling like this was when I was at a music festival which a dance act I loved (Justice) were playing. I got to interview the guys as I was working on radio at the time. I was also writing dance music myself, and I discovered during my interview that Justice were using the exact same music software that I was. Obviously, there results were ever so slightly more impressive. And whatever happened, I just got so depressed. I couldn't believe that the only thing that separated my from them was their talent and/or my lack of talent. I think, intuitively, we like the kid ourselves that if circumstances were somehow different, we would be doing much better than we are. Or is that just me? There's something quite humbling (at best) about realising that you're just not that good at something. I used to play Badminton quite competitively (don't @ me if you've never played it, its an amazing sport!) and I was quite good at it. BUT there were some people (Thomas Ward and Sean óg Devaney, I'm talking to you) who were way way (way) way better. So I could be competitive up to a certain stage in some competitions. In my last competition (I think) I met Thomas Ward and he beat me 15-1 15-1. There endith my competitive badminton career (aged 16).

And sometimes these encounters or situations bring it home in a big way. And if you are someone who was QUITE good at a lot of things (which historically, I have been) the older you get and the worse you get at those things, the less is left to feel good about. Your potential is not what it once was. It reminds me a LOT of this sketch by Dylan Moran (go to 45 seconds in)

You have encounters where your Thomas Ward beats you 15-1 15-1 and you just realise you've hit the ceiling of your potential and that's it.

But the more I have thought about it in the 44 or hours or so since Emma Raducanu's victory, the more I am starting to feel what I think is genuine inspiration. I've shifted from focussing on all the things I can no longer achieve (just out of time in making a 40 under 40 list, Boo Urns) and to focus on the things that I can do. And I think it's possibly as simple as seeing someone achieve a goal can get you in touch with your own goals and remind you that there are plenty of goals you still have, and they are worthy goals for you to pursue. For me, it's the marathon. That's one big goal that remains unticked on my list. And before Emma's victory I had signed up a few weeks ago, but my training has somewhat stalled. Last night, I trudged around for 2 miles. And I laughed to myself because at one point we were watching the tennis and going "they aren't even out of breath, what kind of freaks are these two" and I couldn't make two miles jogging slowly without nearly keeling over and dying.

But I think maybe it's the first definition of inspiration that really applies to me

?feeling of?enthusiasm?you?get?from someone or something, which?gives?you new and?creative?ideas.

and in this case its enthusiasm to come up with new and creative ideas to achieve my own personal goals.

So, congratulations Emma Raducanu, you manged to inspire a curmudgeonly (thank god for spell check) old man. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go set up an obstacle course akin to the Ninja Warrior course to get my kinds into shape. And I also need to re-read that Andre Agassi autobiograhy for some tips and pointers. Does anybody have some table tennis bats and duct tape I can borrow. My 18 month old is doing nothing here!