Lessons Novak Djokovic Taught Me

He is a Serbian tennis player who had a dream from the age of four years old to be the number 1 tennis player in the world. He is part of the golden era of tennis. He has the most weeks at world no 1 (373 and counting), the 2nd most career grand slams (21 and counting), the most ATP Masters 1000s titles (38 and counting) and has won the most "big" titles in tennis history (64 and counting). He is in my view, the GOAT of tennis. He is Novak Djokovic, and in the wake of his Wimbledon 2022 victory, here are some lessons we can learn from him.

It's All A Mental Game

Tennis is a mental game. Everyone is fit, everyone hits great forehands and backhands.

Novak is known as one of the mentally toughest players in history. He has been part of some of the most taxing, longest and most spectacular tennis matches: the 2012 Australian Open final where he beat Nadal, the 2012 French Open semi-final, where he lost to Nadal and the 2019 Wimbledon final where he beat Federer. He has been in many situations where he was two sets down and come back to win the championship. You don't get out of these situations if you don't have a strong mental game. I heard a coach say that success in business and life is 20% mechanics and 80% psychology. This is why people can have the same access, equipment, training, resources, technology, knowledge, mentoring and coaching and produce completely different results. In the face of adversity, one business folds and another thrives; a tennis player can miss easy shots and another make a near-impossible shot. Why is this? The answer is: some are mentally stronger than others. A study was done on NBA players, as some top performers would miss easy free throws. At a high professional level, everyone is highly skilled so the issue is psychology, not skill. In this study, three groups were formed. The first group actually practice shots. The second group didn't practice at all. The third group had to practice making the perfect shots but only in their minds. A week later, they were set to perform against each other. The first group, that physically practiced, had decent results. The second group, that didn't practice, had the worst results. The third group, that mentally practiced making the perfect shots, had the best results. This is because their mentality was stronger. Novak has a strong mind and has beaten opponents who were physically and technically better than him that day but he prevailed because of a superior mindset. Build a strong mind and don't underestimate how it can serve you. It's all a mental game.

Everything Is Possible

In my case, I can sincerely say that nothing is impossible... When I was saying I want to be No. 1 of the world, and I was seven or eight years old, most of the people were laughing at me because it seems like I have one per cent of chances to do that, and I've done it.

From the age of four, Novak set his sights on becoming the number 1 player in the world. Given his background, it seemed an impossible feat. He was the only person in his family to play tennis, his home country - Serbia - had a tough history and he was playing tennis in what is now known as the "Golden Era" of tennis. The Swiss Maestro Roger Federer dominated and was unbeatable for a while. Then the Spanish Bull from the plains of Mallorca, Rafael Nadal. rose to rival and beat Federer. These two players were ranked 1 and 2 for a long time. In third was Novak, who was always overshadowed. “In terms of playing ability, there is nothing to choose between number one and 100. Instead, it's a question of who believes and who wants it more? Which player is mentally stronger? Which player is going to fight the hardest in the big points? These are the things that determine who is the champion,” said Novak. With his belief, determination, dedicated action and focus on becoming 5% better at making decisions, the tennis world turned in his favour in 2011. He rose to the number 1 ranking, beat Federer and Nadal more times than they beat him and now has won a higher number of significant titles than his rivals. Everything is impossible until someone does it. Impossible is a big word thrown around by small men. Nothing is impossible to him who will try. If you are a student of history, then you will know that many things were impossible but are now a reality. The impossible becomes possible because someone had the courage to believe. Everything is possible.

Focus On The Process And Don't Spend Too Much Time In The Hall Of Achievements

I'm trying not to pay too much attention to the rankings because calculations can distract you.

Novak spends more time focusing on the process than on dwelling on achievements. Success can be the enemy of success. I remember in the Dark Knight Rises what Bane said to Batman before he broke his back, "peace has cost you your strength; victory has defeated you." When you hit a milestone, don't get satisfied with the success - keep striving or you will fall prey to the weakness of a crocodile. There is an easy way to kill a crocodile. Once a crocodile has finished eating, it enters a temporary state of paralysis. In this temporary window, you can take advantage and kill the crocodile. Novak is not a crocodile. He will focus on the process of winning, appreciate the result and then go back to focusing on the process to win again. If you focus on the hall of achievements, look at your rankings on Google or your rankings in relation to others, you can become distracted and miss out on peak performance. Novak said, "I embraced, I think, the process of becoming No. 1 of the world, which was long and difficult, but it's sweeter in the end." With this mindset, he was able to keep being a serial winner and overcome heartbreaking losses. The process is the journey. Focus on the process and don't spend too much time in the hall of achievements.

Unbeatable Records by Novak Djokovic

• Holding all four grand slam titles at once since Rod Laver in 1969.
• Winning all four grand slams and all Masters 1000s at least twice.
• Most weeks at world number 1.