99.9 % of people who ever picked up a racket would kill to have played half as well as you. Or commentate as well as you. You brighten my day every time I hear you, or read something you’ve written. There’s a common phrase “Envy kills happiness.” But I do the same thing. Perhaps we all do. Thank you for bringing joy to my life.
I subscribed because of the humour and excellence of last week’s letter, and today you have topped that. Such admiration for the beauty of your English and your writing. Sadly, so very much better than most articles I read, even in the so-called best newspapers. May I recommend another excellent news letter, that by Heather Cox Richardson, whose brilliant daily letter on the state of American politics has a wonderful historical context. She got me through the Trump era, and I sincerely hope she never has to do that again!
We all have our insecurities. Thanks for sharing yours. Where you are a great preparer and work into the night on questions for your interviews, others are petrified to get up on stage and speak.
You questions WERE great and you shined brightly during your interviews! You were well-respected!⭐️ It was wonderful hearing your expert perspectives and analysis of the players and listening to your terrific interviews.
Loved your analogy of “The Old Man and the Sea” and the rewards of “trying”. We all must try and be determined or where would life take us?
I like Carole Kings song “ Beautiful “-
“You’ve Got to get up every morning with a smile on your face and show the world all the love in your heart.
“ Then people gonna treat you better
You’re going to find , yes you will
That you are as beautiful as you feel.”
The effort of trying comes back to you tenfold! 👍🏽❤️
Anxiety in small doses motivates us to achieve, to shed it, to prove it wrong. In large doses, it petrifies and creates fear so great that we cannot move or act. Insecurities are the individual components of anxiety. We have to control and manage the small doses, biting off just enough to grow and thrive. Mihaly Robert Csikszentmihalyi was the master of this concept, coining the phrase "Flow" for the path we should seek for competence and happiness, while still having and using anxiety as fuel. Love you, Andrea.
Well, I was thankful for your career, but didn't have the budget to express it on a bus. (Or the idea of doing so, I admit.)
I hope you also read novelists who didn't ultimately take their own lives. If you want someone who presents both a German and American perspective and who is still alive, I recommend Greg Iles (but be interested in the American South and racial matters).
Mad Men is my favorite show ever. Lucky you, being on the ground floor. If you stay with it, among other things, you will watch Kiernan Shipka grow up on screen into an atypical beauty and an amazing young actor.
Mediocrities everywhere... I absolve you. I absolve you. I absolve you. I absolve you. I absolve you all.
Not that you were anywhere close to mediocre in your career, but this line applies to anyone feeling less than the 🐐.
Thank you for your honesty in this essay. There's not a day that goes by where I don't feel like a failure, but hey, it's okay. There's always tomorrow (if not, please let it be quick and painless)!
I’ve been listening to a lot tennis players stories lately. Players struggling to make top 100 feeling insecure, professional players who made a healthy career feeling insecure, even players who won multiple grand slams feeling like they should’ve won more. I’m sensing a trend but what could it be?
I loved your review of “Challengers” but here is a non-tennis film recommendation that falls between the lines of love (Demi Moore) and hate (French film pretensions that don’t know when to stop). You should see “The Substance.” It doesn’t work entirely but the idea as represented with clever camera shots, blatant porn like male gazing shots and the film’s general conceit are thought provoking.
Ode to Erika, the German Exchange student at Kent University who works now as a researcher at CERN Switzerland. Erika, blonde, blue eyed, beautiful and super smart, studying Pure Math and English Literature. As an illiterate English physics student Erika was my saviour, correcting my ghastly grammar, and illogical use of English. I made the mistake once of saying - Erika, your English is so good, how long have you been studying it? - Answer - Oh, about 18 months. Us merely mortals only wish.
As my old mentor at Goldman Sachs used to say, "Put your insecurities to work for you". Its what drives the bus. In tennis the champions hate losing more than they love winning.
One thing all tennis players and former players share is losing. Except for the rare legends, maybe, who don’t lose as much. And losing in tennis, other than doubles (pretty much) requires taking absolute responsibility for the loss. The opponent was better that day. That’s it. Discuss all you want, but it’s almost like there is no point in even thinking up an excuse. You see the emotional cost of this reality in the juniors. As adults, you see brilliant writing like this- years after you have made your piece with the cost. Thanks for another great post.
If you ever would like something edited I am very good at English as well. German was my first language, English my second but I was only 4 so I got so good I totally forgot the German. As a gauge of my English, I can tell you that I knew it was Hamlet talking about Yorick when he said, "I knew him well, Horatio, a man of infinite jest and excellent fancy." Very enjoyable, all of it. thanks
Each personal victory is placed where it matters a little until you look back and marvel at the string of victories YOU have accomplished….and you realize you wouldn’t want it any other way. My hardest moments have created some supremely satisfying growth. It’s a good life-enjoy!
You are very articulate and express yourself excellently -don’t stop! Big hearts expressed well are a rare commodity.
Thank you for sharing your experience and thoughts so openly sometimes it can be difficult to express I always enjoy your content and flip flops could be sexy tho I’m not sure in what context but hey.
If I may, and, if you don't already have it, I suggest finding a copy of DFW's String Theory, a compilation of most of his tennis essays/articles. I combed eBay for it, as I think it's out of print, but worth the effort. He addresses this issue, almost at every corner.
99.9 % of people who ever picked up a racket would kill to have played half as well as you. Or commentate as well as you. You brighten my day every time I hear you, or read something you’ve written. There’s a common phrase “Envy kills happiness.” But I do the same thing. Perhaps we all do. Thank you for bringing joy to my life.
I subscribed because of the humour and excellence of last week’s letter, and today you have topped that. Such admiration for the beauty of your English and your writing. Sadly, so very much better than most articles I read, even in the so-called best newspapers. May I recommend another excellent news letter, that by Heather Cox Richardson, whose brilliant daily letter on the state of American politics has a wonderful historical context. She got me through the Trump era, and I sincerely hope she never has to do that again!
We all have our insecurities. Thanks for sharing yours. Where you are a great preparer and work into the night on questions for your interviews, others are petrified to get up on stage and speak.
You questions WERE great and you shined brightly during your interviews! You were well-respected!⭐️ It was wonderful hearing your expert perspectives and analysis of the players and listening to your terrific interviews.
Loved your analogy of “The Old Man and the Sea” and the rewards of “trying”. We all must try and be determined or where would life take us?
I like Carole Kings song “ Beautiful “-
“You’ve Got to get up every morning with a smile on your face and show the world all the love in your heart.
“ Then people gonna treat you better
You’re going to find , yes you will
That you are as beautiful as you feel.”
The effort of trying comes back to you tenfold! 👍🏽❤️
Anxiety in small doses motivates us to achieve, to shed it, to prove it wrong. In large doses, it petrifies and creates fear so great that we cannot move or act. Insecurities are the individual components of anxiety. We have to control and manage the small doses, biting off just enough to grow and thrive. Mihaly Robert Csikszentmihalyi was the master of this concept, coining the phrase "Flow" for the path we should seek for competence and happiness, while still having and using anxiety as fuel. Love you, Andrea.
Well, I was thankful for your career, but didn't have the budget to express it on a bus. (Or the idea of doing so, I admit.)
I hope you also read novelists who didn't ultimately take their own lives. If you want someone who presents both a German and American perspective and who is still alive, I recommend Greg Iles (but be interested in the American South and racial matters).
Mad Men is my favorite show ever. Lucky you, being on the ground floor. If you stay with it, among other things, you will watch Kiernan Shipka grow up on screen into an atypical beauty and an amazing young actor.
My favorite quote from Amadeus:
Salieri:
Mediocrities everywhere... I absolve you. I absolve you. I absolve you. I absolve you. I absolve you all.
Not that you were anywhere close to mediocre in your career, but this line applies to anyone feeling less than the 🐐.
Thank you for your honesty in this essay. There's not a day that goes by where I don't feel like a failure, but hey, it's okay. There's always tomorrow (if not, please let it be quick and painless)!
I’ve been listening to a lot tennis players stories lately. Players struggling to make top 100 feeling insecure, professional players who made a healthy career feeling insecure, even players who won multiple grand slams feeling like they should’ve won more. I’m sensing a trend but what could it be?
Great post! Thanks for being vulnerable.
I loved your review of “Challengers” but here is a non-tennis film recommendation that falls between the lines of love (Demi Moore) and hate (French film pretensions that don’t know when to stop). You should see “The Substance.” It doesn’t work entirely but the idea as represented with clever camera shots, blatant porn like male gazing shots and the film’s general conceit are thought provoking.
Ode to Erika, the German Exchange student at Kent University who works now as a researcher at CERN Switzerland. Erika, blonde, blue eyed, beautiful and super smart, studying Pure Math and English Literature. As an illiterate English physics student Erika was my saviour, correcting my ghastly grammar, and illogical use of English. I made the mistake once of saying - Erika, your English is so good, how long have you been studying it? - Answer - Oh, about 18 months. Us merely mortals only wish.
Hello, Arrogant Asshole here, the Worlds Most Interesting Man. Any questions?
Updating my Instagram profile with my newly acquired moniker.
BTW I speak English schoolboy German - it is terrible to listen to, but somehow people tolerate it.
As my old mentor at Goldman Sachs used to say, "Put your insecurities to work for you". Its what drives the bus. In tennis the champions hate losing more than they love winning.
One thing all tennis players and former players share is losing. Except for the rare legends, maybe, who don’t lose as much. And losing in tennis, other than doubles (pretty much) requires taking absolute responsibility for the loss. The opponent was better that day. That’s it. Discuss all you want, but it’s almost like there is no point in even thinking up an excuse. You see the emotional cost of this reality in the juniors. As adults, you see brilliant writing like this- years after you have made your piece with the cost. Thanks for another great post.
If you ever would like something edited I am very good at English as well. German was my first language, English my second but I was only 4 so I got so good I totally forgot the German. As a gauge of my English, I can tell you that I knew it was Hamlet talking about Yorick when he said, "I knew him well, Horatio, a man of infinite jest and excellent fancy." Very enjoyable, all of it. thanks
Each personal victory is placed where it matters a little until you look back and marvel at the string of victories YOU have accomplished….and you realize you wouldn’t want it any other way. My hardest moments have created some supremely satisfying growth. It’s a good life-enjoy!
You are very articulate and express yourself excellently -don’t stop! Big hearts expressed well are a rare commodity.
Thank you for sharing your experience and thoughts so openly sometimes it can be difficult to express I always enjoy your content and flip flops could be sexy tho I’m not sure in what context but hey.
If I may, and, if you don't already have it, I suggest finding a copy of DFW's String Theory, a compilation of most of his tennis essays/articles. I combed eBay for it, as I think it's out of print, but worth the effort. He addresses this issue, almost at every corner.