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.
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! 👍🏽❤️
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!
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.
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)!
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
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.
Your piece is most timely, read in conjunction with Caroline Garcia's post about her disappointing season. I'd be interested in a piece about losing to someone who you thought you'd wipe the floor with. How do you deal with such loss? Was there a player who jinxed you and did ever solve that jinx? I very much enjoy your musings and look forward to your next one.
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.
Yeah in sports there is 1 winner, but that doesn't mean others are not successfull. But that is what it feels like, I agree. And success is not measured by the end point, but by the distance travelled from start point to end point. In this regard, one of the best books I ever read was, 'A long way gone' by Ismael Beah. In Sierra Leone, guerrillas killed his family. he became a boy solider, but was able to have a journey back from that hell to reach a 'normal' life situation. He is one of the most successful people I have ever seen.
Your story is not „a lesser success story“ at all, Andrea. It‘s YOUR story, it‘s a great one and it keeps going on. You did so well at Laver Cup 💖 and I really enjoy seeing, hearing and reading you 😊👏🏼
I'm looking forward to Thursday. Then I'll listen carefully to how you (don't) roll your R. See you in Wertheim. I hope you arrive by car and not by train to meet you in a happy mood.
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.
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! 👍🏽❤️
thank you so much 🙏🏻
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!
thank you for the recommendation! subscribed right away :)
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.
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.
oh, i can’t wait! the show is just getting better and better
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)!
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
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.
Dear Andrea
Your piece is most timely, read in conjunction with Caroline Garcia's post about her disappointing season. I'd be interested in a piece about losing to someone who you thought you'd wipe the floor with. How do you deal with such loss? Was there a player who jinxed you and did ever solve that jinx? I very much enjoy your musings and look forward to your next one.
very good topic! i will come back to it for sure 🙏🏻
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.
Yeah in sports there is 1 winner, but that doesn't mean others are not successfull. But that is what it feels like, I agree. And success is not measured by the end point, but by the distance travelled from start point to end point. In this regard, one of the best books I ever read was, 'A long way gone' by Ismael Beah. In Sierra Leone, guerrillas killed his family. he became a boy solider, but was able to have a journey back from that hell to reach a 'normal' life situation. He is one of the most successful people I have ever seen.
Your story is not „a lesser success story“ at all, Andrea. It‘s YOUR story, it‘s a great one and it keeps going on. You did so well at Laver Cup 💖 and I really enjoy seeing, hearing and reading you 😊👏🏼
Lol I'm thinking about watching Mad Men for the fourth time. Jealous you get to watch it for the first!
it’s soooo good
Excellent as always!
I'm looking forward to Thursday. Then I'll listen carefully to how you (don't) roll your R. See you in Wertheim. I hope you arrive by car and not by train to meet you in a happy mood.