Without the skill of knowing when and how to switch off the routine - we only have the perfection of the routine. This will not work when things don’t go to plan.
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Roger Federer recently gave a commencement speech at Dartmouth College.
He shared many life lessons he learned from tennis with the graduating class.
Here is one of them...
In tennis, perfection is impossible.
In the 1,526 singles matches I played in my career, I won almost 80%...
Now, I have a question for all of you...
What percentage of the POINTS do you think I won in those matches?
Only 54%.
In other words, even top-ranked tennis players win barely more than half of the points they play.
When you lose every second point, on average, you learn not to dwell on every shot.
You teach yourself to think:
OK, I double-faulted. It’s only a point.
OK, I came to the net and I got passed again. It’s only a point.
Even a great shot, an overhead backhand smash that ends up on ESPN’s Top Ten Plays: that, too, is just a point.
Here’s why I am telling you this.
When you’re playing a point, it is the most important thing in the world. But when it’s behind you, it’s behind you.
This mindset is really crucial, because it frees you to fully commit to the next point… and the next one after that… with intensity, clarity and focus.
Thank you Roger.
Back to me :)
If we know perfection is impossible
It is important to know when and how to switch off the routine for perfection.
To find non-routine ways to improve
For Wow moments.
Here is a link to his speech
See you on a court soon
Cheers, Jon
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