How Roger Federer is a greatest tennis player

Secret behind the success of Roger Federer-

Preparation:

Well, it's like in school. If we think back, when we went to school and we prepared for a test, and the it was then handed out, -- if you're prepared, you don't panic. For me, it's the same thing. If I'm winning or losing, I need to concentrate on my game plan. What did I come here to do? And I'll try. Okay, maybe I'll make it a more physical match if it's going too easily for the opponent. I make slight adjustments, but I don't really go completely off-track.

Targets:

I don't think it's enough just to love your sport and then go out and win. It's not that simple. You need to have structured goals. You need to tell yourself "Okay, what are my goals for the short term? What are my goals for the long term?" Now that I've accomplished almost everything -- I'm supposed to go out on the tennis court saying "Let's just be free and hit the ball. Who cares?" This is not how you're going to win matches, because it comes down to margins and you have to be so clear in your mind in order to know exactly what you want to do and what you want to achieve. And for me, it doesn't work without any goals, without any targets. I cannot compete properly.

Strengths:

Remember where your roots are and remember where your strengths lie. I think this is especially important for me. I have always believed in my strengths -- whether in tennis or in my personality -- and I strive to improve them. Many people always feel like they have to work on their weaknesses. I don't know about the business world, but in tennis, working on your weaknesses may make you a complete player overall, but it will eliminate your dangerous edge. And I think you can occasionally relate to that in some businesses as well. That's why I like to work on my strengths. This strategy has definitely helped me throughout my career.

Improvement:

I guess one thing I always try to do is question myself, even in the best of times, when I was hardly losing any matches. And when your game is bad, you always question yourself too. "Am I good enough, or what do I need to do?" When you're winning and things are going well, you sometimes tend to forget that -- but I think that's actually the best time to question yourself. I think that realizing this was was instrumental in my career.

Work-Life Balance:

The moment I leave the tennis court, I try to forget what I've just done, for at least a moment. Naturally, in the back of your mind you have to continue to be the business person or you have to continue to be the tennis player because that's who you are. That's your number-one priority, maybe next to your family, if you have one. So that, to me, has always been really key. I honestly think I've mastered the art of keeping the two separate, the business world and my private, personal life.

Roger Federer Foundation:

I started the Roger Federer Foundation on Christmas Day in 2003 and I have genuinely learned so much from it, just being part of it. Because you have to be extremely transparent -- foundations are governed by certain rules and regulations that I was unfamiliar with. I just thought it's nice to give back. But it's not as simple as it looks. On the other hand, a foundation lets you know that you are having an impact and making a difference. I went to Ethiopia and I went to South Africa because I think it's also very important to see the ground.
Everybody who has the opportunity to make an impact on someone should really do it. It doesn't always need to be financial, a fact that people sometimes underestimate. It can be inspirational. It can be a matter of giving your time. Of course I know that it's very difficult, and it's not always possible to find the time or the right people to do it. But for me, it's been amazing and I'm looking forward to what lies ahead for the foundation.

The Hardest Step:

It's not always easy to be a talent. It's great to be a talent, but I think for me, making the breakthrough was the hardest part. That was when I made the transition from junior to senior, just making that step. But you have no choice. You get older, so you can't go back to the juniors anymore, and there's no "escape plan." People were asking me whether I was always going to be the talent that was never going to deliver the big results. That was when I lost the first round in 2003 at the French Open. I went on to win Wimbledon, and the rest is history.

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• tennis
• rogerfederer
• interview

[R9GER261]

"I went on to win Wimbledon, and the rest is history."

I like the sentence very much.

[tenniscourt7]

@R9GER261 yeah great..

[182Lalus182]

WE LOVE YOU ROGER!:)

[hadiusmba]

great words just inbelivable

[Dinosaury1]

I have same problem, when every thing goes ok and i win i forget to adk my self ,, where did i do the mistake???((( trying to correct myself... Hard... ) thx federer you helped me)))

[Mrhenwii123]

u'll always be nombor 1 to us :D

[tenniscourt7]

@hottieswithspice go roger hit us open again..

[hirekhao]

Albeit, easier said than done...

[hirekhao]

WOw... been waiting for this explanation for a while... even though I had a good, similar idea compared to how he described it! Just awesome...