In this blog, I wanted to share an interview that I saw with tennis great Novak Djokovic conducted by Lewis Howes. I was completed moved and amazed what Novak has accomplished on and off the tennis court.
For those that do not know Novak Djokovic, he is one of the greatest men’s tennis players of all time. He has been # 1 in the world for 4 years this decade. He is a winner of 12 major titles. He held all 4 majors consecutively for the first time since Rod Laver since 1969.
What I didn’t know about Novak is that growing up in Serbia, he and his family went through two wars. The 2nd of the two wars, forced Novak and his family seek an underground shelter at his aunt’s house. In addition, his family waited in line for milk and bread for hours.
Novak also heard and felt bombs and talked about how difficult it is not having control of your own environment. Fortunately, he did not lose any family members. However, he knew of many Serbians who did lose family and created thousands of refugees.
Instead of becoming a victim and creating a negative story, Novak became very grateful for going through this traumatic experience. Novak became much more appreciative of his life. Appreciation and being blessed became his story.
Here are the principles and take aways on Novak’s beliefs.
- He loves and appreciates his wife for her honesty and devotion.
- He stated that everything happens for a reason.
- Clarity: he knew he was going to be number 1 tennis player in the world. He even created a Wimbledon trophy and visualized being the champion as a young boy.
- He became an ambassador for Unicef helping provide shelter for refugees in Serbia.
- He defines hatred and revenge as prisoners of their own emotions.
- Biggest lesson from war is to always be kind to anyone and everyone because you can never know what another person is going through. There is God that guides us and will prosper as long as we appreciate and respect others.
- Adversity in his tennis career in 2010, where Novak considered quitting the game. He was number three in the world and wasn’t happy. His was not winning titles. His best friend asked him to forget wins and losses and asked him if he still loves the game. Once Novak knew he did, he became number 1 in the world and winning 43 consecutive matches. Loving the game became primary and winning trophies became secondary.
- Happiness is from the inside. Inner peace and happiness is the ultimate goal.
- Learn to breathe, so that we can stay in the present.
Novak’s three truths are:
- Live Freely
- Breathe Deeply
- Love Fully
Lastly Novak’s definition of greatness is to find your purpose. If you find your purpose, you will give purpose to others. We will maximize our life experience if we find our purpose.
Attached is the link to the interview:
Also attached is my video blog: