This is the fourth post in the Savvy Sunday Series where I aim to inspire us to all become Evolutionary Entrepreneurs.
I’ve long admired professional female tennis players for their strength, dedication and grace under pressure. It’s also one of the few sports where women are true equals with men in terms of prize money and audience popularity. That’s no mean feat in the world of professional sports these days.
This weekend Serena Williams won her 12th career Grand Slam singles title. She’s been ranked World No. 1 on five consecutive occasions and has just set a record for a new Open era. That’s pretty phenomenal. It makes my record of attending the Australian Open 10 years in a row pale in comparison. Let’s focus on what I think we can all learn from Serena, the champion.
1. Be an undeniable force of nature
To see Serena in action you can’t help but be blown away by the sheer power she puts behind every single shot. She uses her strengths to her best advantage. She continually drives herself forward to improve on her past results. To win 10 times in a row and still be hungry for it shows an incredible tenacity to always be the best.
We can take a leaf out of her book and do the same for ourselves and our businesses. Remember too, that she surrounds herself with an incredible support team – a coach, a fitness trainer, a hitting partner, family and friends. You must do the same with mentors, coaches, advisors and colleagues.
2. Adopt a laser like focus
Among other traits that I admire about Serena, is her ability to keep her eye on the ball no matter what (pardon the pun). She manages to do this consistently even when running at full pelt to reach a drop shot, racing back to cover a lob or lining up a serve to hit a killer cross court forehand.
Every professional tennis player trains day in and day out religiously to improve on their technique and fitness, so as entrepreneurs why shouldn’t we? Why don’t we start gaining that focus everyday. Push away all those time consuming distractions that have nothing to do with your end game. Develop daily habits to keep your eye on the prize and don’t let anything step in your way.
3. Develop your killer mindset
Champions have an overinflated belief in themselves and their abilities which sets them apart from the rest of the pack. This was more obvious than ever in Serena’s win at the Australian open. She showed absolute grit and determination despite a ton of strapping on her legs indicating multiple injuries. She pushed through every ounce of pain because she wanted that win so badly.
It’ may seem unrealistic to do this on a daily basis yourself and to push through the tough times to reach your business goals no matter what, but imagine how great you’ll feel if you do? Like a champion. Show unwavering commitment and excellent to every act you undertake and you’ll see the results. Are you prepared to make sacrifices to get these results?
I’ve been practicing this myself over the month of January. On the business front I’ve been learning a new skill every day and putting it into action. You can see 
this in the redesign of my site and in the next few days in my brand new WomanzWorld iPhone app!
From an athletic perspective I’ve been focused on increasing every aspect of my fitness for the upcoming World Ultimate Frisbee Club Championships that our women’s team Zephyr recently qualified to compete in. I want to be at peak fitness to play to my best abilities at this event.
That’s why I’m also excited to be part of the MetroBlenz News Squad – a community of bloggers and photographers based here in Vancouver who’ll be covering the upcoming Olympics as of tomorrow and being featured in the Metro News for all to read.
Check out previous Sassy Sunday Posts including `Entrepreneur 2.0′, `Dealing with a New Year Reality Check’ and ‘Falling in love with your business again.’
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Love it! I agree with all 3 points. What I admire about her and try to do myself is master the ability to regulate my energy. eg. to be able to slow down when I want to relax, or to be able to hyperfocus and motivate myself when I need to speed up.
I think focus is so important. I think too often we say “yes” to too many opportunities because we've got that insatiable entrepreneurial spirit and want to tackle whatever comes our way. To maximize efficiency and effectiveness as an entrepreneur, I think it's important to say “no” every now and then and focus on our business and what we're good at. Know your strengths.
I'm all about mindset. To develop #3, I'd say it's important to know your vision and what you want out of life. Know what you want out of being an entrepreneur. It is then that we can align our actions to be in accordance with our vision. Serena knows what she wants on a per-game basis. She wants to win. She maximizes the chance of winning in every stroke she takes.
As an entrepreneur, what do you want out of life? Think big picture. Then, align your business model, your actions, and your service towards that. For instance, I want stability. I want to spend more time with people. Work and business will always be there, people won't. People have eternal value. Family. Friends. Loved ones.
I will align my business to allow me to spend more time with people.
“Vision without action is a daydream, action without vision is a nightmare.” Rick Lamprecht
Thanks for the post!
I can’t believe I haven’t replied to this great comment Matt. I love that you’re taking into account the big picture. We sometimes get stuck seeing exactly what’s in front of us when we’re running full speed with developing our business. To step back, analyse the situation, the game strategy and where we want to head is so important to do – and I know we should do more of it.
I congratulate you on wanting stability, I find as an entrepreneur on a rollercoaster ride it can be hard to achieve so, as you say, you have to learn to say no to things that will not propel you towards your goals and meeting that big picture vision.
Natalie