🔥 I've read 100s of books.🔥

written by JOSH GESSNER | The Athletter

I've read 100s of books.

This one's easily in my top 5.

Open by Andre Agassi.

Here's 9 insights that transformed my life (and will do the same for you):

1) "Even if it's not your ideal life, you can always choose it... Choosing it changes everything."

I picked up 'Open' in 2019 when I faced my first significant roadblock in my life.

What got me through: Telling myself that its preparing me for greater things in the future.

2) “Unless I can accept that I’m where I’m supposed to be, I’ll never belong there again.”

When I was stuck at the lowest levels of the minor leagues:

I kept thinking I should be competing at a higher level.

Only when I accepted my current situation, did I start playing better.

3) “If I had beaten Pete more often I might go down as a better player, but I’d be less.” 

Losing, getting humiliated in front of fans and loved ones - often yield the best lessons.

I got reminded of this often - I attribute most of my growth to adversities I faced on the field.

4) “I found myself connected to something larger than my life.  This was my connection with tennis.” 

It's no secret Agassi hated tennis...

But he kept playing becasue he found a greater purpose:

To use tennis as a vehicle to impact the younger generations.

5) "This is why we’re here. To fight through the pain and, when possible, to relieve the pain of others."

This is something I resonate with deeply.

My professional career wasn't the most successful, yet...

I can impact those who read my writing, someone who was in my shoes.

6) “I've been booed by thousands, but nothing feels as bad as the booing inside your own head before you fall asleep.”

One of the most depressing things for an athlete is when you lose hope for yourself.

The best ones are big critics of themselves, but also their own biggest fan.

7) "A win doesn't feel as good as a loss feels bad, and the good feeling doesn't last long as the bad."

As athletes a good performance feels like it'd fix everything.

In reality - that feeling disappears shortly after.

8) “What you feel doesn’t matter in the end; it’s what you do that makes you brave.”

The definition of courage is feeling scared but doing it anyway.

Many times in my career, I was scared to go and compete.

Your actions are what matter, not your feelings.

9) "When you chase perfection, when you make perfection the ultimate goal, you’re chasing something that doesn’t exist.

Something I struggled with my whole career - perfectionism.

It keeps you in a miserable loop of nothing ever being enough.

LET ME HEAR IT

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