Tennis star Roger Federer believes that victory from hopeless circumstances is always possible – Dr Stephen Simpson looks how his optimism has made him a champ
R
oger Federer is a Swiss tennis player, and is currently ranked the best player in the world, perhaps the best ever. He holds many records, but players are ultimately judged on how
many Grand Slam titles they have won. Federer holds the current record with 17, and notably demonstrated his versatility and adaptability by winning on all three surfaces. Federer is one of the highest paid athletes
in the world, earning over $53 million in the year up to June 2012. His hallmark is unshakeable self-belief, and as a result he has won many matches from seemingly hopeless positions. Elite performance coach Dr. Stephen
Simpson examines the possible secrets of Federer’s success. In this extract from his latest book, The $447 Million Secrets Of Sport, Dr. Simpson proposes that Federer has discovered the priceless secret of how to be lucky. Perhaps you could use a bit more luck in your life too? Federer believes that victory from hopeless
circumstances is always possible, and possible is the power word. Federer does not always win from these positions, but seemingly has more than a fair share of luck.
current presenter Sue Barker, he was asked how he reacted mentally when facing serve to avoid defeat. He replied that his priority was simple, to play the game the same as any other, and to avoid making any mistakes. However, this strategy would not be
enough on its own. He stressed that you also have to believe in miracles. Further, you have to make your miracle happen. He went further still, stating that it is not enough to hope for the best. You have to push luck on your side. This is an extremely interesting comment,
and one that other athletes have also expressed in their own different ways. The belief that luck is not random, that we do not live in a random universe, and that luck can be manipulated when the chips are down are relatively common themes. I don’t know whether Federer has any
knowledge of universal laws or not, but he demonstrates the essence of their teaching succinctly. For example, the law of attraction
proposes that our conscious and unconscious thoughts can infl uence external events, even at considerable distances. If even a fraction of this statement is to be believed then the
implications are immense. Many grounded and pragmatic people who have never even heard of the law of attraction, let alone put it into practice, nevertheless also believe that some strange force is out there, working in their favour. The words they use include luck,
coincidence, synchronicity, serendipity, fate, and karma. They explain that a particular event was meant to be, or that things just fell into place. Self-development guru Paul McKenna also
believes we create our own luck, and studies successful people to identify their secrets. He writes, ‘Whether you choose to believe in the law of attraction or not, it’s interesting to note that many highly successful people do.’ These ideas are not original, and similar theories were proposed by Napoleon Hill in