Radhika Gupta, CEO of Edelweiss Asset Management, shared her admiration for Roger Federer‘s speech at Dartmouth College in a tweet on Wednesday. She highlighted the speech’s valuable lessons on resilience, talent, and dealing with failure.
Gupta found the speech to be a “heartwarming 25 minute watch,” describing it as a master class in speaking from someone who typically doesn’t give speeches. She noted how Federer’s insights on tennis are applicable to both careers and investing.
Tennis legend Roger Federer received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Dartmouth College over the weekend, celebrating his philanthropic contributions. In his inspiring commencement speech to the Class of 2024, Federer debunked the myth of “effortless” success, emphasising that his achievements stemmed from years of hard work.
He also shared valuable life lessons, including the importance of perseverance even in defeat, and maintaining a well-rounded life beyond his tennis career.
Gupta highlighted three key takeaways from the speech. First, she mentioned the importance of resilience, stating, “Everybody can play well in the first two hours… Resilience is lasting for the long term.” She suggested that it is in moments of weariness and faltering discipline that people with a champion’s mindset get a grip on themselves and persevere.
Second, she discussed the broad definition of talent, highlighting that “trusting yourself, patience, discipline, process, and managing yourself” are all forms of talent in investing. She said that these forms of discipline go beyond simply picking the right stocks and strategies.
Lastly, Gupta pointed out that even a legend like Federer won only 54% of points but went on to win 80% of his matches, reflecting on the fact that champions must learn to deal with failure and mistakes. “You don’t need to win more than that in life and investing,