Jay Shetty welcomes world-ranking tennis player Nick Kyrgios, who talks about dealing with being misunderstood and living up to people's expectations. They discuss his strong online personality, self-harm, depression, addiction, and turning his life around. They also touch on looking beyond tennis and future plans. Topics include accepting flaws, overcoming fear and anger, and finding purpose.
Read more
AI Summary
Highlights
AI Chapters
Episode notes
auto_awesome
Podcast summary created with Snipd AI
Quick takeaways
Nick Kyrgios addresses the negative branding and public perception of him as the 'bad boy' of tennis, emphasizing his caring and generous off-court character and using his platform to inspire others.
Kyrgios opens up about his battle with depression, self-harm, and contemplated suicide, highlighting the impact of media negativity on his mental well-being, but also finding hope and light by focusing on helping others in their difficult times.
Kyrgios expresses his exhaustion and unhappiness with tennis, attributing it to media backlash, negative branding, and constant scrutiny, affecting his mental and emotional well-being.
Despite the challenges, Kyrgios maintains a positive and genuine image through his relationship with his girlfriend and staying true to himself, recognizing the difficulty of repairing the damage done by the media and industry.
Deep dives
On-court persona and off-court personality
Nick Kyrgios discusses the contrast between his on-court persona and his off-court personality. He addresses the negative branding from the media, particularly being labeled as the 'bad boy' of tennis. Kyrgios emphasizes that his real character is caring, generous, and intellectually switched on, contrary to the public perception. He expresses the difficulty of shaking off that label, but also highlights how he uses his platform to help others going through rough patches in their lives.
Struggles with mental health and negativity
Kyrgios opens up about the darkest period of his life in 2019, when he battled depression, contemplated suicide, and struggled with self-harm. He reflects on the negativity he faced from the media and the impact it had on his mental well-being and relationships. Although he acknowledges the challenges, Kyrgios shares how he has been able to find light by focusing on inspiring and helping others who are going through similar difficult times.
Relationship with tennis and industry
Kyrgios reveals his complex relationship with tennis and the industry. He expresses his exhaustion and unhappiness with the sport, stating that he wouldn't have picked up a racket if given the chance again. He highlights the damage caused by media backlash, negative branding, and the pressures he faced. Kyrgios discusses the difficulties of being constantly scrutinized by the tennis world and the impact it has had on his mental and emotional well-being.
Creating a positive and genuine image
Despite his struggles, Kyrgios maintains a positive and genuine image through his relationship with his girlfriend and his desire to be true to himself. He discusses the challenges of being in the spotlight and dealing with public perception. Kyrgios emphasizes the importance of being himself and staying true to his values, while also acknowledging the difficulty of repairing damage done by the media and industry.
Importance of Setting Boundaries and Respect in Relationships
Setting boundaries and having respect for each other are crucial in maintaining a healthy relationship. This includes establishing clear boundaries and open communication, as well as being patient and understanding with each other. The speaker shares their personal experience of having toxic relationships in the past, emphasizing the significance of strong boundaries and respect in their current successful relationship.
Effects of Social Media on Relationships
The speaker highlights the impact of social media on relationships, discussing the challenges and importance of setting boundaries in the digital age. They acknowledge that social media can create softer boundaries and external pressures, but stress the need for open communication and mutual understanding to overcome these challenges.
Dealing with Criticism and Emotions in Youth
The speaker discusses the negative impact of harsh criticism, highlighting their personal struggle with criticism and its effect on self-esteem. They emphasize the importance of learning to channel emotions and respond constructively, sharing their own journey of self-discovery and acceptance.
Striving for Authenticity and Accepting One's Path
The speaker expresses their desire to be true to themselves and follow their own path, despite societal expectations and pressure. They reflect on the struggle of not living up to others' expectations, while finding contentment and happiness in being true to themselves and the choices they have made.
Are you looking for ways to stop living up to other people's expectations?
Then this podcast is for you.
Today, Jay Shetty welcomes world-ranking professional tennis player Nick Kyrgios. Nick burst onto the pro tennis scene in 2012 after a prolific junior tennis career. Since his start he has captivated fans with a larger than life personality, passion for the game, and unpredictability. Kyrgios has won 7 singles titles and 4 doubles titles in his career, but 2022 marked the first time Kyrgios displayed his dominance making it to his first Grand Slam Final, winning 3 singles titles, and 3 doubles titles. He also reached the Quarter Finals of the 2022 US Open beating then-ranked No. 1 Daniil Medvedev and is one of the few players on Tour who have beaten the Big Three (Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal) at least once.
In this conversation, Nick opens up about how his strong personality online has sparked hate and negativity - how misunderstood his persona is and how different he is with friends and family.
Nick also briefly talks about dark times, dealing with depression and addiction and turning the most difficult phase of his life into a pivotal moment to have the best year of his life when he reached the Wimbledon final. He also talks about looking at life beyond tennis and what awaits him in the future.
In this episode, you will learn:
How to accept your flaws
How to overcome fear and anger
How to turn your life around
How to deal with negativity
How to become your best self
A truly inspiring story begins with a challenge and ends with a triumph, and Nick has just proven to us that success isn't elusive when you dream big and work hard for it.