Li Na - "Let’s try it. One more chance"

Li Na of China poses with the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup at Brighton Beach, after winning the 2014 Australian Open, on January 26, 2014 in Melbourne, Australia.

There are times in life when you feel so frustrated or desperate that all one can think of is just sitting down in dejection and giving up everything that you have worked for. You are feeling down, dejected and depressed with the situations in your life and the events that have unfolded so far. Instead of the roses on your chosen path, all you can come across are the thorns, at every step of your life.

What can you do but to give up in despair thinking that this is what destiny has in store for you?

If you are right now at this point of your life, then this is the article for you to read. If not, you can easily ignore this and use your time somewhere else as time is the most precious thing in the world.

If you have continued reading the article then It is at this moment, you have to tell yourself that “ No, I won’t give up, no matter what happens and what I have to face.  I cannot give up on me inspite of the tough situations that I am facing.” You know why? Because champions emerge only after facing the toughest road blocks in their lives.

After getting frustrated with her constant losses and criticism, Li Na, who recently won her first Australian Open in her third attempt, had thought of retiring just before last year’s Wimbledon. In her own words:

“When we arriving in Wimbledon I say to Carlos, ‘Eh, Carlos, look, I want to retire’,” Li said. ”And normally I would think that Carlos for sure would say, ‘No, don’t do that, like we try’, but Carlos was like, ‘OK, let’s go home. Go. Yeah’. And I was like, ‘What?’

”In Chinese way, we didn’t like to speak out, so everything just holds [inside] for the self, so he say, ‘You should try to speak out to let us know what happens’. I was like, ‘OK, maybe we try, the last tournament, to see how it’s going in Wimbledon. If going well, I will continue. If not, maybe just over’. So he was like, ‘OK, let’s try it. One more chance’.”

Not to mention, if we look at Monica Seles, who was stabbed in her back while playing a match in 1993, struggled to recover mentally for almost two years before making her comeback to tennis. She was able to reach the finals of a Grand Slam and win the Australian Open in 1996. The person who attacked her had told her that she was not pretty and that women should not be as thin as a bone. In her autobiography ‘Getting a Grip’, she gave a detailed account of the after effects of the attack:

“Darkness had descended into my head. No matter how many ways I analyzed my situation, I couldn’t find a bright side. Food became the only way to silence my demons. I’d walk into the kitchen, grab a bag of crisps and a bowl of chocolate ice cream, then head to the couch and eat in front of the television. I still don’t know why my anguish found solace in food. Maybe I was subconsciously reacting to Parche’s angry comment that ‘women shouldn’t be as thin as a bone.’ If I padded myself with extra weight, I’d be protected from being hurt again.”

But she still fought those demons and made a comeback on the tennis circuit. Although she was not as successful as she was before, but she did win a Grand Slam and reached the finals of another one. Also she will always know that she tried and did not give up when she easily could have hung up her boots.

These are just two of the many examples that can be touched upon to prove that true winners have emerged out from situations where they could have easily given up and pursued the easier option. Our minds always wants the easier way out and clings on the negatives of a situation rather than showing us hope. Frankly speaking, it is not the mind who is the guilty party. Everywhere around us if you see in our society, only negatives are reflected upon. Take any newspaper, media channel, sitcom, everywhere you look around, it is filled with despair and sadness. In these moments, it is very important for all of us to remind ourselves that great works have always been accomplished when they have faced the worst situations and in those times, had the guts to shout out their mind and tell themselves: “Let’s try our best one more time and give ourselves one more chance.”

If only Li Na would have given up before Wimbledon, then she wouldn’t have been a Grand Slam champion once again. Always remember that there is somewhere a Li Na hidden in you before you decide to give up on your goals.