"When it comes to losing, I even hate that word but I think some of my best growth has come from a loss" - Serena Williams
Serena Williams recently spoke about the importance of failure in life. She revealed that as much as she hated losing, she could not deny that the experience had contributed to her growth.
The American has been a serial winner throughout her career and the records speak for themselves. With 96 WTA titles across singles and doubles events, including an Open Era record of 23 singles Grand Slams, the American is among the most successful players in tennis history.
Off the court, the 40-year-old serves as a huge advocate for mental health. The topic has been discussed a lot recently in the wake of Naomi Osaka and other players coming forward with their personal difficulties with depression.
Williams has previously discussed her own struggles with postpartum depression, in the hope that increased communication will help erase the stigma surrounding the condition. On Thursday, Williams continued her activism, speaking alongside Prince Harry on a panel for BetterUp, a company that provides mental health services.
Serena Williams stated that she has struggled with her attitude towards failure in the past. The 23-time Grand Slam champion even went as far as to say that she hated the word "losing" and referred to herself as a "terrible loser."
But since then, she has strived to understand the importance of losses, thinking of them as learning opportunities instead.
"It’s hard. I’m a terrible loser. When it comes to losing, I even hate that word," Williams said. "Because for me, if I have a loss I actually learn so much from it. [But] I think some of my best growth has come from a loss.”
#PrinceHarry and #SerenaWilliams join @BetterUp's #InnerWorkDay to talk mental health -- "I don't have it sorted, Serena doesn't have it sorted, none of us do. Life is about discovery"
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The former World No. 1 revealed that she extends that sentiment to her off-court activities as well, particularly when it comes to her entrepreneurship. Serena Williams opined that it was vital for an entrepreneur to experience failure at some point in their career because that was how one "builds character".
"Even when I’m investing in a company, I actually want to know about your losses," Williams said. "If you started a company before, how did you do? Where did you kind of fail at? Because if everything was so good and so clean and so easy, then that doesn’t even build character, you know?"
"If you don't have boundaries, you are not going to reach what you can do" - Serena Williams
Another piece of advice from Serena Williams on improving mental health was setting boundaries. The 23-time Grand Slam champion remarked that there was a time in her life when she had not realized the importance of boundaries.
Once she figured out that she could not reach her ambitions without establishing clear boundaries, however, all that changed.
"There was definitely a time when I didn't have boundaries and now I think they are so important. If you don't have boundaries, you are not going to reach what you can do," Williams said. "Don’t send emails at 11 p.m., you will burn out.”
Day session. 
A much-needed reminder about the importance of boundaries from @serenawilliams during her Inner Work® Day session. 🔥 https://t.co/wSLS93CCOI
Serena Williams reserved a message of thanks to Prince Harry, who also serves as the Chief Impact Officer for BetterUp. She credited him for "solving all her problems" and regarded him with fondness as "one of her coaches" who helped her grow in life.
"[Harry and I] always have these crazy discussions. I know I joke a lot, but Harry is one of my coaches," Williams said. "Whenever I see him, he’s always solving all my life’s problems, so I kind of give that to your BetterUp coach, it’s kind of helped me ― so thank you!"
Williams is yet to return to competitive action and missed the 2022 Australian Open with an injury.