Nick Djokovic Essay Example for Free

Nick Djokovic Essay In today’s world, there are many sport figures one can look up to. We have chosen the best of the best in the tennis world, Novak Djokovic. Djokovic is a Serbian professional tennis player who is currently ranked world number 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals. Despite being the underdog during his early years as a professional tennis player, he is now the best professional tennis player overtaking the previous king of tennis Rafael Nadal. Ever since the age of four, he has been interested in tennis. Unlike most children his age, it was not a fleeting interest. He was determined to achieve his dream of becoming the best tennis player in the world. With his steadfast dream, he has won six Grand Slam titles and has brought him to where he is now. This report will cover Djokovic’s personality, values and attitude, motivation and leadership skills that had helped him to achieve his dream. The points highlighted are also the main reason he is worth following as an influential leader. 2.0 Personality The big five model of personality consists of extraversion, neuroticism, agreeableness, conscientiousness and openness to experience. Djokovic can be seen as a person that is highly extrovert as he is fun-loving, expressive and sociable. During his comeback as the winner in the Australian Open, he was so overjoyed that he threw his racket, wristbands and his shirt to his fans (AOL News, 2011). Djokovic is also socially attached to his fans that he created an application known as ‘Nole4You’ that focuses on a direct coverage of Djokovic’s real time games (New Newsworthy, 2012a). On the other hand, Djokovic is low on the neurotism category as he is much balanced and emotionally stable. According to Suttles (2013), Djokovic was â€Å"gracious in defeat† as every defeat he channels it back into better concentration for the next match. Next, Djokovic is rather high on the agreeableness meter as he shows a great deal of care towards others through his charities. Djokovic created the Novak Djokovic Foundation which supports young children from disadvantaged communities especially in native Serbia (New Newsworthy, 2012b). Besides that, he was also elected as the ambassador of The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Serbia as he was utterly concern in the welfare of the people in his hometown as well as the importance in early childhood education in Native Serbia (Look To The Stars, 2011). He was also keen in participating in fights for the betterment of society such as the fight against acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) which required him to use the Head Red special edition bag collection from Head to the French Open Grand Slam (Look To The Stars, 2013a). Djokovic is also high in conscientiousness as he is responsible for his career and he is well organized after his achievement in the Australian Open. Although being reckless in his previous season, he is where he is now due to his hard work in perfecting his service techniques and getting his diet right (Carter, 2011). According to Djokovic in an interview, he wants to be consistent in his games and to do this, he has to stay fit and take care of his health and physical condition (The National, 2011). Lastly, Djokovic is very open to new experience. One afternoon in year 2010, Djokovic received a phone call from Dr. Igor Cetojevic who said that his fatigue in the 2010 Aussie Open was due to his diet that consists of glutens that caused an accumulation of toxins in his large intestines. Djokovic listened to his advice to practice a gluten-free diet as well as to build him up spiritually. Besides that, Djokovic also took risk to change his serve technique as advised by Marian Vajda. As a result of Djokovic’s openness, he no longer suffers from fatigues and he felt much happier and balanced. In addition, a change in his serve technique enabled him to defeat the former world number one five times consecutively and brought him to the top of the tennis world (Saslow, 2012). 3.0 Values and Attitude As a well-known figure in the world of tennis, Djokovic has certain values that enable him to enjoy the success that he has today. According to George and Jones (2012, p.93), values are defined as personal convictions about what one should strive for in life and how one should behave. Values are further divided into two categories; work values and ethical values. In terms of work values, there are intrinsic and extrinsic work values. In definition, intrinsic work values are values that are related to the nature of the work itself. Some examples of intrinsic work values that are prominent in Djokovic’s work are the ability to make important contributions to the public, the interesting work and the challenging work that can be done. Firstly, in terms of the ability to make important contributions to the public, Djokovic is well known for his philanthropic work. Due to this status as the highest ranked tennis player, he is very well-connected and is able to influence his fans over his beliefs. From this, he has helped to raise awareness for AIDS, human trafficking, poverty, human rights, women’s rights, children’s rights and many more (Look To The Stars, 2013b). Aside from that, his ability to make important contributions to the public and society is further supported by his status as the ambassador of UNICEF in Serbia. Aside from him advertising his beliefs on social media such as Facebook, Twitter and his video blog, UNICEF has also advertised their cause through Djokovic because of his popularity among the younger generation (UNICEF, 2011). Although generating a high pay from his career, he did not choose this career lifestyle because of it. He started playing tennis at the age of four and played professionally when he was 16 years old. This is due to his passion and interest in tennis. He has trained and played in every single tennis tournament to gain the experience he needed. Even though he has been injured quite a number of times in terms of ankle and knee injuries, that has never stopped him from pursuing his dream of being the best tennis player (Mitchell, 2013). However challenging his work may be, Djokovic never gave up. He continuously pursues his dream of being the best. After relentless practice and competitions, he finally replaced Roger Federer as the top ranked tennis player in the world. This attitude of his is admirable and serves as a constant reminder to his fans that nothing is impossible. On the other hand, extrinsic values are values that are related to the consequences of work. One of the more prominent extrinsic values is the high salary. Not only does he get paid for playing tennis, he gets paid through his endorsements deals with well-known companies such as UNIQLO, Fitline and Telekom Srbjia (Badenhausen, 2011). His salary also includes appearance fees, exhibitions and prize money. Besides that, his career as a tennis player provides him with many job benefits. One of the many is fame. Unlike most athletes, Djokovic enjoys being in the limelight and often shares news and funny anecdotes of his life with his fans. Next, his job provides very flexible working hours. He practices his tennis with his coaches at any time he wants. Due to his flexible working hours, he gets to spend more time with his family and to indulge in vacations as well as hobbies. According to George and Jones (2012, p.97), work attitude is defined as the collection of feelings, beliefs and thoughts about how to behave in one’s job and organisation. Although similar to values, work attitudes are more specific and are not as constant as values as work attitudes change over time. In 2008, although he was winning tournaments, Djokovic hired a new fitness coach in hopes that it will help boost his performance. After the change, he was able to defeat the two reigning champions in the tennis world, namely, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. His attitude changed once a new factor was introduced into his life (ESPN, 2010). 4.0 Motivational Theories Everyone in the world possesses a particular set of skills that they are good at in their lives. People who managed to realize their potential often harness that skill and sharpen it to become a much better person. During those times, motivation towards that ability drives them to keep pushing forward in harnessing those skills. Many professional sportsmen and sportswomen started training during childhood. Motivation is what has kept them and pushed them into training harder every day until they finally achieve their goal. According to George and Jones (2012, p. 183), there are three elements of work motivation; direction of behavior, level of effort and level of persistence. Novak Djokovic, world’s best tennis player, possessed all these three elements. For example, although his family had economic problems in Serbia, he still chose to fly to Germany to train despite only being 12 years old. Even as a child, he loved tennis with a passion. He once skipped afternoon classes in school just so he could attend tennis training with his coach (PRPepper Production, 2012). His passion, effort and persistence during training are boundless. His motivation was driven because he loved tennis rather than his parents forcing the sport on him. 4.1 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Djokovic’s efforts and achievements relate a lot to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs consists of five different types of needs from the lowest to the highest; physiological, safety, belongingness, esteems and self-actualization needs (George and Jones, 2012, p. 187). The two needs most emphasized by Djokovic are the esteem needs and self-actualization needs. Right from the beginning, Djokovic was always focused and determined to be the best in the tennis world, which directly means beating the best players in the world such as Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Tommy Haas and Rafael Nadal. Esteem needs emphasizes on an individual being recognized and respected by others (George and Jones, 2012, p.187). Djokovic strived hard during his early years under the guidance of Nikola Pilic. At the age of 16, he was awarded the champion of â€Å"La Boule†. This event leads to the start of his professional career (PRPepper Prodcutions, 2012). However, he did not stop that as he was motivated aim higher. This further explains Maslow’s self-actualization need theory, which is defined as â€Å"needs to realize one’s full potential as a human being†. Djokovic trained hard every day motivated by one goal; to be the best tennis player in the world. Due to him having a high self-actualisation, Djokovic obtained the title of being the best tennis player in the ATP rankings in 2012 after obtaining a 43% winning rate in 2011. Today, Djokovic is further motivated by his lost to Rafeal Nadal in the 2013 French Open. Instead of giving up, Djokovic evaluates his loss as a sense of motivation to train harder in order to win the next tournament, Wimbledon (Gajaria, 2013).

What Matters in Life? :: English Literature, Personal Values

What Matters? What matters most to you in the world today? People often ask this question. I must say being 26 I have been asked this question many times in my life. The response I always give was my career. Winning and surfing, you see they are the only things that should matter. But I did not once stop to think that maybe the things that mattered more then just a surfing career was my family. I hardly got to see my children in the first stages of their life, never got to see them take their first step or say their first word because I was always out surfing and living up to my dream of being the one that no one could beat. This al changed drastically one year just after my daughters fifth birthday. I arrived home from a surfing tournament to find my wife and two kids homeless. Lucky for them they weren’t in the house at the time of the fire. The police say that it was because I was the â€Å"unbeatable† one and that the other Pro-surfers just wanted to be in the spot light for once. But I say it was a message. A message that maybe it was time to stay at home and help out. A time to watch my children grow up and be there for them. As we walked through the house going from room to room looking a tall that had been destroyed. All I could think of was my awards and trophies that I would no longer have to show off to the people that came over, to camera reporters when they do interviews about me. My wife asked me â€Å"if we were in the house at the time†¦what would you have taken with you? I replied with â€Å"Oh of course my medals and trophies† she sat down as tears welled up in her eyes and said to me â€Å"Yes. But what about the pictures that can never be replaced, you can always get more trophies†. It was at this point where I thought long and hard about what I would really take with me if I was given the time. I had thought of clothes and blankets, of the kids toys, but my mind was now set on what really matters. All the things that I wanted to take with me could be replaced, the only things that could never be replaces where the photos and the memories.

Economy of Russia Essay

Russia as a country has transformed significantly since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The economy has changed from a globally-isolated, centrally-planned economy to a more globally-integrated market based economy. The economy of Russia has gone through fluctuations since then to emerge as the eight largest by its purchasing power parity (PPP) in 2009 estimates (CIA, 2010). The Russian economy is largely dependent on the export of raw materials and natural resources, specifically oil and gas. Other resources include precious minerals, fishing, and agriculture. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia has undergone two major economic crises. They are the 1998 Russian Financial Crisis and the 2008 Russian Financial Crisis which was a part of the 2008 Global Economic Crisis. This article will examine the performance of the Russian economy after the two crises. In addition, the article will evaluate the current performance of the economy of Russia. The 1998 Russian Economic Crisis After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia undertook major economic reforms to transform its economy closed centrally planned socialist economy into a capitalistic market economy. According to the CIA Factbook, the most notable economic reforms in the 1990s were the privatization of enterprises that belonged to the state and the removal of Soviet price controls. The CIA notes further that the rapid privatization of the state enterprises (except in defense and energy related sectors) essentially handed over the enterprises to a few politically connected individuals popularly referred to as ‘the Russian oligarchs’ making equity ownership concentrated to a few. It was during this time that Pinto, Gurvich, and Ulatov noted that the country was plagued with corruption, financial manipulations, and capital looting (capital flight). In 1997, the Asian Financial Crisis began and this led to the fall in commodity prices. As the crisis spread economies heavily dependent on exports were highly affected. Russia’s economy being heavily dependent on world prices was hit hard. Pinto et al point out that the exchange rate of the ruble against the foreign currency was artificially fixed and the subsequent fiscal deficit accelerated the crisis. During the Asian Financial Crisis, the demand for oil and minerals declined and this affected the foreign currency reserves for the country. Poor management of the situation such as Russia’s Central Bank maintenance of the Ruble within a narrow range in the middle of the crisis by using the available foreign reserves made the situation worse. The poor measures resulted in the investors pulling off and inflation rising to over 80 per cent. The bail out offered by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank did not help the situation. Several banks closed and the government debt increased considerably. The 2008 Russian Economic Crisis The Russian economic crisis of 2008 was an extension of the global economic crisis 2008-2009. A report prepared by the World Bank pointed out that although the Russian economy was better prepared to withstand the financial crisis, its dependence on export of limited commodities made it succumb to the crisis. According to the report, the crisis caused a decrease in capital flows as investors withdrew across the world markets, the credit crunch affected the banking system in Russia, the decrease in demand for oil eroded the fiscal and foreign reserves of the country, and the stock market suffered from the uncertainty of demand for oil (4). The International Monetary Fund noted that anti-crisis measures such as the states guarantee on loans to support the banking sector, the cutting of the interest rate by the Russian Central Bank, and the states support for the housing and car manufacturing helped in managing the crisis. Recession of the Russian economy slowed down and the economy has shown positive signs for recovery although slower than before the crisis. After going through the 1998 economic crisis, Russia undertook some policy and structural reforms with aim of cushioning the Russian economy against such a crisis as well as promoting economic growth and development. The structural reforms were necessary to create regulatory and institutional conditions for business and reduce the administrative risks. Some of the measures that were taken to counter the crisis, according to the World Bank (18- ) include devaluation of the ruble, cash infusion in to the market, tax reforms, privatization, and review of international trade policy. When the ruble was devalued, there was a sudden increase in the price of imported commodities but the move benefited the local industries and they were able to pay off their debts. The local enterprises also benefited from the cash infusion by the state, which in turn led to an increase in the demand for Russian commodities and services. The tax reforms were aimed at creating an enabling environment to stimulate the resumption of economic growth by reducing the tax burden. The reforms were aimed at corporate profit tax, VAT, and the removal of tax privileges that were not justified. The privatization process identified corporations that were to be privatized in 1999 and others in 2000. The international trade policy required reviewing to take into account the devalued ruble and the fluctuating price and demand for oil and raw materials. The Russian government also introduced the stabilization fund to hedge against the fluctuating international oil prices. The recovery from the crisis was however accelerated by the rise in international demand and price of oil. The Russian economy had fallen due to decrease in demand for oil and when the demand rose, the economy started to recover. 2008 Economic Crisis The government of Russia undertook intervention measures to manage the recent economic crisis and ensure that the country was on the way back to economic growth that had been achieved prior to the crisis. Some of the measures taken by the government were injecting funds and supporting the market. The government also offered bail outs for local corporations that relied heavily on foreign investment and hence highly susceptible to the changes in the global market. In addition, the government undertook further tax measures that saw the profit tax reduced to enable the corporations to remain operational. The government lifted import tariffs on industrial equipments to enable the rejuvenation of the affected companies. In a similar scenario to the 1998 crisis, the comeback of the Russian economy occurred after the increase in the international demand for oil. Current Russian Economic Status and Future Prospects According to the IMF, the economy of Russia has recovered from decline but is yet to recover to the levels that it had achieved prior to the crisis. The IMF projects that the Russian economy will 3. 6 per cent in 2010 up from a low of negative 7. 5 per cent. Russian economy is highly susceptible to economic crises due to its overdependence on the commodity markets. This has been evident from the two economic crises that have hit the country since the fall of the Soviet Union. Therefore, for the Russian economy to grow and cushion itself against the fluctuating international prices for commodities there is an urgent need to diversify the composition of the economy. The government of Russia has already taken measures such as investing in the information sector and has risen to become the world third largest software exporter as well as outsourcing. In addition, the government has encouraged the development of agriculture and manufacturing industry through technological and organizational modernization. The agriculture has improved with Russia becoming a net grain exporter rather than a net grain importer as was the case a few years ago. The economic reforms that have been undertaken by the Russian government have the ability to promote the development of a stable economy in the future. Russia is set to gain from the structural reforms that have been instituted and with the vast richness in natural resources and economic diversification, the Russian economy is set to grow and stabilize. References Pinto, B, Gurvich, E and Ulatov, S. â€Å"Lessons from the Russian Crisis of 1998 and Recovery† The World Bank. 2004 â€Å"Russia† CIA World Factbook. 28 April, 2010. 11 May, 2010. â€Å"Russian Federation† The International Monetary Fund. N. d 11 May 2010. < http://www. imf. org/external/country/rus/rr/> â€Å"Russian Federation† The World Bank. 2010. 11 May 2010. < http://web. worldbank. org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/ECAEXT/RUSSIANFEDERATIONEXTN/0, menuPK: 305605~pagePK: 141159~piPK: 141110~theSitePK: 305600, 00. html>

Major General Charles Griffin in the Civil War