What Roger Federer Got Wrong About Negative Energy

Roger Federer told the Dartmouth Class of 2024:

Negative energy is wasted energy.

And look—I want to agree. He’s a legend. His backhand has been described as a work of art. Yes, his speech is full of incredible wisdom.

[You can watch the full thing on YouTube, 25 mins]

But a friend shared this Instagram reel of his speech where he breaks down the mindset behind that quote—and…I kind of disagreed. 

(Respectfully. With my whole I’m-an-amateur-player-who-hasn’t-picked-up-a-racquet-in-over-15-years heart.)

The Risk of Binary Thinking

There’s some truth in what he’s saying. When you let negative energy stay in the driver’s seat, you usually end up somewhere you don’t want to be. But taken at face value, the phrase sets people up for a kind of binary thinking: 

Either I should avoid the negative energy… or I’m doing it wrong.

And that’s where things go sideways.

Because when people try to bypass their actual experience—when they override, suppress, or avoid what’s really going on—that’s exactly what creates more negative energy.

A More Useful Reframe

It’s not the circumstance itself that’s the problem.
It’s the meaning we attach to it.

Most of that meaning-making happens on autopilot. And it’s that automatic interpretation—not the situation itself—that shapes our emotional energy.

The circumstance is neutral.
It’s the meaning we give it that can make it feel heavy, negative, or like something that doesn’t serve us. And when that happens outside our awareness, it quietly shapes how we move—or don’t.

I think this is what Federer really meant when he said you have to master the negative energy.
Not by forcing positivity. But by learning to let a moment—a missed shot, a quiet disappointment, a tough conversation—be neutral.

So you don’t burn energy spiraling—so you can stay in the game.

This is the work I do with clients. Not to get rid of hard circumstances, but to build the capacity to work with them—without letting the meaning-making shut you down.

What thoughts do you have about Roger Federer’s speech? Email me at pierre at pierrebradette dot com.

To your success,

Pierre

Certified Professional Coach