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Jay Shetty PodcastJay Shetty Podcast

NAOMI OSAKA REVEALS the Message Serena Williams Sent Her After their US Open Final Match!

Have you ever felt like losing meant your life was over? When did you realize it’s okay to fail? Today, Jay sits down with four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka to explore her journey beyond the tennis court. Naomi, known for her powerful game and quiet resilience, opens up about the challenges of fame, the weight of expectations, and how motherhood has reshaped her outlook on life. Jay and Naomi discuss the pressure of being a high-performance athlete, the loneliness that can accompany success, and the struggles of maintaining a sense of self in an industry that often reduces people to their achievements. Naomi candidly describes how, for years, her self-worth was tied to her ranking and performance, but becoming a mother has given her a new perspective—one that prioritizes joy, presence, and growth over perfection. The conversation also dives into Naomi’s evolving relationship with competition. While she once measured her success by titles and trophies, she now finds fulfillment in self-discovery and personal progress. In this interview, you'll learn: How to Detach Your Self-Worth from Achievements How to Cope with External Expectations and Criticism How to Use Journaling for Self-Reflection and Growth How to Prioritize Mental Health in High-Pressure Situations How to Learn from Setbacks Without Letting Them Define You Success is not just about winning; it’s about growing, learning, and showing up for yourself every day. With Love and Gratitude, Jay Shetty Join over 750,000 people to receive my most transformative wisdom directly in your inbox every single week with my free newsletter. Subscribe here. Join Jay for his first ever, On Purpose Live Tour! Tickets are on sale now. Hope to see you there! What We Discuss: 00:00 Intro 01:47 Open Discussions About Mental Health 03:10 Impulsiveness as an Athlete 05:28 Moving From Japan to USA 08:02 Lifelong Training and Career 10:13 Incorporating Culture in Fashion 12:38 Discipline and Diet 13:53 Indulging in Guilty Pleasures 16:48 Passing Time While Having Impulsive Tendencies 18:46 Winning the First Grand Slam 21:09 Dealing with Public Hate 22:39 A Long-Time Serena Williams Fan 25:16 Experiencing Motherhood 27:39 The Different Facets of Life 29:07 The Power of Journaling 31:55 Loving the Life You're Living 34:57 The Habit of Comparing Yourself to Others 36:27 Stop Chasing Your Old Self 38:21 Motherhood Realizations 39:46 Rigorous Training After Giving Birth 41:18 Setting Boundaries During PressCon 43:01 No One Can Predict Someone's Path 45:21 Finding Calmness Through Meditation 47:44 Setting New Goals 50:25 Shamed for Taking a Break 54:17 Getting Support from Fellow Athletes 55:52 Friendships and Camaraderie 57:08 Mentored by Kobe Bryant 59:31 The Haitian Way of Giving 01:00:58 Who Are You Spending Your Time With the Most? 01:04:29 Loving Yourself and How You Look 01:05:29 Game Day Routine 01:07:33 You're Never Alone 01:09:04 Fear of Being Forgotten 01:12:40 Naomi on Final Five Episode Resources: https://www.instagram.com/jayshetty https://www.facebook.com/jayshetty/ https://x.com/jayshetty https://www.linkedin.com/in/shettyjay/ https://www.youtube.com/@JayShettyPodcast http://jayshetty.me

Naomi OsakaguestJay Shettyhost
Jul 31, 20251h 15mWatch on YouTube ↗

At a glance

WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT

Naomi Osaka on identity, motherhood, mental health, and resilience lessons

  1. Osaka describes feeling shame, isolation, and overwhelm around her French Open withdrawal, including avoiding the outside world and struggling with the media spotlight.
  2. She explains how early, intense training and a “blueprint” upbringing created a deep tennis-first identity that later made wins/losses feel like measures of personal worth.
  3. Osaka revisits the complex emotions of winning her first Grand Slam against Serena Williams—dream-fulfilled yet clouded by controversy, hate comments, and doubts about “deserving” the win.
  4. Motherhood shifts her internal landscape toward patience and perspective, reducing the emotional devastation of losses while introducing new motivations and boundaries.
  5. She outlines practical coping tools—journaling, meditation with rain/ocean sounds, selective detachment from opinions, and leaning on trusted relationships—to manage comparison, anxiety, and self-criticism.

IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING

5 ideas

Mental health disclosures can be messy and still meaningful.

Osaka feels embarrassed about how she communicated her struggles, yet believes speaking up opened pathways for wider athlete mental-health conversations and humanized athletes.

Over-identifying with performance makes setbacks feel existential.

She describes valuing herself as a person based on wins and losses, and later learning—through life events and supportive people—that tennis is not her entire self-worth.

Public narratives can contaminate even “dream” achievements.

Winning her first Slam against Serena was a childhood dream, but controversy and online hate led to intense emotional conflict and delayed processing of the moment.

Boundaries aren’t anti-media; they’re pro-human.

Osaka explains that as fame grew, press questions felt engineered for headlines rather than understanding, contributing to fear, withdrawal, and the decision to step back.

Comparison may never disappear, but its power can shrink.

She accepts competitive “sizing up” thoughts can arise, and the work becomes responding differently—watching the “wonder” spiral and not letting it dictate choices.

WORDS WORTH SAVING

5 quotes

My whole identity as I knew it was being a tennis player, so I would, I guess, value my, my life or what my value was as a person on whether I won or lost.

— Naomi Osaka

I was just reading comments of people saying that I didn't deserve to win or, like, I didn't win fairly. And I don't know, it just, it just really sucked.

— Naomi Osaka

No one can ever predict someone else's path. I just realize, like, some people will understand that, and some people won't, and it's not my job to convince, um, people of that.

— Naomi Osaka

I don't ever claim to know answers, but I think when I was at really low moments of my life, I always felt like I was alone. Um, so I would say you're never alone.

— Naomi Osaka

You have to be the lion, and the flies around your eyes are people's opinions, and you just have to focus and keep your eyes straight.

— Naomi Osaka

French Open withdrawal and shameMedia pressure and press-conference boundariesImpulsiveness vs discipline in elite sportEarly-life training “blueprint” and identitySerena Williams US Open final aftermath and messageMotherhood and returning to training postpartumJournaling, meditation, and managing comparison

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