Legendary tennis coach Rick Macci hosted a "VIP meet-up and fireside chat" at his acclaimed tennis academy in South County Regional Park in Boca Raton earlier this week. Macci's students were in attendance along with their parents and other sports industry luminaries. 

Macci invited the co-host of his popular "Game, Set, Life" podcast, David Meltzer, to sit alongside Macci's co-author, Dr. Nivedita Uberoi Jerath, of new book, Billion Dollar Mind: A Practical Guide to the Game of Life, to discuss what it takes to be successful in tennis, business, and life.

From left to right: Rick Macci hosts David Meltzer and Dr. Nivedita Uberoi Jerath at his tennis academy. Photo: Florida Tennis.

It was a power-packed presentation as these industry experts offered up sage advice for a crowd looking to achieve their maximum potential in life. So who were these featured speakers and why should you listen to their advice?

David Meltzer is co-founder of Sports 1 Marketing and formerly served as CEO of the renowned Leigh Steinberg Sports & Entertainment agency — the inspiration for the hit movie Jerry Maguire. Meltzer is also a three-time international best-selling author who's been honored by Variety as “Sports Humanitarian of the Year”.

Harvard educated Dr. Nivedita Uberoi Jerath is currently Director of Neuromuscular Medicine in Orlando where she specializes in solving challenging neuromuscular cases. As a junior tennis player, she was undefeated playing in the Southern Tennis Association for years. Part of her success, in both tennis and life, can be chalked up to her coach Rick Macci.

Rick Macci is a world-renowned USPTA Master Professional with the distinction of having trained five players who reached number one in the tennis world including: Andy Roddick, Venus Williams, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, and Jennifer Capriati. Actor Jon Bernthal actually portrayed Macci in the Hollywood blockbuster King Richard about the Williams sisters.

Above: A big crowd attends the Macci event. Photo: Macci Tennis Aacdemy.

The three speakers, Macci, Meltzer, and Jerath discussed their own unique ingredients for success and provided a number of impactful quotes during their hour-long panel. Each discussed changing your "self-talk" and feels the ongoing dialogue in your mind can have a significant impact in changing your life.

Here's a few quotes that resonated with the packed crowd at the Macci Academy.

David Meltzer

Overcoming hardship: "Pain is an indicator that you have learned a lesson."

Talent: "It's the energetics combined with the genetics."

Managing time: "It's a minutes and moments strategy."

Moving on quickly: "How long am I going to spend in this [negative] trajectory?"

Re-adjust: "I have faith this happened to make me better."

Be patient: "Meet people where they're at."

Always ask: "Is this person (or circumstance) feeding or bleeding me?"

Mentors: "Find someone who's already been there and ask directions."

Dr. Nivedita Uberoi Jerath

Tidy up: "Our minds are like a garden, you have to weed out the bad thoughts."

When managing stress: "Change perspective. Try controlling your thoughts."

Pivot: "It's time to make our make our minds work for us instead of against us."

Happiness: "Always recognize the things that bring you joy."

Niva's meditation and journaling ethos: "Gratitude"

Reboot your life: "If you had three months left to live, how would you change?"

Rick Macci

Coaching: "I don't change strokes, I change lives."

Tennis: "It's a game of inches — from ear to ear."

Outlook: "There's not a wrong way or a right way, there's a better way."

Overcoming challenges: "Failure is an opportunity to do better."

Be Flexible: "When things aren't going you way, change your perspective."

Positivity: "Take the negative and turn it into a positive."

Make a change: "Get off the 'merry-go-round' of negativity."

Facing adversity: "If you smile, it'll take you a mile."

Self-discipline: "If you build a routine, you become a machine."

Level up: "If you're not getting better, you're getting worse."

When things get tough: "Always take a deep breath and appreciate what you have."

Each speaker turned out to be a quote machine — Macci, Meltzer, and Jerath provided so many inspiring gems throughout event. As Macci told the attendees, their collective advice could be utilized as "self-talk" to help improve the future. Whether it's tennis, business, or challenging life circumstances, these three speakers at the Macci Academy delivered the goods. 

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Written by Florida Tennis' Executive Editor and Publisher Matt Pressman. Top photo in header and photo gallery: Florida Tennis. Other photos in photo gallery: Macci Tennis Aacdemy.