Serena Loses Her Cool - Why you should keep yours

Serena Williams tirades against a lineswoman after a controversial call. The outburst eventually cost her the match (Clive Brunskill / Getty Images)

Since starting TheBlogFrog, I rarely watch TV or movies. I have to make an exception for the US Open. Maybe it's because the tournament takes place in New York City, which allows the matches to be broadcast live, or maybe it's because I've attended the tournament twice, but whatever the reason, I can't get enough of it.

Last night in the women's semi-final, Serena Williams had lost the 1st set but was neck and neck in the second set. She was serving at 15-30 when she was called for a "foot-fault". If you don't play tennis, a foot-fault means your foot touched the line when you served. The rule is intended to make sure you don't get an unfair advantage when you serve, and is rarely used.

When the call was made, Serena lost it and started cursing and threatening the lineswoman who made the call. As a result she was penalized a point, which happened to be match point, and she lost the match (and possibly faces further disciplinary action in the future).

Even if she hadn't lost the match then, she would have lost the match in the next 20 minutes. Why? When you lose your head, you are done for. I've seen it time and time again in tennis, the person who finally cracks under the pressure and has a wild outburst always loses.

It seems this way in other aspects of life as well. I remember Brad Feld describing one particular "death spiral" of startups that goes like this: An early stage company hits a wall and starts losing momentum. The founders panic and think that that they need to just work harder to gain momentum again. Since founders are already working 16 hours a day, they start working 20, sacrificing sleep for the extra time. The sleep-deprived founders start making bad decisions and thus lose more momentum. Eventually the founder panic, lose their heads completely, and take the company into a nose dive.

The solution: step away, get some sleep, think clearly, and act deliberately. Now I bet Serena wishes she read this blog.