How motherhood has fueled Serena Williams’ #bossbabe determination

Serena Williams has won enough Grand Slam titles and Olympic medals to fill a whole Kondo-approved, joy-sparking room. And though she just had a baby a few months ago, the tennis pro has no plans to retire. In fact, Williams says her daughter, Alexis Olympia, provides her with even more inspiration to win more Grand Slams.

“Knowing I’ve got this beautiful baby to go home to makes me feel like I don’t have to play another match. I don’t need the money or the titles or the prestige. I want them, but I don’t need them. That’s a different feeling for me.” —Serena Williams

“When I’m too anxious, I lose matches, and I feel like a lot of that anxiety disappeared when Olympia was born,” Williams told Vogue. “Knowing I’ve got this beautiful baby to go home to makes me feel like I don’t have to play another match. I don’t need the money or the titles or the prestige. I want them, but I don’t need them. That’s a different feeling for me.”

Even though Williams already has 23 Grand Slams under her tennis skirt, she wants to win at least 25 to officially have the title of the best tennis player in the world. And she wants to instill that sense of determination and perservence in her daughter, too.

“I think sometimes women limit themselves,” she says. “I’m not sure why we think that way, but I know that we’re sometimes taught to not dream as big as men, not to believe we can be a president or a CEO, when in the same household, a male child is told he can be anything he wants. I’m so glad I had a daughter. I want to teach her that there are no limits.”

Speaking of no limits, Williams is keeping her athletic career in full gear, with husband Alexis Ohanian and the baby cheering her on. “I’ve been playing tennis since before my memories started,” Williams said. “At my age, I see the finish line. And when you see the finish line, you don’t slow down. You speed up.”

So, who knows? With that kind of girl-power fuel running through her veins, little Alexis Olympia might give her mom’s records a run for their money someday.

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