When it comes to ideas, don’t be afraid to be delusional.
That advice comes from tennis star Coco Gauff.
“I think delusional is great,” Gauff tells Forbes. “All of the greatest athletes and greatest artists have to have a little bit of craziness and delusion. Having a little bit of craziness in your goal is kind of healthy.”
Ranked second in the world by the Women’s Tennis Association, Gauff, 20, is taking her own advice she expands a business enterprise beyond tennis. Gauff discussed her portfolio while preparing for Wimbledon, where she advanced to the third round of the tournament before being ousted on Sunday by 19th-seeded Emma Navarro. The loss comes after Gauff partnered with 27th-ranked Katerina Siniakova to win the women’s doubles at the French Open in June. The win netted her roughly $641,000.
After Wimbledon, Gauff will play in the Paris Olympics then defend her US Open women’s singles championship in New York. Forbes estimates Gauff made $21.7 million in 2023. That ranks third among the highest-paid female athletes.
In between tennis, Gauff has other business to handle.
On Tuesday, she extended a partnership with shipping giant UPS to create a campaign intended to uplift small businesses. Entitled, Coco vs. The Doubters, the promotion spotlights Generation Z entrepreneurs who overcome the difficult odds of operating a profitable business. UPS trades on the New York Stock Exchange with a $117 billion market cap.