Episode 19: Freeing Yourself to Really Be Yourself: A Lifelong Journey with Neal Hagberg

What if I try this new thing, and some people don’t like me?  My guest this week, Neal Hagberg, voiced these worries of his own many years ago to his then 8-year-old daughter.  Her response (you’ll love it!) set him free to take the risk, and opened up his life in ways he could’ve never imagined. She helped him to realize that “If you free yourself up to really be yourself, then you actually become yourself.” Across our time together he shares other stories of hard choices (letting go of the “safe” and lucrative path of becoming a doctor in order to become a singer-songwriter), of flaws and failures, of the importance of curiosity, beauty, and imagination in the face of all that’s broken in the world.  We explore what it means in that kind of world to choose to “love anyway.”   Neal Hagberg is Director of Tennis & Life Camps at Gustavus Adolphus College, which has been recognized as one of the top tennis camps in the country by Tennis Magazine.  He is a USPTA Elite Professional and has worked at Tennis and Life Camps (TLC) since 1981, and has been director since 2010. In 2019, he received the national Community Service Award from the USPTA and USTA.  In addition to being a teaching pro, Neal designed the “life” portion of TLC with legendary Gustavus coach and teacher Steve Wilkinson, who taught a radical, simple approach to winning more matches: take the focus off winning; and who taught both tennis and life skills by focusing on the only things we can control: our attitude, our effort, and our sportsmanship.   Neal is a 1981 graduate of Gustavus Adolphus College; received his M.Div. at Luther Seminary; and was also a touring singer/songwriter for 25 years with his life-partner Leandra Peak as half of the duo Neal & Leandra.  He performed concerts in 45 states and Canada, in venues ranging from coffeehouses to Carnegie Hall; and is the recipient of two McKnight Artist Fellowships, one for Performing and one for Composing.