Meet Nay Partamian

We recently connected with Nay Partamian and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Nay, thank you so much for opening up with us about some important, but sometimes personal topics. One that really matters to us is overcoming Imposter Syndrome because we’ve seen how so many people are held back in life because of this and so we’d really appreciate hearing about how you overcame Imposter Syndrome.

On a February morning I woke up when I realized today I would play my first ever pro event. The venue was visible from my window. I was in my hotel room getting ready and watching videos of my favorite female pro singles players to get inspired for the day. The doubts started pouring in when a friend called after seeing me in the main draw and letting me know they will take some clips of me playing. This made it even more real. I had friends watching. I think the imposter syndrome came from what I thought others would think. I never care what others think, but when you take on new challenges and people are watching, it can be a little scary. I also didn’t know who I was as a pro athlete. What makes me, me? How do I not lose myself in this journey? I had my favorite bracelet on as a reminder that I’m still me. I would look at the bracelet when I felt doubt. The opportunity to play pro was handed to me when I got to work with a brand that stood behind pro athletes. I knew I had to stop delaying my goals. When I got to the venue, I sat on the grass and listened to lofi, trying to focus on staying calm. When I finally received the text with my court assignment, I walked over and could see people were watching on the sideline. It was hard not to notice who was watching. I am still on my journey and navigating the pro world, but after that first tournament, it felt like a cold glass of water was poured on me, I felt instantly better and ready to continue on this journey and get better. It’s completely normal to feel doubt sometimes, but it’s just a feeling. When you persist, you will get to your goals eventually. You can never fail in a sport. “Failure” is just a learning opportunity.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

Hello. I am Nay, and I am an aspiring pro pickleball athlete and legal analyst. I just started playing the pro singles division in pickleball and aspire to rise up the ranks. I am also a legal analyst and have a goal of working for Formula 1. What I’m most excited about in my pro sports journey is to get better each time I play a tournament and show my true authentic self to those who watch the sport. I am an introverted extrovert. I have energy, but I also retreat sometimes to take social breaks. I love a good balance.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Resilience, confidence, and persistence.
Becoming resilient to a few bad points during a game is a very important mindset to have. It’s not just about walking into a match with confidence and resilience, but persisting with that confidence throughout the match and forgetting about any bad point or good point. If you are just starting out, figure out what works for you. Not every person’s journey is the same. Have fun though. Never lose your authenticity and never forget why you started this journey in the first place.

What’s been one of your main areas of growth this year?

I don’t really get nervous anymore. I’m working on focusing less on the small things and trying to control little things, and instead focusing on my bigger goals in my sport. I’ve also been experimenting with creativity on social media and just having fun. There is nothing more fun than being yourself and enjoying the journey.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: naypartamian