And Australia's hyped tennis teen said it was a key to her success after she took down a top-50-ranked player for the first time.
The 16-year-old from the Gold Coast swept aside China's world No.37 Wang Xinyu 6-4 6-0 at the Adelaide International on Monday.
"At the start of the match, because I have never played a top-50 player before, I was like a bit wary of how good she was, so I wasn't quite sure," said Jones, the world No.373.
"But as the match went on I was like 'I have got this - if I really play well, I have got a chance'."
Jones, who finished last year as the top-ranked world junior, dominated in her victory against world No.37 Wang in just 71 minutes.
Wang Xinyu lost to Australian teenage tennis star Emerson Jones at the Adelaide International. (James Ross/AAP PHOTOS)
Jones accepted a wildcard to play in Adelaide as Australian officials continued their desire to fast-track the prodigious talent.
A daughter of Olympic triathlon silver medallist Loretta Harrop, Jones also has a wildcard for the looming Australian Open.
She was a first-round loser in Melbourne last year - and a beaten finalist in the girls' tournament - but now boasts additional weapons compared with 12 months ago.
"Mentally I have improved a lot from last year," said Jones, coached by Sam Stosur's former mentor David Taylor.
"I have got no expectations playing in these high-level tournaments so I just play every game as hard as I can.
"I just have to prepare well ... playing more matches and trying to tell myself before every single match that I need to be mentally good.
"Because that is probably mostly what tennis is about: whoever is the most headstrong will probably be the greatest."
Asked if she was headstrong, Jones replied: "I have come a long way from where I was but I have still got lots of improvement to do."
Jones, who turns 17 in July, is the first Australian woman since Jelena Dokic some 26 years ago to become world junior No.1.
She will meet No.3 seed Daria Kasatkina in the next round in Adelaide after Russia's world No.9 defeated Australian wildcard Olivia Gadecki 6-2 6-3.
And Jones will continue to brush off comparisons to Australian great Ash Barty and their respective junior achievements.
"I find it really exciting that people say 'she did this and that' and I am following in her footsteps," Jones said.
"But I just think we're all on our different journeys and I just want to see how I go. Obviously Ash Barty was amazing so it would be very hard to keep up with that."
World No.12 Paula Badosa was the highest-ranked player to advance on Monday.
The fifth seed needed almost three hours to see off emerging American Peyton Stearns 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 7-5. Â
World No.25 Yulia Putintseva upset Croatia's world No.19 and 2024 Paris Olympics silver medallist Donna Vekic 6-2 6-3.
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