The following post is an excerpt from the Second Edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible
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PLAYER-COACH: INITIAL INFORMATION EXCHANGE
Most often, coaches begins their relationship with feeding balls and correcting fundamentals. I encourage coaches to begin their relationship by asking questions and truly listening to their students. Maximizing player potential starts by uncovering the athlete’s personality, feelings, attitude and tennis IQ. This will aid in customizing the training regiments. Similar personality profiles shares common efficiency and deficiencies. Knowing the athlete’s personality profile will save hundreds of wasted hours in the developmental process. Encourage your athlete’s coach to engage in this type of information exchange. It will surely sets the tone for a positive relationship. Remember, all behavior is communicative so be aware of the nonverbal clues.
Nonverbal Clues Checklist:
- Facial Expression
- Body Language/Posture
- Volume/Intonation
- Choice of Words
- Length of Thought Process
- Length of Answers
- Exact/Approximate Answers
- Hand Gestures
- Lower Body/Core Movement
- Length of Focus
20 Assessment Questions:
- What level/division are you playing?
- Do you have a club, section, National or ITF ranking?
- Tell me about your athletic history?
- What are your short and long-term tennis goals?
- Tell me about your tennis entourage (parents/coaches)?
- What’s your current weekly training regimen?
- What’s your primary and secondary styles of play?
- Tell me about your pre-match preparation?
- What style of opponent do you hate to play the most?
- Are you patient or inpatient on court?
- What’s your shot tolerance level (comfortable length of point)?
- Do you respond after reasoning or before reasoning?
- Do you allow the opponent to self-destruct or do you preferred to strike bold winners?
- How well do you deal with intimidation, confrontation/gamesmanship?
- Do you enjoy surprises or avoid surprises?
- Are you comfortable being spontaneous/unscripted or deliberate/regimented?
- Are you inspired by the real/practical or imaginative/what could be?
- Do your thoughts wander between the past, present and the future?
- What’s your focus tolerance level (how long can you focus on a singular topic)?
- Do you think you’re getting the results you deserve?
Throughout this book, you will hear that it is the job of the parents and coaches to get into the athlete’s world as opposed to forcing the athlete into our world. Understanding why your athlete thinks the way they think and do what they do is a function of their genetic predisposition.
