The following post is an excerpt from The Tennis Parent’s Bible. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo
Guess who was an angry emotional train wreck as a junior competitor? If you said Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and even the iceman Bjorn Borg, then you’re right!
Moral excellence is a maturing process. Everyone can compete in a relaxed, happy state, but not everyone wants to. Let’s cover that again. Everyone can compete in a relaxed, happy state, but not everyone wants to!
Often negative behavior has been motor programmed into the player’s routine. It is a comfortable, dirty, old habit. The development of character lies in the ability to first learn to be uncomfortable competing without the negative act. It’s like a stand-up comedian without his props to hide behind. The old props are comfortable.
The insight lies in the understanding that each player has a character choice. Somewhere in their late teens; Borg, Federer and Nadal were taught a wiser code of conduct and chose to apply it.
Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
MaximizingTennisPotential.com
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