Tag Archives: elite coach Frank Giampaolo

Why Character Building Matters- Part 2

Posted on July 19, 2021 by in The Soft Science of Tennis

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s newest book, The Soft Science of Tennis.

Click Here to Order through Amazon

 

Busoft scienceilding character in young athletes is essential to the success of the athlete on and off the court. Positive character not only assists the athletes on the court but guides them as they make the world a better place. An excellent character is a secret precursor of winning. It drives performance, which accelerates results. It’s the heartbeat of The Soft Science of Tennis. Sadly, in today’s generation, many parents assume that the coaches are teaching positive character traits and critical life skills, while coaches believe that it’s the parents who are educating these essential skills, and sadly it’s a missing link in developing athletes.

 

“Excellent character is the secret precursor of winning. It drives consistent training which accelerates results.”

 

Character counts, so what is character? It’s a combination of the athlete’s emotional qualities, beliefs, and values. Great character isn’t a genetic predisposition. Humans aren’t born with great character. Good character is a learned skill set with well-nurtured emotional enhancements. One’s character, good or bad shines in all its glory when the athlete competes and under duress. Developing character molds the athlete’s inner dialog, which either pumps them up or tears them down on a daily basis.

 

“The underlining effectiveness of a parent or coach lies in their ability to develop positive character skills.”

Coaching Brain Type Performance- Part 7

Posted on June 22, 2021 by in The Soft Science of Tennis

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s newest book, The Soft Science of Tennis.

Click Here to Order through Amazon

The Match Chart Collection 2D

 

 

INFJ: Introvert Intuitive Feeler Judger

 

Challenge: Unfamiliarity is a sensitive topic for the INFJ’s. Adaptability isn’t their strong suit.

Solution: Entering competition, arrive at the new tournament site early to hit. Allow this athlete a bit more time to get comfortable with the elements, the court speed, club, and other environmental differences. Also, scouting of future opponents is comforting to this cerebral design. While profiling the next opponent, it is wise to discuss their style of play, their “go-to patterns,” their stroke and movement efficiencies and deficiencies, and their shot tolerance.

 

Challenge: INFJ’s prefer quiet, calm training environments with little interruptions. Too much socialization in group scenarios is distracting and illogical to this IJ typography.

Solution: If they believe that the practice environment is unproductive, they begin to feel fragmented and disconnected to their developmental plan. Coaches would be wise to begin sessions with a short preview of the day’s focal points, analyses, and evaluate throughout the session. And then later review with the athletes their thoughts in regards to their success rate accomplishing their daily goals.

 

Challenge: INFJ’s have vivid imaginations, which they use to, pre-set their ideal perfect conditions and solutions. Lawyers call this “speculation.” When reality doesn’t conform to their pre-set version, their imagined perfection is lost, and their will to fight is shattered.

Solution: Ask them a philosophical question: “Is this world perfect? Their obvious answer is no.” Then offer: “If God couldn’t make a perfect world …why do you think you should be perfect?” The competitive game of tennis is messy and imperfect. It’s best to encourage your athletes to shoot for near excellent performances on a consistent basis instead of perfection and let go of their pre-match speculations.

 

Challenge: INFJ tennis players are feelers who can be overly sensitive to criticism. When coaches challenge their logical decision-making, they’re likely to get an aggressive comeback. Rigid IJ’s actively dislike being proven wrong. After a high percentage shot selection tip from the coach, they’ll likely seek the exception to the rule and throw out a “Yeah but …” response.

Solution: Explain winning percentages on the tennis court is merely 2 out of 3. Winning 66% of the points is excellent. No one should be expected to win 100% of the points in any given situation. Also, teaching pros should gently remind athletes that exceptions follow every rule in life. In high-percentage tennis, seek to follow the rules approximately eighty percent of the time, while seeking the exception to the rule approximately twenty percent of the time.

Personality Based Training- Part 1

Posted on May 16, 2021 by in The Soft Science of Tennis

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s newest book, The Soft Science of Tennis.

Click Here to Order through Amazon

soft science

 

Personality Based Training

 

“Personality profiling assists coaches, athletes, and parents in understanding how individuals gather information and make decisions. It’s how we are wired. It’s what makes us tick.”

 

Personality Based Training (PBT) is a training method that focuses the attention on the athlete’s unique brain design as opposed to the educator. When applying PBT, tennis pros and parents welcome and respect the athlete’s unique preferred styles of learning, behaving, and playing the game.  The athletes feel empowered because their views and needs are recognized. And once understood, students are more motivated and inspired to learn and improve. An inspired student is more likely to take the leadership role in achieving their goals.

 

“Athletes would benefit from understanding the advantages and disadvantages of their unique brain design. It’s why they are naturally good at some things and uncomfortable with others.”

 

It’s important to note that while I’ve studied sports psychology for the past 30 years, I am a veteran, “In the Trenches” practical application tennis coach, not an “Academia” psychologist. But neither were Katharine Briggs and her daughter Isabel Myers, authors of the famous Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI- A psychological questionnaire used to understand individual mental preferences.) published in the United States in 1943. Together Myers-Briggs noticed that individuals have different temperaments and unique ways of seeing the world.

While some scientists say the MBTI doesn’t stand up to scientific reliability, I can say with all honesty that it has helped me coach over 100 National Champions and several Pro tour athletes. More importantly, personality profiling benefits my athletes and their entourage of parents, coaches, and trainers at a much deeper level. A study conducted by Psychology Today, reports that approximately 80% of Fortune 500 companies use various personality tests to hire future employees, assess progress, and maximize efficiency and harmony through team-building events. The time has come to broaden the role of personality profiling into the athletic realm, as I have outlined in The Soft Science of Tennis.

 

 

Non-Verbal Communication- Part 2

Posted on May 6, 2021 by in The Soft Science of Tennis

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s newest book, The Soft Science of Tennis.

Click Here to Order through Amazon

Frank Giampaolo

 

 

Non-verbal clues to take note of when profiling your athletes

 

 

Appearance

When coaching, I make it a point to notice my athlete’s appearance, clothing choice, and organization of equipment. Is Sarah’s hair braided to perfection? Does her Nike skirt match perfectly with her Nike top, Nike socks, Nike shoes, and Nike warm-ups? This indicates to me an SJ (Sensing, Judging) persona.

Do Sam’s Wilson Blade rackets have different gauge strings, different brand dampeners with non-matching over-grips? Does he carry them in a Head racket bag with a Prince water bottle? This initially indicates to me an NP (Intuitive, Perceiver) personality. I realize that exceptions shadow every rule, so these initial non-verbal clues are observational hunches that begin to shed light on their personality profile.

 

Posture

I then assess the athlete’s body posture throughout our session, both during off-court conversations and on-court performance, which helps me to determine their self-esteem and confidence levels. Defensive attitudes are often shown by crossed arms and slumped shoulders. Students lean-in or walk towards the net when they’re interested. In my opinion, confidence or lack thereof is also identified by the athlete’s swagger or timid posture and stance.

 

Eyes

Throughout my coaching sessions, I also pay close attention to the athlete’s eyes. The old saying is “The eyes are the gateway to the soul.” Spotting if a student is dialed in and focused on the task at hand or mentally gone can be detected in their eyes. Are they telling the truth or fibbing? Athletes’ emotional state such as being upset, tranquil, content or angry can also be detected in their eyes.

 

Facial Expressions

Interpreting an athlete’s facial expression can also help a coach profile their athletes. Obviously, students show emotion through their facial expressions. Squinting eyes and tight lips are signs of anger, tension, and frustration. Smiles are signs of comfort and confidence. I can often tell if an athlete or parent isn’t buying the information I’m providing by interpreting their facial expressions.

 

Tone of Voice

Observing their tone of voice is another essential clue I use to profile athletes. The tone of voice doesn’t communicate logic, but it does convey the athlete’s feelings.

 

 

“An athlete’s tone of voice speaks the truth even when their words don’t.”

 

 

Effective Listening- Part 4

Posted on April 27, 2021 by in The Soft Science of Tennis

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s newest book, The Soft Science of Tennis.

Click Here to Order through Amazon

Effective Listening- Part 4

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Verbal Communication in the Digital World

It’s no secret that modern adolescents are obsessed with social media, tweeting, and texting. Kids are nurtured from the cradle to communicate through screens instead of interpersonal communication. They prefer texting over talking. It’s the world in which they live.

Research in the field of communication found that a third of American teenagers send more than one hundred texts a day. They want to feel a personal connection, engaged, inspired and understood…they just don’t know-how.  The combination of their ineffective speaking skills combined with our weak listening skills is hurting the development process.

 

Listening “Between” the Words

Exceptional listeners filter through conversations to identify the true meaning behind their athlete’s words. The ability to “listen” between words helps the listener discern if the student seeks constructive criticism or only a sympathetic ear. Attentive listeners recognize anomalies that enable them to identify the beliefs, attitudes, and feelings behind words. This allows them to interpret the athlete’s spoken truth, fiction, optimism, pessimism, expectation, intentions, trust, past mental habits, and belief systems.

 

“An athlete’s belief system crafts their future. Every syllable they speak engages energy towards them or against them.”

 

As novice parents and intermediate coaches gain wisdom, they become more in-tune listeners. They discover hidden belief systems behind their athlete’s dialog. Great listeners know there is “subconscious” energy behind words. Pessimistic behaviors are not difficult to spot because all too often, those very same negative thoughts, tones, words, and actions stem from those nurturing the athlete. As the athlete’s thoughts become their words, those words determine their beliefs and play a deciding role in their performance, especially during stressful match conditions.

When effective listening is applied, the athlete’s sequence of thought-speech-action becomes very clear to the “in-tuned” entourage. Please pay attention to the belief systems habitually used by your athletes. An athlete’s affirmations and inner dialog can be categorized as optimistic or pessimistic. It should be painfully obvious that their self-coaching either builds them up or tears them down at crunch time.

Sharpening Healthier Communication- Part 1

Posted on April 10, 2021 by in The Soft Science of Tennis

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s newest book, The Soft Science of Tennis.

Click Here to Order through Amazon

Soft Science of Tennis_3D_Cover_version5

Sharpening Healthier Communication

 

It’s dinner time at the Klein’s house. Mr. Klein and his daughter Wendy spent the day at a USTA level 3 girls 16’s event. Wendy was seeded #4 in the tournament. Her 9:00 am match went terribly wrong. Wendy’s serve percentages were catastrophically low and as a result, she suffered an embarrassing first-round loss.

Later that night at the dinner table the conversation quickly escalated from small talk to another tennis-related screaming match. As they passed the potatoes, another family dinner was ruined.  Mr. Klein wished he had an instruction manual for these heated exchanges.

 

Psychologists researching communication offer a concept called the Four-Sides Model. The theory states that Mr. Klein’s initial comment “Honey, your serve was really off today.” exposed four possible ways Wendy could accept the data:

  • As an impersonal factual stat.
  • Insights about Mr. Klein’s feelings.
  • As a personal underlining insult towards Wendy.
  • As an appeal for improvement.

The message Mr. Klein was intentionally trying to convey isn’t necessarily what was perceived by Wendy. Mr. Klein’s statement “Honey, your serve was really off today.” led to a whirlwind of problems between him and his daughter. This, in turn, spiraled into the silent treatment from his wife because once again their family harmony was disrupted.

For Mr. Klein, the factual data and appeal for improvement were the only reason for the statement. Wendy’s interpretation of his statement was polar opposite. Wendy felt awful because she believed that she had let her parents and coaches down. She also concluded that her father’s statement about her serve implied that she was not working hard enough and that she was a failure.

 

“Communication is less about what is being said and more about how the words are decoded by the listener.”

 

As coaches and parents communicate with their athlete, the athlete’s personality profile acts as a filter as they decode the information. Some athletes are wired to accept and enjoy the analysis of cold hard facts while others are wired to overlook the facts and instead zone in to the emotional climate of the conversations. Each athlete connects the dots and paints the picture they choose to hear. An individual’s personality profile determines how one communicates. (We will interpret personality profiles in greater detail in coming chapters.)

 

 

 

 

Neuro Priming For Peak Performance- Part 1

Posted on March 2, 2021 by in Neuro Priming for Peak Performance

The following post is an excerpt from Neuro Priming for Peak Performance NOW available!

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NUERO PRIMING FOR PEAK PERFORMANCE

neuro priming

In the medical field, heart surgeons report that if they practiced the way they did just five years ago, they would have been sued for malpractice. Yet, in the business of coaching tennis, teaching professionals all too often teach the same fundamental systems they were taught decades ago. Dedicating most tennis training to grooving forehands and backhands and neglecting training what’s between the ears. Success in the competitive game of tennis is dependent on emotional and mental warfare.

I’ve found that only training an athlete’s hardware (stroke fundamentals & athleticism) and ignoring their software (mental and emotional), often results in match-day disappointment due to underdeveloped competitive skills.

Researchers estimated that even with the best teachers, students typically walk away from their training sessions retaining approximately 20% of the coach’s advice. So to help reinforce lesson instruction, I recommend applying customized neuro priming.

Neuro priming involves mental imagery to review and rehearse solutions for competitive performance. This visualization process is an essential off-court form of training personalized to each athlete with advanced solutions designed for specific match play situations. Neuroscientists report that athletes who apply personalized mental rehearsals drastically improve performance during match play. I consider neuro priming not only fundamental for competitive athletes but often the missing link for athletes unable to compete under stress at their full potential.

 

“Competitive successes or failures aren’t the results of a singular performance, but the result of the athlete’s physical,
mental and emotional routines and rituals.”

 

This guidebook provides a fresh, unique pathway to improving tennis skills with a customized script, in the athlete’s very own voice via a series of audio recordings on their phone. Neural priming is not meant to replace an athlete’s on-court tennis training. It is an essential enhancement of their mental, emotional and physical skills. Just as priming muscles before competition increases athleticism, neuro priming increases cognitive processing speed.

Tennis Slump?

Posted on February 11, 2021 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, The Second Edition of The Tennis Parent's Bible

The following post is an excerpt from the Second Edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible NOW available through most online retailers!

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QUESTION: My son is in a slump. How can we help him through this stage?

 

Frank: The best way to achieve improved results is by shifting your son’s developmental plan. A new plan will help motivate a new mindset which will intern cultivate new beliefs, actions, and results. Below are ten focal points to address to ignite continued growth and maximum potential.

1) Focus on Improvement.

Ask your player and entourage to let go of winning and losing and focus their energy on improvement.

2) Accept that Rivalries Encourage Growth.

Understand that your child needs rivals. Begin with local, then regional, then national, and lead into international. Rivalries encourage growth.

3) Train Adrenaline Management.

On match day, managing the systematic building and calming of adrenaline is often the deciding factor that often pulls an athlete into the winner’s circle.

4) Choose a Supportive Like-Minded Entourage.

Top athletes have an entourage. The entourage provides a “team effect” to an individual sport.  Their collaborative efforts help to inflate the athlete’s confidence and fight while supporting the athlete when they need to the most.

5) Role Play Against Various Styles of Opponents.

Parents, I’ve touched on this topic before, plan on paying slightly older better players to play sets weekly versus your child while role-playing. (For instance, “Here’s $25.00, please play 3-sets versus my son …and be the most annoying pusher possible. My son’s going to rehearse the patterns used to pull a crafty retriever out of their comfort zone. Thank you.”)

6) Play Practice Matches.

Remind your athlete as well as their entourage that success in competition requires protocols that simply aren’t found in simply hitting back and forth.

7) Reinforce Playing Smart.

Regarding competition, educate your athlete that having the presence of mind that missing the shot the moment demands is ok. It’s those reckless, uncalled for shot selections that will make them early-round losers.

8) Learn to Play Through Fear.

Elite competitors control their fears and ultimately their destiny. Intermediate athletes allow their fears to control their psychology and physiology as it steals any real chance of peak performance at crunch time.

9) Adopt a Warrior Mentality.

For some people, the competitive fire is innate, they flourish under stress. For others; they wilt under the very same environment. For these athletes, developing their fighting spirit is a learned behavior.

10) Use Competition as a Learning Tool.

Competition is the best facilitator for improvement. It’s the engine that awakens each athlete’s hidden reserve of effort which later is seen as “talent.”

Re-Commit to Tennis- Part 3

Posted on February 1, 2021 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, The Second Edition of The Tennis Parent's Bible

The following post is an excerpt from the Second Edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible NOW available through most online retailers!

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QUESTION: How do we help our daughter re-commit to her tennis? (Part 3)

Encourage your athlete to stretch beyond their comfort zone and try new approaches by:

  • Putting your goals and plans in writing.
  • Acknowledging that the better choice is often the harder choice.
  • Identifying possible negative influences.
  • Cutting out trouble making friends and instigators.
  • Limiting time spent with negative people.
  • Establishing the rules in troubled relationships.
  • Flipping negative talk: “I don’t know” or “I don’t care” or “I hate…”
  • Letting go of “I can’t, I’m terrible, or I am not good enough.”
  • Addressing difficulties as challenges and not defeats.
  • List solutions, not problems.

 

The above proactive behaviors are not necessarily tennis issues, they are life issues. I find that we’re all too often addicted to our old comfortable thoughts. Behavioral changes stem from changing those unproductive negative thoughts.

 

“While your athlete can’t go back and change the past … they surely can start over and create a better future.”

 

Your athlete’s tennis re-birth begins as soon as your athlete commits to improving!

Re-Commit to Tennis- Part 2

Posted on January 30, 2021 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, The Second Edition of The Tennis Parent's Bible

The following post is an excerpt from the Second Edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible NOW available through most online retailers!

 Click Here to Order

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QUESTION: How do we help our daughter re-commit to her tennis? (PART 2)

Begin your one-month organizational plan by reminding your athlete to:

  • Flip their negative words and thoughts to positives.
  • Take ownership and be accountable.
  • Let go of past failures and be future-orientated.
  • Believe in their plan. (The athlete is more likely to believe in a plan if it is their plan.)
  • Commit to daily and weekly planners.
  • Complete a nightly focus journal.
  • Accept that change is uncomfortable…but that’s where growth lives.
  • Take away destructive behaviors.
  • Celebrate positive behaviors.
  • Identify proactive behavior and destructive behavior.
  • Choose to chase excellence, not perfection.
  • Acknowledge that today’s results stem from past choices.

 

“Every choice your athlete makes either pushes them closer to their goal or further away from their goal.”