faster
fitter
stronger
bigger serves
new skills
more aggressive
better defense
improved on turning defense into offense
learned some playing patterns
understanding the geometry of the court
learned to play points smarter
Your tennis star is feeling great and ready to return to competition with renewed confidence and determination. That is until their stress level is tested. That is where we usually see a big gap between the training and competition level. With stress, lurking in the corner is fear. Fear brings doubt. Doubt attacks confidence.
And when fear imposes itself on the player? Well, you've seen how your child performed under that spell. Yeah, it is tough to watch. I'm not going to lie. Been there myself as a player and as a parent/coach.
The good news is there is one thing that you can do to help your child to put fear in its place. You can help them to connect the dots from their training to competition.
If you consistently hold your child accountable to the things that are within their control, they build the habit of assessing the journey, not just the outcome of a match. Their confidence will not be shaken up by the end result. When they are certain with what they are supposed to achieve, there will be no doubt. When there is nothing to doubt about, fear will be locked away.
Yours Truly...Patricia
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