Yann's Series on Tennis Pre-Puberty Mastery
Episode 7: Setting Goals
The goals you set determine your course of action. Otherwise, you are rudderless.
Every day I woke up as a child, I saw the number of the national ranking I wanted to attain on notebook paper I had taped to my wall.
Tennis is one of the few sports without goals at either end of the playing surface.
Instead you need to set goals yourself.
By far the most important thing in your child's tennis success will be: What goal have you set together?
Do you want to enjoy the game recreationally or make varsity in five years? Play at Princeton or in the pros?
Without an endpoint in mind, how can you possibly expect to set the proper course to get anywhere?
The answers to these questions will determine how you train, where you train, how often, and so much more.Â
Moreover, your goals over time need to change as you attain them and move on to more, or as you age out of the running for others.
This is another huge difference between young children and teens. Your goals need to be ambitious and realistic. It means different things at different ages.
You need a coach with both the skills and wisdom to set the course to achieve these.Â
In my series on Pre-Puberty Mastery in tennis, we're covering some of the physical, social and psychological reasons why it's important to master the game before 13 or 14 years old.
And regardless of whether your child is still young enough, or has passed that point, we are here to help you set a ROADMAP TO SUCCESS.
That's also why at Tennis Central one of our main focuses is on adapting our pedagogy based on where along the PPM timeline a player is. All of our coaches are PPM certified.
If your child is younger, it's time to start roadmapping. Otherwise, it's not too late – if your child's coaches understand how to attack making up for the lost time.
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PPM Reason 7: Setting Goals
Belief and reality
Ninety percent of failure in tennis can be attributed to improperly setting goals or not even setting any at all, driving blind into the most competitive landscape in sport.
It's true on a micro level, point to point, when you serve without thinking your plan through.
But I'm talking about macro level now. For a young child, it's vital to implement the strategy that will take you to varsity, college, and beyond, as early as possible.Â
At that point we must develop all-around skill so that when they mature, they can choose the strategy that suits them most. Serve and volley, baseline, counterpuncher, and so on.
They also gain the abilities--changing spin at will and with total comfort, for instance--to dismantle an opponent with the least risk.Â
For beginners after puberty, we must be more realistic in our goal-setting. You might aim for varsity doubles, lower level college play, and more.
This alters what you need to focus on in training: Developing a singular weapon that will punish opponents. Doubles play as well, which too many players neglect.
Net play becomes more important for doubles and for ending points earlier against baseliners with more trustworthy technique.
Not only that, but it becomes more clear to a teen, when they survey their school's top players, that he or she cannot make up for a decade of missed training.
Young children have that time horizon. And they aren't as socially anxious in comparing their current skill to others.
There's an art to imparting such honesty and still motivating teens. A PPM-certified coach knows it inside out.
Schedule Your ROADMAP Call Now
with Yann Auzoux, CEO of Tennis Central
If you want to reach your goals in tennis, you need a roadmap to success. Schedule your ROADMAP Call with me, Yann Auzoux, CEO of Tennis Central.
It's about what YOU want in your tennis life.
More from Yann's Series on Pre-Puberty Mastery
Episode 1: Crafting the Muscles, a musculoskeletal system specialized for tennis
Episode 2: Racquet Unity, the racquet as extension of the arm
Episode 3: Self-Awareness, winning and losing and handling both
Episode 4: The Full Arsenal, every shot for every situation
Episode 5: Social Commitments, when independence and friends arrive
Episode 6: Habits, setting and overcoming them
Episode 7: Setting Goals, belief and reality