MESSAGE #658 WHAT IS WRIGHT?

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Today’s message is especially dedicated to all of the attendees at the USPTA Eastern Division Conference in Mt. Kisco, NY.

“There’s an old story about two men on a train. One of them, seeing some naked-looking sheep in a field, said, ‘Those sheep have just been sheared.’ The other looked a moment longer, and then said, ‘They seem to be – on this side.’ It is in such a cautious spirit that we should say whatever we have to say about the workings of the mind.”
-JOHN HOLT, How Children Learn

One of the worst things you can say is, “This is the right way.”

There is no “right” way.

The worst thing I can do as a teaching pro is to teach everyone the same way. There is no “right” way to teach. Not all students are the same, so why would I teach all of them using the same method?

Some students have been playing longer.
Some students are taller than others.
Some students learn faster than others.

If your main objective is to get through your lesson plan, no matter what, both you and your student are missing out.

Use your lesson plan as a fluid compass, not a rigid map.

As a speaker, the worst thing I can do is focus on getting through my agenda. At every talk I give, I know the material that I am presenting, but I never go in the same order. This way, not only do I speak from the heart, but often, I find new ways of doing and saying things. Besides, every audience is different, so I need to make adjustments accordingly.

There is no right way – just different options.

Thanks for reading.



MESSAGE #657 HOW TO BECOME A LEADER…

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“An army of deer led by a lion is more to be feared than an army of lions led by a deer.
-CHABRIAS, 410-375 B.C.

“The task of leadership is not to put greatness into humanity, but to elicit it, for the greatness is already there.”
-JOHN BUCHAN, 1875-1940

It should be the desire of every warrior to lead others. Leadership is the guiding force that directs the actions of individual warriors to achieve a common goal. A leader should possess the qualities of the successful warrior but also must learn to command and inspire others. To become a leader, one must seek to master the attributes of leadership. They are as follows:

THE LEADER SETS THE EXAMPLE.
THE LEADER IS BOLD.
THE LEADER IS CONFIDENT.
THE LEADER STUDIES HIS PROFESSION.
THE LEADER IS COURTEOUS AND COMPASSIONATE.

(From Warrior’s Wisdom by Major Arthur L. Clark, USMCR)

We all have the potential to be leaders, whether it be a leader on a sports team, a leader in the orchestra, or a leader at work. It’s already inside you.


Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #656 THE ROAD TO SUCCESS…

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“The road to success is usually off the beaten path.”
-FRANK TYGER

MESSAGE #655 TWELVE THINGS TO REMEMBER…

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Twelve Things To Remember
1. The value of time
2. The success of perserverance
3. The pleasure of working
4. The dignity of simplicity
5. The worth of character
6. The power of kindness
7. The influence of example
8. The obligation of duty
9. The wisdom of economy
10. The virtue of patience
11. The improvement of talent
12. The joy of originating
SIGN UP TODAY FOR SUMMER TENNIS CAMP!!!…

MESSAGE #654 THE ART OF HAPPINESS…

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Last night, I went from the tennis court to the meditation room. I dropped in to a meditation/Buddhism class taught by Western Buddhist nun, Gen Kelsang Dao of the Menlha Buddhist Center. I loved it!

The class began with a breathing meditation, continued with a lecture on Buddhism, and then ended with a giving meditation.

I really enjoy being in the moment. Though not easy, as thoughts often come into your mind, but after a while, you gain focus. I felt a sense of calm, relaxation, and gratitude.

After the class, we had tea together and I asked our wonderful teacher two questions.

The first question was, “How does Eastern philosophy apply to peak performance in sports?” She said that three principles in particular apply – patience, effort, and concentration. We talked about staying in the present (focusing on strategy, effort, and targets), instead of focusing on negative thoughts.

My second question was, “What is your favorite inspirational story?”

The story of Buddha was her favorite. He lived a life of luxury with all the material things you can imagine. One day he came in contact with the suffering nature of life, seeing sickness, old age, and death. This deeply disturbed him and he renounced his comfortable princely way of life. He went out and meditated, and eventually discovered that “the true path out of suffering is a middle way between the extremes of strict asceticism and self-indulgent luxury.” This led him to enlightenment, or the light within.

That’s the key word – within.

It’s not about external riches – it’s about internal riches. It’s not about the next big house, the next nice car, or our next great vacation. It’s not about the next trophy. Why do most people want those things? Because they think that those things will bring us happiness, but those things don’t last.

That reminds me of a story of two men at their wealthy, best friend’s funeral. One of them whispered to the other, “How much did he leave?”

The friend replied, “He left…everything.”

You don’t need materialistic things to make you happy, you can feel happy right now. Be grateful for all the big and little things in your life. If you give it your all every day, help others, and constantly improve. That’s what I think success is. Instead of asking, “Is life beautiful?” ask “Am I noticing?”


Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #653 A MESSAGE FROM THE BUDDHA…

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“Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one getting burned.”
-BUDDHA

MESSAGE #652 STROKES OF GENIUS…

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Jon Wertheim has been a full-time member of the Sports Illustrated staff since September 1997. He is one of the magazine’s most versatile writers, as he covers a broad range of topics including tennis, the NBA, sports business and social issues. Wertheim’s work has been included in The Best American Sports Writing anthology and he has written several books, including “Blood in the Cage,” “Venus Envy,” and “Strokes of Genius,” which is currently on Amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/Strokes-Genius-Federer-Greatest-Played/dp/0547232802).

I spoke with Jon yesterday and asked him the following questions…

ET: What, in your opinion are the three keys to success in writing?

JW: 1) Passion for the subject. Whether it’s a piece of fiction or a report from a school board meeting, it’s so much easier to write when you care about the topic. 2) Reporting. When you go nuts on the reporting, the pieces tend to write themselves. 3) Practice. Sounds trite, but like any skill, it only gets better with rehearsing.

ET: How long did it take for you to become successful?

JW: I don’t really look at myself as successful. There are pieces I wrote in high school that I’m still proud of; there are pieces I’ve written in the past year I’m embarrassed by. It’s a source of both exhilaration and frustration but every time you write, you start every time with a blank screen. You’re only as successful as your last piece of work.

ET: Do you think anyone can become a writer?

JW: I do think anyone can become a writer. It’s such a passion-driven pursuit that attitude and discipline mean more than level of education for instance. It helps if you enjoy reading. It helps if you have the discipline to see a piece through. It helps if you can type better than I can. But, especially, in this digital age, there are really few barriers to entry.

ET: What is your favorite aspect of your job?

JW: My favorite aspect of the job is telling compelling stories that, yes, are usually sports-related, but hit on deeper themes. Sports are such powerful tools to understand the culture: politics, sex, race, economics, etc.

ET: How does writing help you in other areas of life?

JW: Good question. The discipline writing demands carries over from everything to time on the treadmill to diet. It’s been a way to meet people from all over and travel the world. It’s given me the flexibility to work from home and see plenty of my wife and kids. But mostly it’s a source of enjoyment. Little puts me in a better mood than feeling as though I’ve had a strong writing session.

I have studied experts in all different fields, ie, sports, music, writing, painting, business and academics, and it is amazing to me how similar they all are. The above interview proves that point. Like Mr. Wertheim says, you need to have passion for what you do and you practice. Then, you can do anything.


Thanks for reading and thank you, Jon Wertheim.

MESSAGE #651 HARD WORK BEATS TALENT…

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I remember reading an interview with Carol Dweck, professor at Stanford and author of Mindset. She was talking about the great Olympic athlete, Bruce Jenner.

“He was incredibly talented in sports, and had a fixed mindset, really grooving on his talent, but he had a learning disability and he had to struggle in school. He saw that the struggling paid off and led him to learn. And then he thought one day, ‘What if I put that effort where I already have the talent? What will that do?’ So he transferred it and said he never would have had the sports success he had, had he not had this learning disability. Had he not come to understand the power of effort to ignite your ability, to increase your ability.”

Did Bruce Jenner have talent?

Of course he did, but we ALL have talent.

Many talented people don’t make it because they feel that they don’t need to put the work in. These people have a fixed mindset. And guess what? They are often surpassed by less talented people who do put the time in.

If you do what you love and work hard…the sky is the limit.



Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #650 I THOUGHT MY FIRST TALK WAS A FLOP!

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“I don’t divide the world into the weak and the strong, or the successes and the failures, those who make it or those who don’t. I divide the world into learners and non-learners.”
-BENJAMIN BARBER

I’ll never forget my first talk that I gave. It was at Montclair State University with the great Dr. Rob Gilbert to Disney interns. I decided to speak on the topic of goal setting. I spent quite some time preparing for the big day.

Well, Dr. Gilbert introduced me and I started talking about goals. I only spoke for a few minutes when he interrupted me and took over.

I felt bad. I felt like a failure. I felt that there was no hope.

But I didn’t give up. Instead, I thought, “What else could this mean?”

I later learned from Dr. Gilbert, that instead of just providing information, you need to use quotes, incorporate videos, tell stories, and give demonstrations to make your point.

And now, I feel very confident in my speaking abilities.

Instead of having a fixed mindset and thinking I wasn’t born to be a speaker, I had a growth mindset and focused on learning and improving.

That’s the key to reaching peak performance, it doesn’t matter whether you’re playing Bach or playing baseball.


Thanks for reading, and Happy Mother’s Day to all of you mothers out there.

For a free 10-minute peak performance consultation, email:

MESSAGE #649 I DON’T CARE ANYMORE…

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I often hear from loyal blog readers telling me what they want to accomplish in life.

I have a confession.

I don’t care.

I don’t care what you say.

I care what you do.

An ounce of action is worth a pound of theory.

Now get to work. And do something nice for mom tomorrow.


Thanks for reading.