As the competitive tennis season gets underway, all of you will get nervous and many will choke.
How do I know this? The answer is because I have been there too. I have been nervous, and I have
choked.
All of us who compete get nervous before or during matches. Some say we feel nervous due to fear
of failure. I prefer to think nerves are a symptom of caring. Because we care about the outcome of
the match, we feel nervous. How we deal with our nerves sets us apart from our competition and can
prevent choking.
When I get nervous, two things happen. I worry about the outcome of the match and my feet stop
moving. If I worry about the end result of a match, I lose focus on playing the match. It is important
during these times to stay in the present. I try to take a few extra seconds to review and refocus on
executing my game plan. For example, if I've just double faulted at deuce, I don't worry about what
I'm doing wrong on my serve. Before I hit another serve, I review the process of playing the next
point: first serve, good push to the net, first volley. If I use my limited RAM to work on process
goals associated with the next point, I'm not able to use it for negative thoughts. As for my nerves
manifested as leg paralysis, I do some deep knee bends and bounce around on my toes to get my feet
moving. Once I'm aware that my feet need prodding, it's fairly easy to start them and keep them going.
So the next time you compete, don't worry or fret about being nervous. Try to keep your mind fixed
in the present by reviewing and focusing on your game plan and a few process goals associated with
executing that game plan. Also, because our feet tend to stop moving when we're nervous, deep knee
bends and bouncy footwork are helpful in getting them going again. Good luck.
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