What to do between points.

4 easy steps to help you play your best!

You've seen those shirts and banners everywhere, right? 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFfaz5mL6HQ

"Keep calm and eat breakfast".  Or whatever the call to action might be.

The slogan has gone viral, and the message is pretty clear.  Just stay focused on whatever task you're engaging with.

Eliminate distractions.

But how do we do this??

When I was visiting Japan a few months back, I got a chance to watch a few tennis matches in between tours of Mt. Fuji and Nara, the world's only colony of domesticated deers. 

One match in particular stood out to me.

It was between two seemingly sweet women having a friendly match on a Thursday afternoon.  They were probably both business professionals just blowing off some steam after a long day.

After one point it became clear that one woman was in complete control of the match.  

It was a 15-16 shot rally and it ended with one of the women hitting an easy forehand into the net.  

Now, the Japanese are known for being very kind, respectful, and conservative.  But, if you saw this woman after this point, you'd be thinking she was a crazed lunatic. 

She was berating herself, throwing her hands up in the air, and shaking her head in frustration.  You may have seen this on tv when Youzhny drew blood on his forehead with his racket during  this year's fre...

Meanwhile, the other woman looked like she had just meditated cross legged up in the hills for about 2 hours.  She was calm, zen-like, and looked totally relaxed.

Can you identify with either of these women?  I know I've been in both shoes at some point.

This was so interesting to me because I'm curious about what drives people to do certain things.

Each woman had a ritual they performed after every point.

The crazy woman would walk around nervously, shake her head (as if she knew she were in trouble), and fiddle with her gloves as she muttered to herself.  She looked like she was having a terrible time!

The zen-like woman would calmly clear any balls on her side of the court, inspect her strings, take a deep breath, and do some light hopping from foot to foot as she awaited the next point.  She looked like she was in a state of bliss and was totally enjoying herself.

Their names could have been Dr. Jeckyl and Mrs. Hyde for all I know.

It was pretty clear who was going to win (and more importantly, who was enjoying herself more).

So I wanted to make an audio that will help keep your head in the game (even if you just missed an easy putaway or won a miraculous point).  

Enjoy!

Ramon

P.S. You're awesome.  I really appreciate you giving me feedback.  Keep it coming!

You can reach me at: ramon@ramonosatennis.com

P.P.S. Please "like" this on youtube and feel free to leave a comment.  I love hearing what you think, and more importantly, what you want to see more of.