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Choosing
Goals For a Tournament Player
by Robert C. Murio, Competitive Sports
Counselor
We're always told that we can't be successful if we don't have goals. I'm
sure that you have gone to seminars either in school or at work in which
identifying your goals has been the main topic. I can't disagree with the
concept. If we are going to be successful in any field or endeavor, we are
going to have to assess where we are now and where we want to be in the
future.
To make it simple we need to answer the question, "Why am I doing this?"
Seems simple enough. However, you wouldn't believe how many times I've asked
this very question to competitive tennis players and the only answer I get
is, "Oh, I don't know, I just like it," or (believe it or not)
"I really have never thought about it." Have you ever asked yourself
why you have chosen to be a tournament tennis player? More importantly,
have you ever asked yourself what you expect to accomplish as a tennis player?
I suspect that you have been so caught up in playing and preparing for competition
that you have lost sight of the reasons you are playing. Well, believe me,
if you don't know where you're and where you want to go, you have little
chance of getting there.
Now, I'm not going to deny that the reason many people decide to play tournament
tennis is because they enjoy the physical exercise, the artistry of the
game, and the challenge of pitting their skill against someone else's. But
I'm going to challenge you to search deeper in order to find the reasons
that are unique to you. It is through the realization and analysis of these
unique motivations that you can begin to set personal goals that will allow
you to assess your particular progress and success. Once you are clear
about why it is you have chosen to be a tournament competitor, you'll be
able to set a course which will allow you to best attain success.
There are two requirements when setting goals: you must always answer the
questions honestly and you must be realistic in your assessment of your
abilities. For example, if I ask you why you choose to be a competitive
tennis player and the answer is, "My parents want me to be a champion
or my significant other wants me to play," then you must acknowledge
these facts. If I ask you if you think you are as good as Pete Sampras,
you must realize that, although you may aspire to that type of greatness,
you are in fact not there and will probably never attain that stature. If
you're not willing to be honest and realistic, then the goals that you set
will reflect a distorted view of what you hope to accomplish and as a result
you will continually spin your wheels, resulting in wasted energy and apparent
failure. On the other hand, if you can be honest with yourself and
look at your progress realistically, you can get a clear picture of where
you want to go and, more importantly, when you have arrived.
Here are a couple of scenarios of tennis competitors with whom I have worked.
Remember you need to substitute yourself in these scenarios and answer the
questions as if you were the competitor with whom I am working. The dialogues
have been modified for brevity and clarity, but the essence of the conversation
is intact.
Scenario #1
C= Client
M= Murio
This client came to me frustrated over not being able to win as often as
he/she expected. Each loss seemed to add to the frustration until the client
seemed totally disenchanted with tournament competition.
M: Why do you continue to compete in tennis tournaments?
C: Well, I know I can win these tournaments, but I always find some way
to lose.
M: Have you ever won a tournament?
C: On, yeah, I've won several times.
M: So, you have won some tournaments, but are you saying that you should
have won more?
C: Yeah, I guess I feel like I should win more than I do.
M: It seems that you are saying that you don't like to lose?
C: Well, nobody likes to lose. It just frustrates me when I blow a match
or tournament that I think I should have won.
M: But you can't win all the tournaments, can you?
C: I never really thought about it in that way. I guess you're right. Wow!
It really is ridiculous for me to expect to win every match I play.
From this point on the client was aware that it was unrealistic to
expect to win every tournament. The client began to set more realistic goals
like winning a certain percentage of tournaments entered. The goal
was realistic and attainable and at the end of a season could be easily
quantified.
Scenario #2
This client was preoccupied with always losing in the quarter finals. It
seems he/she was never able to beat the "better players."
M: Have you ever gotten past the quarter finals?
C: Sure! But not when the top players are entered. I just can't seem to
beat the top seeded players.
M: Do you feel like you should beat these players?
C: Well, I want to beat them, but I don't even get close.
M: What stops you?
C: I don't know. I never seem to play as well against them. I try really
hard, but I always get killed.
M: What's getting killed?
C: Well, they hit harder and they seem to put a lot more pressure on me.
M: It seems like they might just be better skilled than you at this time.
C: I guess they are, but I want to be as good as they are.
At this point the client was beginning to realize that the players
he/she was losing to were actually "better." However,
the client realized that once his/her skills were improved, beating them
would become more feasible. The goals now became to improve his/her
weaknesses, rather than merely beating the opponent.
So, take a few minutes and answer the following questions honestly and realistically,
"Why do you play competitive tennis?, and "What do you hope to
accomplish?" The answers will be the starting point for setting goals
by which you can assess your progress and success.
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