Title The Inner Game of Tennis
Author Timothy Gallwey
Year Published 1974
Kind of Book Self-help/Psychology
How strongly I recommend it /10
My Impressions This was one of the first self-help books I ever read and for that reason it will always have a special place in my heart. It focuses on learning to silence your inner critic and getting out of your own way. In some ways it is a more Western version (and more accessible version) of Zen and the Art of Archery
Date Read circa 2012 and 2019
What question is the author trying to answer?
Practical Takeaways
Teach through osmosis ie: demonstrate, don't explain
Use images not words to explain
Show the student how to do it, don't tell them
Don't give the student too much instruction
When your opponent is on a hot streak against you say "what are you doing differently that is making you do so well?"
Let go of the inclination to judge the performance as good or bad (just observe)
Don't ignore your errors. Just see them as they are without adding evaluation to them
Don't draw conclusions about your identity based on a single incident (eg. I hit a bad back hand, ergo, I have a bad backhand)
Resist the urge to say "good" or "bad" when teaching/coaching
Don't praise or reward students. Just direct their attention by telling them what to pay attention to
Practice nonjudgmental awareness
First simply absorb someone doing it correctly
Give your student a clear visual image of the desired end result
Let it happen, don't make it happen
Don't attempt to change it, just observe it carefully
Watch your stroke with detachment as if it were someone else's stroke
Observe young children learning before they have been taught
Observe animals in the act of teaching their young
Use instruction to guide your discovery. (not as dogma)
Hold the [drumstick] as a bird, not so loosely that it can fly away, but not so tightly that you squeeze the life out of it
Only criticize something if you can offer a way to improve it. Don't just condemn
Don't fight bad habits. Start new [desirable] ones
Watch masters and absorbed what they're doing. Don't over-analyze
Trust the natural learning process at work
Watch it change, don't do the changing
Focus on sound, not on technique (the technique will happen naturally if you're getting the right sound)
To deal with anxiety, focus the mind on the breath
Focus on your breath when you're not playing in a performance
Don't just your value as a human by how well you performed
Want your opponents to be good
Shake hands with your opponent and thank him for the fight he put in
Don't worry about winning or losing the match. Just Play every point to win
Play every point with maximum effort
Big Ideas
A teacher can only teach if her or she has lived experience in the subject they are teaching
If you want to put your opponent in their head when they are beating you ask them 'What are you doing differently that is making you do so well?"
Because
When we are analyzing why we are playing well, we usually stop playing well
Because
When we are analyzing why we are playing well, we get 'in our head' and out of our flow state
Not judging your self doesn't mean ignoring errors
Not judging yourself just means that you are able to still notice your errors, but not add an evaluation (of good or bad) to them
It is impossible to get rid of negative judgements (eg. "This is bad") without getting rid of positive judgments as well (eg. "this is good")
Because
Positive and Negative judgements are two sides of the same coin
Games People Play during performance
Perfect-o
Aim: to reach the highest point of perfection
Compete-o
Aim: to beat the other opponent
Image-o
Aim: To look as good as possible
Unknown Terms
Inner Game: "The game that takes place in the mind of the player, and is played against such obstacles as lapses in concentration, nervousness, self-doubt, and self-condemnation"