Ways To Keep Young Tennis Players Motivated

It can be challenging at times for parents, coaches and tennis trainers to keep young tennis players motivated. Let's look at some factors that affect their motivation and enthusiasm.

1. Over training or Burnout leads to fatigue (mentally and physically) this is caused by training too much or not resting enough. I would say this is one of the main reasons young players lose motivation but it can be avoided by having a structured tennis fitness plan.

2. External distractions. By external distractions I mean, the opposite sex, computer games, spending time with friends, other sports and discovering other interests. It is important too that you realize things will change from time to time as young players develop so too do their interests and desires. More often than not the more you try and restrict certain things the more they may rebel or be inclined to loose interest in the things they have been focused on for years.

3. Communication. Asking questions like; what are you enjoying about your lessons/ tennis training program, what do you enjoy about tennis, what do you feel we need to change to make things better. It is important to have an open line of communication and get them thinking about their tennis, not just doing it.

4. External negativity. Parents, coaches, trainers, friends and relatives that display impatience, aggressive behavior or dismissive body language towards young players, will have a detrimental affect on their attitude and motivation. These negative behaviors can ruin their confidence and self-belief.

Setting short-term attainable goals is important when trying to keep young players motivated. When we start a new tennis fitness program with a young player we discuss the objective and set some attainable goals for them to strive for. We call this "The buy in" and it works really well because they feel they have helped set the goal and as long as it is kept challenging and enjoyable they will do their best to achieve it.

We do not recommend giving food or treats as rewards to young players as a form of motivation; it sets up a bad platform for the future. Every time they do well you don't want them thinking, YES, I get to have McDonald's tonight. If they have been doing well, trying their best or achieved a goal, it is best to reward them with an experience (massage, time with friends or a movie)

10 ways to keep young players motivated.

1. Get involved and enthusiastic about tennis yourself. Watch matches on T.V, follow the professional tours, and plan trips to watch tournaments. Young players take in a lot from adults, they can feed of our enthusiasm and attitude towards things.

2. Get people around them that they respect (coaches, other players, tennis fitness trainers etc.) If they don't respect their environment, they won't want to be there.

3. Continually remind them of the positive experiences they have had with the sport. Whether that is a certain match played, professional matches watched, tennis trips or tennis fitness sessions.

4. Set attainable goals. Setting goals they are confident they can achieve will give them a great sense of drive and determination.

5. Out source the motivation. Placing young players in a positive environment or with motivated individuals (coaches, trainers, players or friends) will rub off on young players.

6. Remind player's success is achievable with practice, determination and dedication. This must be done in the right way at the right time, not in frustration or anger.

7. Get them watching or reading true sporting stories. This is a great way to produce inspiration and belief that they can do it.

8. Pick up on the positives and focus on them, make note and mention the negatives at the right time.

9. Practice and training for tennis should be challenging and enjoyable. Create structure around those two things.

10. The goal of the parent/coach is to help young players, practice making good decisions, and not make the decisions for them all the time. When a young player feels they are doing something they have chosen to do, they will be a lot more determined and motivated to get the job done.

Last but not least. Parents and coaches who stay positive with words, actions and show patience with young players have the best chance of seeing the young players motivation increase and stay there.