Tennis Parenting Show with Lisa Stone of Parenting Aces

Tennis Parenting Show with Lisa Stone

I had the opportunity to talk with Lisa Stone, tennis parent and writer, on the Parenting Aces show she hosts on the UR10s radio network. It was a fun and thought-provoking conversation that allowed me to summarize and discuss the tennis parenting research we have been doing at Michigan State University's Institute for the Study of Youth Sports.
Specifically, Lisa and I discussed a number of important topics including:

• How to communicate with your child when wanting to quit tennis,
• The reasons behind why researchers believe that tennis parents are more involved today,
• The #1 biggest mistake a parent can make in parenting their child in tennis,
• How to navigate the issue of sport specialization and when a tennis player should specialize,
• How to push and challenge your child while supporting them.

Please download the show and let me know what you think. Also, share it with other parents in tennis and outside of tennis. It was focused on tennis but many of the points discussed relate to all sport parents.

Five Things a Tennis Parent Can Do Immediately to Help Their Child Play Well

Tennis parents, there are at least five ways you can help your child play better tennis in matches, immediately. And, it does not involve hitting balls with them, providing extra instruction, having them lift weights, run sprints, or do agility training.

It does involve you regulating your behavior in a way so that your parent performance is better. What, parent performance? That is correct. You have a role to perform and when you perform it effectively it helps your child relax, have fun, and play like they do in practice.

So, on to five ways to enhance your tennis parent performance.

5. Avoid getting involved in on-court disagreements if possible. You know the situation. Your child's opponent is making dubious line calls. You are sure she is cheating. You want to say something. However, remember parents become furious when adults yell at or confront their children. It is the paternal/maternal instinct to react aggressively. Even if you just plain suggest that their child is cheating and go talk to that parent you may get into trouble. Instead teach your child how to deal with cheating.

How to Play Great Tennis when Your Opponent is Cheating