Thankful Grateful
Volume 22 Issue 4: November 2021
&Blessed
Tennis helps everyone be
INSIDE:
World Conference & Future Conferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . pg 3-4 Remaining Relevant. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . pg 5 Adding Pickleball. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . pg 7 Make Your Place a 5 Star Program. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . pg 9 Success Secrets with Ken DeHart. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . pg 10
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Volume 22 Issue 4
President’s Message
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n 2020, many USPTA members had their dues paid through a USPTA and USTA subsidy. We are indeed grateful to the USTA for their support, but this year those members will have to pay their own dues. Members frequently ask, “what do I get for my membership?” The question itself strongly suggests that association membership is transactional in nature; I pay money and “get” something tangible in return that is valued at or above what I paid. Association memberships are more complicated, but before getting into that, here are a few tangible benefits: 1.Employment - There are exceptions, but generally tennis positions that pay salary and provide benefits require pros to be currently certified. 2. On Court Liability Insurance 3. Discounts - Many USPTA endorsees pro-
vide discounts to members. 4. Reduced Cost Education - Attendance at workshops and conventions as well as online modules are offered at a reduced rate to members. 5. Exclusive USTA Benefits - The USTA has committed to provide exclusive and meaningful benefits to members of Accredited teaching pro associations. Although the USTA has yet to make good on this commitment, it is something we look forward to. While the above benefits are nice, the real value in membership runs deeper and is also relational rather than only transactional. Being a member of the USPTA means being directly connected with like-minded individuals who share common concerns. More importantly, it provides a platform for members to share knowledge with each other and improve the
profession. Contrary to what many may think, probably the most impactful knowledge sharing takes place between members who meet during workshops and conventions and have individual discussions rather than primarily coming from presenters. Fundamentally, it is this connecting and knowledge/experience sharing with other members that truly makes membership impactful, and there are many opportunities to connect with and contribute to others. Our national, division, and state chapters welcome contributors. Whether it is in offering to become a mentor, write articles, share drills, make presentations, or contribute in other ways, we always want to get better and welcome those who have insights and experience to share. If you want to get involved, please send me an email at usptamentoring@gmail.com and we will go from there.
Announcing the 2022–2023 Board of Officers for Southern and each state. Thank you to all of our nominating committees for their work in putting together this year’s slate of officers. Southern President – Tom Parkes 1st VP – Ken Andriano 2nd VP – Allan Jensen Sec/Trea – Jasaon Hazley Alabama President – John Beaube 1st VP – JC Freeman 2nd VP – Al Garrett Sec/Trea – Rachel Nix Arkansas President – Pat Malone VP – Barry Brady Secretary – Gail Nankervis
Georgia President – Dave Neuhart 1st VP – Rick Willet 2nd VP – Cristian Lopez Secretary – Carmen Garcia Treasurer – Liam Villante Kentucky President – Tim McCollum 1st VP – David White 2nd VP – Christy Herring Treasurer – Noel Clayton Secretary – Tyler Owens
Louisiana President – Lindsay Mixon 1st VP – Johnny Wahlborg 2nd VP – Hassan Abbas Sec/Trea – Anna Monhartova Mississippi President – Emillia Viljoen VP – Toby Fasth Secretary – Steve Pennington Treasurer – William Foreman North Carolina President – Scott Handback Vice–President – Karen Rembert Sec/Trea – Sean Smith
South Carolina President – Craig Wells 1st VP – Dean Mays 2nd VP – Tom Ruth Tennessee President – Dan Beedle 1st VP – Geoff Browne 2nd VP – Devin Crotzer Secretary – Courtney Collins Treasurer – Daniel Shidler
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Try It Out
By Mark Schminke USPTA Elite Professional
The MultiRoller
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’ve said it in the past and nothing has changed, picking up balls is boring. As a teaching pro, you’re okay with it because you’re being paid, your student however is not. So why not try to make such a daunting task a little easier and dare I say more exciting. The OnCourtOffCourt MultiRoller has made ball pickup more fun for my students and is frequently used as a game reward allowing the winner to use it. The MultiRoller is simple in concept and design. A handle attached to a cylinder allows the MultiRoller to roll seamlessly around the tennis court picking up any pickleball or tennis ball in its path. The ease with which it rolls around the court along with the fun bingo wheel-like visual has made it a hit with my red and orange dot ball students. Its rubber wheel tread makes it quiet while in use and protects the court without leaving any marks. It has a ball capacity of 80 yellow, green dot, and
orange dot tennis balls as well as 60 red dot tennis balls and pickleballs. I enjoy the MultiRoller as a means to pick up tennis balls, but the value it brings to my lessons in terms of student use excitement is what makes it an easy purchase decision. The MultiRoller retails at OnCourtOffCourt at $159.95, and they are frequently running discounts through email signup as well as monthly discounts on many of their useful products. To end this review with a funny story, the MultiRoller arrived at my house days before my daughter’s 1st birthday party. I purchased 1000 (my Wife said to get 300 but as a Dad, we are required to always go overboard) ball pit balls to use in a simple pop-up playground in the backyard for the party. We were fortunate to have nice clear skies for her birthday, however, the 20mph wind gusts had different plans for the 1000 balls. The morning after her birthday we took a look into a backyard littered with what felt like a million pink and
silver plastic balls instantly regretting the purchase. Without missing a beat my Wife picked up the MultiRoller that was leaning against the wall waiting to be brought to my work and headed to the backyard. That thing picked up every single ball with no trouble and in probably 1/100th of the time it would have taken to pick the balls up by hand. So, if you’re planning on a ball pit birthday party and value your sanity, buy the MultiRoller.
Save the Dates – Conferences in 2022
There is a wealth of offerings for 2022. Each state will be planning a workshop. Here are the dates for Conferences for next year
2/24-25
5/12-14
9/18-23
Virtual Business Conference – combo with 5 other divisions
May Conference at the Atlanta Country Club, Marietta GA
World Conference, New Orleans Hilton
World Conference
Great to Be Back Together
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as Vegas proved to be an excellent location for our first live World Conference in 2 years. The Delta scare reduced the attendance, but for those that made it, TERRIFIC. The agenda that Ramona and the conference team assembled was full of great information, variety, and diversity. Special thanks to all of the staff that let us learn and play. Highlights included seminars and book signings with southern member Stan Smith, Katrina Adams, Jim Loehr, and Allistair McCaw. The trade show featured some new vendors, along with our must see companies. Court
Reserve, based in Charlotte NC was front and center at the trade show. Their modules for running a club are so simple. Tom Daglis was working the Director Search – McMahon Career booth. All of the major racquet companies, footwear, and accessories were present. One of the big draws was the TheraBody booth. The leg recovery air compression system was amazing. Feel refreshed in minutes after a long day on the court. Special Congratulations to our College Coach of the Year, Jimmy Borendame.
Jimmy Borendame
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Volume 22 Issue 4
Highlights from World Conference in Las Vegas
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Our Southern Master Pros Share
Remaining Relevant By Mark Reardon – USPTA Master Professional
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few years ago I was having a rather philosophical conversation with a good friend who has enjoyed much success in his tennis career. He has published books that are well received in our industry, coached players who have reached the world stage, and has been named to the NCAA Coaching Hall of Fame. My tennis career is similar (in length), that I also teach tennis for a living and we are roughly the same age. We have both enjoyed lifelong careers in this wonderful game, but we were both beginning to feel like we were being passed by or passed over. We were lamenting how it feels to have your opinion less valued simply because you have become a little long in the tooth. I recognize that this is not a new conversation on any level or with any career. And that’s when Chuck said something that struck a chord. “You know Mark, what hurts the most is to feel you are no longer relevant and that the game seemingly does not care about the contributions you have made or what you still have to offer”. Wow, that was it! It was the same for me. It’s that I no longer feel relevant. For many of us, how we feel about ourselves is often not really about what someone else thinks, but is more tied to how we perceive ourselves as compared to someone else or to how we used to be. Again, we are not opening any new concepts here. What is to be done to remain …relevant. I believe the first area where we can remain relevant, at least in the perception category, is in personal appearance. We cannot do anything about the fact that we do not have the looks of one of those senior models with the silvergray hair, flat under the chin, no gobbler nor sagging neck. But we can show up each day clean-shaven (or trimmed nicely). Remember how many times you wanted to tell one of your young pros that just putting on a cap did not hide the fact that they had not washed their hair for 3 days? Another aspect of appearance is making sure you are wearing clothes that fit. It is pretty tough to have the same physique we had in the glory days, but you can certainly make the effort to not let your body get away from you. Sloppy shirts that are too long when not tucked in does not hide a tummy that is too big. It just says that this is how you are going to deal with a lack of dietary discipline. If you are insecure about how you look as it relates to fitness, then do something about it. Nobody likes listening to someone who complains but does nothing to change their plight. Recently I was made aware that I was not as healthy on the inside as I looked on the outside. After walking the rolling hills at the Master’s golf tournament this past April, I found myself breathing a bit harder than normal. I figured it
Serving Up Sagacity
may be time to consult a good friend who happened to be a cardiologist. I ended up needing 3 stints to make sure my heart was getting an adequate blood supply. Problem solved right? Not really. In all likelihood, I had subtly been rallying fewer balls during lessons and feeding more to hide the fact that I was breathing heavily trying to keep up. So now I am tasked with having to change my eating habits. Another part of keeping yourself in the hunt is in the area of education. Don’t fool yourself into believing that your initial certification, whatever it is, allows you to put it in neutral. You must continue to climb the certification ladder, especially in the areas important to your tennis career. The USPTA, PTR, and USTA are loaded with different areas of certification and education. The certificates will always be an ego boost but the most important aspect is the education you get from going through all of those processes. It is the knowledge that really gives you the confidence boost. As they say, knowledge is power and in our case, relevance. As the years click by there have been times when I have felt as though I was competing against the younger pros who may be gaining momentum in my locale. Regardless of how good you are at your craft, there are many things you cannot learn without longevity. Our longevity and staying power in the industry is what gives us wisdom. When we are insecure and we feel like our worth is not being recognized, we tend to do something my Dad talked about every time he heard me do it. He would say, “Mark, you don’t make yourself look taller by trying to make someone else look smaller”. It always pinched hearing that, but it has helped me to adjust my thoughts when parents come to me asking why they should bring their child to me instead of the guy across town. You should immediately deflect the reference to the guy across town and point to what they are looking for in a coach or tennis program. Once they list what they want then it is easy for an experienced pro to fill in the blanks. If the parent feels their player mainly needs a coach who can beat their child to smithereens, and that is no longer in the cards for you, then you can recommend another coach and your ego/relevance/self-confidence remains intact. This is another reason our age and staying power is important. Another way to remain relevant is to do the little things the young lions don’t know to do yet. Every time one of our league teams has a match at the club, I let the captain know that the courts are ready to go well in advance of them arriving. It is not necessary, but it sure makes them proud to say, “Yeah, our pro lets me know every week if we are good to go for our match”. Never discount the value of suck-
ing up to a client. If it falls into the category of great service and not brown-nosing it is a win for you. In the area of job retention, one of the most important things you can do is know every single thing related to running the tennis program at your facility. Being the boss is not enough. Can you string the rackets that come in? Can you get on the roller and groom the clay courts if the maintenance person is sick? Do you know where all the shut-off valves are for the water to the tennis facility? Are you the most fluent in your Point-of-Sale software? If the water is running in one of your toilets, can you or more importantly, will you repair it without having to call someone in to do the easy stuff. Doing all those things and more will make you relevant and hopefully more indispensable to your job. Another potential boost to your local relevance is in the area of writing. General managers and well-read members feel pride in knowing you are being published and look forward to your next article or publication. You should always have several folks proof your submissions for grammatical errors and how your content flows. This is especially true if you are new to the process. I have had friends tell me point blank, “you don’t want to publish that”. As a final thought, most of us know the areas in which we are most proficient. If you are a biomechanist extraordinaire then you need to promote yourself as such. Let your membership know no one can better analyze their tennis game than you. Are you super tech-savvy? Then your online presence needs to have your name showing up at every turn with great opportunities to interact with you or your services. Accentuate the positive. I hope this article has given you pause and caused you to consider some things, even if you have not arrived at that confidence-killing time in life where you begin to feel invisible. I hope I have given you some ideas about what we can do to stay in the mix in our tennis careers. We have also been realistic enough to look the beast in the eye and see there are some things we can do nothing about. The two most obvious are “we cannot look like we did when we were young, nor can we play and scamper about the court as we did when our bodies just responded to our brain when it said, “GO”. But guess what? In every other area, we are better than we used to be. We know more, we see better, we anticipate outcomes better, and if we are introspective at all we recognize it’s about the game and those associated with it, not us. Many of our less experienced counterparts have not figured that one out yet. Have fun becoming more and more relevant, not the less relevant version of ourselves that our subconscious lets us believe. Thanks for reading.
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Volume 22 Issue 4
The Social List By Tom Parkes, USPTA Elite Professional
Holiday Social Ideas – Turkeyball Round Robins
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he Friday after eating all that food on Thanksgiving Day, run a social that encompasses the whole family. I start early, because the die-hard football people will be out the door by 12:30. We live in the south and football is a religion! Have everyone wear their favorite team colors or jerseys on for this event. Food Ideas: Biscuits & Gravy, Bacon, Scrambled Eggs, & Fruit. Drinks: Coffee, Milk, Water, & Sports Drinks.
Format: 9:00am – 10:15am Adult/Child event 10:30am – 12:15pm Adult Mixed Doubles with Child sports carnival event 12:30pm – 2:00
Adult Pickleball social
You can make teams using SEC vs ACC or any combination that works for your area. Having different events will get the whole family involved. This would also work as a Christmas/Holidays
Social. Call it the Reindeer Games and everyone must wear a Holiday article of clothing. Tacky Christmas sweater, Tacky Hanukkah clothing, Christmas Ball earrings, a menorah hat. Anything goes to have a festive round robin. The Mix & Match Social. Hold it on New Year’s Day. Everyone must wear mis-matching clothing to the event. All of these events are family oriented for the upcoming Holiday Season Have a great holiday season and I hope to see you at a USPTA event soon!
Benefits of Attending USPTA Conferences By Ian Thomson, USPTA Elite Professional
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ne of the issues that many professionals face is taking time from the court to attend conferences. Most professionals are looking for new drills but are not willing to lose the lesson income. Yes, the lessons are important, but most conferences are announced well in advance, so you have time to prepare and plan. Many of the state conferences are one day, and if the Southern Conference is four days you can always just attend a couple of days. Lessons that you are teaching will understand or reschedule when they know it will also be a benefit for them. While a tennis professional needs to be on the court to make money, there are benefits that far outweigh the time missed including personal growth, networking, and a chance to recharge. Attending USPTA conferences is a benefit for your personal growth. You will learn something from the conference that will allow you to be a better professional and help the clients that you teach. Related to this is gaining the points that you need with mandatory education. The state conferences are close and a great value for the return on investment. The Southern Conference and even the World Conference are educational trips on steroids that pack a major benefit of learning. They also are longer but provide more options of ways to learn and grow. If the entire conference is too much to attend then take the time to go for a couple of days. The USPTA does a great job moving conferences every year for the southern and world conferences. This means that you will have a southern conference that is close to you. The next benefit is the networking that you can do at the conferences. We all know the tennis world is small so networking is the best way to get your name out to Directors that may be looking for
coaches, meet coaches in the area to work on adding programs, or just to meet new friends in the industry. No matter what the reason the networking is beneficial for the professional. I have met several amazing pros and it allowed us to put together several programs that each club benefited from. Finally, attending the conferences is important to just recharge. A tennis pro is a tough job that requires a lot of teaching and for most, administrative work that goes with it. Attending the USPTA Southern conference or World conference gives you a few days to just let others provide you with information. I always leave conferences ready to get back on the court and put things into practice. While some say that attending a conference is like staying at work, my response has always been “since you are not putting on the conference you can relax and enjoy other’s working hard for you”. Every state USPTA board and the USPTA Southern board is working hard to give you conferences that benefit you as a professional. They want to provide educational opportunities to all USPTA members to grow the standard of the game. Be on the lookout for the USPTA conferences that are near you. Ian Thomson is the Director of Tennis at the Carl E. Sanders Family YMCA at Buckhead. He holds 5 specialist degrees from the USPTA in Facility Management, Sport Science, Competitive Player Development, 10 and Under Tennis, and Computer Technology. He is an ITPA Tennis Performance Trainer, HPI Mental Toughness Coach, Elite Etcheberry Certified Strength, Conditioning, and Movement Coach for Tennis, and Licensed Cardio Tennis Professional.
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USPTA Invited Guest
Adding Pickleball to Your Program By Alison Mays, USPTA
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here is a reason that Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in the United States. As a tennis teaching professional for almost two decades, and a competitive tennis player for even longer, I was less than excited to see public tennis courts being converted into Pickleball courts. I didn’t understand the appeal of this game-and what was with that ridiculous name? I scoffed and frowned as I watched crowds of Pickleball players throng to the newly renovated courts. I shook my head in disdain and grumbled, until one day I was invited to play. Mostly out of curiosity, I decided to give it a go. I held the lightweight paddle, resembling a ping-pong paddle on steroids, and the airy, plastic ball in my inquisitive hands. It wasn’t until I gave the ball a thwack a time or two in a rapid exchange, that the veil was lifted, and I became a believer! I proceeded to play for a couple of hours that day, learning my way around the abbreviated court and how to navigate the foreign scoring system. Once I had a handle on the basics, I had a permanent grin on my face while whacking that ball! So THIS is what it’s all about. Anxious to play again, as soon as possible, I was hoping to entice my husband to play. He is also a USPTA Tennis Professional and tennis enthusiast, and he was even more reluctant to open his heart to this sport. “That’s a game for OLD people!” He jeered. “We are NOT ready for that!” he stated, with a monumental eye roll. While it is true, the game gained much of its popularity being played nationwide in community centers and retirement facilities, it is actually played by all ages and has its own national governing body, the USA Pickleball Association (USAPA). The first US Open Professional Pickleball Tournament was held in 2016 by the IPTPA (International Pickleball Teaching Professional Association). I was able to stream recent US Open Pickleball matches on the TV to reassure him that this was indeed a game of speed, power, and finesse, and not in the same classification as shuffleboard! His transformation was swift as well. We purchased our paddles and a few Pickleballs to practice with and headed to the courts. The group of Picklers (the official name of players of Pickle-
ball, per my internet sources) already playing on the adjacent court, graciously invited us to join the group. We have been playing regularly ever since! The courts are outside, with space allowing for all to maintain social distancing. We utilize our hand sanitizer each time we come off the court and before handling our water or towels. We play with Picklers of all ages! College kids, seniors, and even juniors share the courts and make for exciting matches. I imagine you may be wondering if playing Pickleball negatively impacts playing tennis? I wondered this as well but have come to find that once acclimated to the differences, I have no issues going back and forth between the two sports. I have found that my volleying in tennis has improved as a result of the quick exchanges volleying in Pickleball. There is simply no need to choose one or the other! Tennis players have a bit of an advantage in taking up Pickleball. Nice groundstrokes and good footwork make an impressive foundation for play. The popularity of this sport is exploding, not only in the US but also abroad. Since partnering with the IPTPA in 2019,
USPTA is encouraging pros to pursue certification in Pickleball. There are three levels of certification available: Coach, Beginner/intermediate Instructor, and that of Certified Elite Pickleball Teaching Professional. Having seen firsthand the numbers of Picklers grow exponentially, the value of adding this sport to a tennis club is a huge opportunity. Memberships will grow as word gets out of a Pickleball program. Because of the shorter lever arm of the paddle, and the air-light ball, young players are better able to manage handeye coordination and will have quick success with keeping the ball in play. This success will lead to enjoyment which will lead to the desire to continue to play and grow. This can be used as a progression to tennis. Parents will love being able to play competitively with their children and grandchildren! Senior adults also benefit from the lighter equipment and decreased playing area, as they enjoy the challenge of the quick exchanges. Developing camaraderie with Pickleball social events and family activities for all to enjoy, is a win-win for tennis facilities to continue to diversify and grow. Pondering Pickleball
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s w e N e t a St
Volume 22 Issue 4
Alabama
Mississippi
Arkansas
North Carolina
Georgia
Good luck to all and I hope to see many of you at future meetings and conferences.
USPTA Alabama is proud to welcome our newest Board members. Alabama Board: John Beaube, JC Freeman, and our new board members Al Garret and Rachel Nix. Congratulations. We are excited to announce we will be holding a SPRING FORWARD tennis workshop at in Huntsville, AL. location TBA on March 20th 10:00am. We invite all to join us. This year more than ever we have provided pros a great opportunity to build their business while overcoming some of the tennis specific hurdles we face. Public or private facility, the increased numbers have made us rely more on technology to communicate with our clients, and in some cases on each other to share events, courts, information, and knowledge. We are excited to announce that our pros association will help to form a High School Tennis Coaches Association. We have some experienced pros and state leaders ready to dive in. Inconsistent rules, scoring, and some inexperienced coaching is hindering the growth and quality of tennis in our state. We will get together the weekend of the AR Annual Meeting in January. Times and date coming soon. USPTA Georgia is very excited to host our 2021 Winter Workshop Saturday, December 11th, at Atlanta Athletic Club. The workshop will be heavily focused on junior development from 9:00am-12noon with Dr. Mark Kovacs and Dr. Neeru Jayanthi confirmed to speak. Lunch will follow along with awards presentations. Immediately after lunch we will have a drill exchange focused on team practices followed by a pickleball drill and play social. We look forward to seeing fellow Georgia teaching professionals and high school coaches at this conference. Be on the lookout for additional information. Thanks for all of your support through the pandemic and the countless hours you’ve spent making people’s lives feel “normal” during an otherwise difficult time.
Kentucky
We welcome David White, a KY past president, back to our Board. Joining him are Christy Herring, Noel Clayton, Tyler Owens and current president Tim McCollum. We hope to have an active year in 2022 with a lot of good ideas from this board.
Louisiana
It’s the last part of the year and things are slowing down with leagues and programs. This is the time for a player to make any major changes because they don’t have be ready for prime time next week. The same for us. Now that you have a chance to catch your breath, use it to plan for next year. Show your members and students something new. Nobody wants to be bored. The Louisiana division of the USPTA will be in great shape for the next few years. Our new board has the ambition and energy of Lyndsey Mixon and the experience of Johnny Wahlborg, so I’m anxious to see the results.
Save the date! Our in-person state workshop will be held on January 7th 2022 at River Hills Club in Jackson, MS. The board has agreed to serve another term. We hope to add more regional workshops during 2022. Two workshops held during summer of 2021 were well received and attended. Thank you for your continued support. As we come to the end of another tennis season and to my time as the North Carolina president, I can only think ahead of what is to come and put the past year and a half behind. Due to the pandemic the organization embraced remote learning for it’s members, which has been a positive. The Cardio Training course that is coming up November 13 in Charlotte at Lifetime is a chance to add another tool to the toolbox and the wallet. The 2022 NC board is extremely experienced and well poised to give our USPTA pros an experience that is deserved. They are: • Scott Handback – President • Karen Rembert – Vice President • Sean Smith – Secretary/ Treasurer
South Carolina
Welcome to our new board Craig Wells, Dean Mays, and Tom Ruth. Dean had arm surgery recently, and will possibly have more, so he has backed off to let Craig and Tom lead the way. USPTA SC can use another board member. If you have ever been interested, now is the time to grab the opportunity. Contact Craig at craigw@g.clemson.edu.
Tennessee
Hello from Tennessee! We had a busy fall around the state in every division. Junior tournaments have come back with both USTA and UTR events almost every weekend. League play is in full swing, and college tennis has had full fall schedules. As we roll into the final months of 2021, we have several opportunities for our members to pick up continuing education credits at Lunch and Learns around the state. • David Poole – Johnson City, November 1st • Courtney Collins – Murfreesboro, Adams Tennis Center, November 9th • Dan Beetle (New President) – Knoxville, November 12th • Meg Bandy – Chattanooga, Strang Voges Tennis Center, November 16th I want to congratulate the new TN board; they will serve you well. In the same breath, I would like to thank you for allowing me to serve these last few years. It has been an honor and a terrific learning experience. I am more convinced than ever that I am in a great industry, populated by so many of my favorite people. Now more than ever, we all have the opportunity to make a positive and lasting impact on both the playing and coaching communities in our areas. I hope you all are encouraging our next generation of USPTA Professionals; they are the future of this sport. — Meg Bandy
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Remove photo5-Star and place intro, or mute the photo for the text OUTSIDE Promise Would be nice to leave room at the bottom for logo strip the LINES North Hills Club
Presented by McMahon Careers
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n behalf of our team of at McMahon Careers, I am pleased to begin our regular contribution to the USPTA Southern Newsletter segment Outside the Lines Presented by McMahon Careers. In each issue of the newsletter, we will share an idea, a best-practice, or a recommendation that we believe can help everyone in their
role Off the Court...or, Outside the Lines. This month’s nugget is shared by the North Hills Club, a client of our firm, located in Raleigh, North Carolina. Jason Kinder, USPTA, is the Director of Racquet Sports at North Hills, and John Wilkening, CCM, the club’s General Manager. John was kind enough to share his conceptNORTH of a 5-Star Promise 5-Star HILLSand CLUB
Values. John and his Department Heads use this chart to help focus on, and in turn share with their team members, what the club envisions as the base expectation for every team member at the club.
5-STAR PROMISE
Mark McMahon, USPTA Master Professional President, McMahon Careers
Our promise is to create an environment that embraces serving others, being kind, and building relationships. We promise to deliver our standards consistently, in a professional, personalized, and polite manner. We promise to provide a great experience to each person, with every interaction. This is what keeps our Members, guests, and employee partners delighted with, and proud of, North Hills Club.
EACH EMPLOYEE PARTNER IS COMMITED TO DELIVERING OUR "5-STAR PROMISE" STOP, GREET, & SERVE; EVERYONE, EVERY TIME
Call them by name, and greet them with a big smile. Have a positive attitude and enthusiastic energy. Treat everyone with respect, kindness, and care. Ask if they need help, and personally see it through. Make it a habit to do more than asked. "Good enough" never is. There is never a traffic jam on the "extra mile."
BE SHARP; APPEARANCE, SKILLS, AREA
Come to work on time; clean, neat, with a crisp uniform, nametag, and a positive attitude. Be the best that you can be. Keep your area clean, organized, set, and supplied. Everything is to be operating to the appropriate standards.
BE ON THE TEAM; ASSIST, TRAIN, & COACH YOUR FELLOW EMPLOYEE PARTNERS
Be "responsible for" your role by demonstrating personal excellence, and "responsible to" the success of the Club by assisting, training, and coaching other employee partners to great performance. Remember: All of us is smarter than each of us. All of us win, or none of us do.
DO YOUR JOB; WORK ON ASSIGNED DUTIES AND/OR SPECIAL PROJECTS
When all are greeted and served, all areas are sharp, and all Members, guests and employee partners are helped, then the focus is on your specifically-assigned duties and special projects. You are significant and play a critical role. Own the results.
CELEBRATE; RECOGNIZE, REWARD, RENEW (PERSONAL, PROFESSIONAL, ORGANIZATIONAL SUCCESS)
"Thank you" is powerful. Use it genuinely and often. Recognize those who deliver the 5-Star experience. Reward those who met/exceeded their key result goals. Renew and continue to improve your product and service based on customer feedback.
Whenever anyone enters your area, stop what you are doing and immediately return your attention to "Stop, Greet, and Serve."
IF YOU CONSISTENTLY DELIVER ON THE 'STARS,' YOU ARE TRULY MAKING A DIFFERENCE! McMahon Careers offers career coaching and excutive education programs for racquet sports professionals and executive search services for employers. The firm also manages and delivers all services offered through USPTA DirectorSearch. For information visit: mcmahoncareers.com or USPTADirectorSearch.com
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Ken DeHart
Volume 22 Issue 4
“Success Secrets”
By Pat Whitworth USPTA Master Professional
K
en has so many accomplishments and awards during his career that we will list just a few. The most recent is the recipient of the USPTA Lifetime Achievement Award. To list a few more are USPTA & PTR Master Professional (1 of less than 20 with both), USPTA 4-time Divisional Pro of the Year, PTR International Master Professional, PTR 2-time International Pro of the Year PTR Hall of Fame, 3-time USPTA Education Award Winner, and Wilson Premier Staff. Who were a few of your mentors? Thay Butchee. He helped me get the first director job in Nashville TN. I had asked him if I could work for him for free at his KY club. His brother came back and took over the job. He mentored me about the job and various aspects. He suggested we go check out this Van der Meer place in FL. Next is Bill Tym. He tested me, and he set such a standard that everyone would want to emulate. Dr. Jim Loehr was another since I wanted to work and learn about the mental game. Whenever I saw presentations, I liked to take a picture with the speaker and send him the picture and a note about how much I learned. It was a good way to be remembered. How important has reading and education been to you? 80-90%. I have over 1200 books on tennis. Going to seminars, meeting people, and watching other people. A lot of people are mentors in the way they interact, network, and treat others. Ed note: Ken mentioned that at the recent conference, many people came up to him and mentioned something from a past seminar that they still use. It is always the little things that stick. What are you reading now? Champion Mindset by Allistair McCaw. I really like his writing style. What was your breakout moment for both your career and as a presenter? As a professional, it was when I became the Executive
Director for the PTR. I had read In Search of Excellence and applied it during the interview. I felt I needed to improve my administrative skills, and this would be the opportunity. I hired Julie Jilly - the best hire ever! As a presenter, it was making things simple, and it carried over to my teaching. Over the last 20 years, my teaching has become much simpler. People learn when it is simple. Combo question: How are you using technology and what have you changed over the last 20-30 years? In the 80s, my dad built me a video box to video on court. I had the kids tell me their favorite music, and I created their Favorite Hits action video. Now it is so easy to take an Ipad Pro on court and video and diagram. The other thing is my use of Facebook. I have 7000 friends on Facebook. Learning how to present things that were not always about me is a good way to showcase, but not always be self-promoting. The DVDs came about because of Jorge Capestany. He encouraged me to put my ideas into a video format. I also like to give handouts at presentations. It lets people remember the key ideas, but they also remember me when they review the handout. Also important to keep it simple. A lot of learning has come from thinking “What would I like from this presentation?”. You have never been tied down to a job for 20-30 years. How have changing jobs benefited your career? I was never afraid to try something new, even when I had no idea what I was doing. Even though I have held a lot of jobs, most are 5+ years. One of my top skills is to re-energize a club, but in the process, I get to reinvent myself. It is also important to learn from past mistakes. Is there a difference between working an east coast club vs. a west coast club? Not really. All clubs are unique, but the underlying factor in dealing with people, building relationships, and staff training.
What advice do you offer to newer professionals? My specialty has always been large groups. I do a weekend clinic with 3.5-5.0 players, and it is a drop-in. We may have 20 people. I want everyone involved and nobody is turned away. One of the staff training is to have my under staff hit in the clinics. This way they will learn how I manipulate the timing and levels of players. They can help guide people through the drill as well as give me feedback on how different things work. This is much more effective than a mid-day staff training session. A bonus is they can give mini-lessons during the clinic. I tell them to steal everyone for a private lesson that they can. They are building a relationship, and I will not promote any private lessons for myself. I also encourage them to bring ideas and I will help them implement the idea. When you are hiring someone, what are you looking for? What questions do they ask me during the interview? Can they find out the information? What is the philosophy of the club and me? If they do not have the knowledge to ask the question, then I will ask them. They need to have high energy, and they need to be a learner. I cannot help if they are not learning. I also try to hire people that are good at the things that I am not good at doing. This builds the best team for our club. Maybe it is a person that is a great red ball person, court maintenance, stringer, etc. Anything else to add? One is, do you have a passion for the tennis business? This is still old school, but I work 50 hours at my club, teach 20 hours in the park, and I string racquets at night. It is important to have a vision or have someone that will guide you. It is important to continue to learn in person or online. Be on an education pathway and be involved in your professional association. Anything that you would have done differently as you look back? We are so lucky to be where we are, and this comes up during discussions at various conferences. The answer is NOTHING. Everything that I have done, including mistakes and bad choices, has made me who I am today.
Standard
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The Written Word Developing a Winning Attitude and Mindset by Allistair McCaw Review by Rick Willett
T
he timing of this book is so relevant during this pandemic. The pandemic has created distractions, daily disruptions, and derailed consistent revenue streams. Allistair McCaw’s new book provides lifelines out of this melee. Developing a Winning Attitude and Mindset offers a pandemic professional reset for tennis directors, coaches, and tennis professionals. He focuses on the merits and positive outcomes of mastering your mindset. There are two kinds of mindset-the fixed mindset and the growth mindset. The fixed mindset is resisting having changes, being close-minded to any new ideas or outlooks, the ability is limited by failure, and easily giving up. The watchword for a fixed mindset is inflexible. The growth mindset is adaptable, hungry to learn, open to feedback, enjoying trying new things, and welcomes challenges. The watchword is teachable. Some of the themes we will unpack are the energy vampires, developing a positive mental attitude, the factors to keep a good attitude, what depletes energy and restores energy, the role of discipline, and how a winning attitude will broaden one’s perspective galvanizing change. The book is broken out into eight sections illustrating how the reader can shed the pandemic grip on your attitude to acquire a winning mindset. McCaw writes about many of his own life and coaching experiences with the daily work required to advance one’s mindset. McCaw places great emphasis on changing your mindset and your attitude. One way he sees to do this is to avoid energy vampires. These vampires have a negative outlook, try to sabotage their ideas, and focus on others’ shortcomings. They are a buzzkill trying to take your joy. The watchword is discouragement. Here are six ways to distance yourself from these energy vampires: • Unfollow and delete these people from your social media. • Be aware as vampires cloak their destructive behavior. • Diminish watching the news filled with negativity. • Keep your distance from them. • Avoid discussions with them bringing you down.
• Try to avoid these vampires and disconnect from them. One aspect that struck me is the integration of how attitude depends on energy. Alistair shares a story of coaching a client in another country and noticed his attitude was not at peak performance. It was due to his low energy; therefore, he flew home for a few days to rest and recover. Alistair states 70% of the coaches he knows are on empty due to racing all over the world to meet coaching requirements never stopping to rest and regain recovery. The number one-way tennis professionals deplete their energy is the pressure the pandemic created to teach longer hours and work seven days a week. Generating revenue is a real stressor. One outcome from being so depleted is injury. Energy depletion spills into having a negative attitude. It is important to know your limits. While wanting to build your book of business, you may lose existing clients alienating them with low energy and a bad attitude. Clients will detect apathy. The watchwords are rest and metabolic recovery. McCaw established the correlation between energy and attitude. He assembled the following list of how attitudes intersect with energy: • Energy you give is to others • Energy you have is your health • Energy you bring is in your attitude • Energy you share are your relationships • Energy you gain is from exercise Another quality for a winning attitude is to be “All In”. It takes a 100% commitment daily to implement this mindset. McCaw says it’s important to do the following in developing a winning attitude: • Surround yourself with people who have an amplified mission like you. • Choose people who push you and elevate you to be better. • Spend time with like-minded people who have a positive mental attitude. • Include those who discover the best in you,
not the stress in you. The foundation to have a winning mindset is discipline. Any goal or significant achievement demands a high level of discipline. The more discipline a coach possesses; the more freedom it eventually makes possible. Discipline requires a single-mindedness and an unyielding focus. McCaw created the 15-90 principle: Spend 15 minutes a day investing in a new endeavor; this translates into 90 hours a year reaping the benefits of a new skill. The watchword is to thrive on learning. Attitude and effort are interrelated. The book discusses giving the extra 5%. The most successful coaches and tennis professionals do more than what is asked of them. Consistently exceeding 5% or more, you can succeed far beyond what you predict. Outworking others distinguishes you from others. My father ran the golf course every morning before school, amplifying his abilities, being in the best shape of everyone else on the team. Doing the extra 5% will open many doors capturing new opportunities. A timely component that is an outgrowth from the pandemic is embracing change from Winning Attitude and Mindset. We are living in a period never experienced before. McCaw’s book is a benchmark showing you how to move out of this isolation and chaos to catapult yourself to champion a new opportunity. Break the hold isolation has by establishing communication and connecting with your mission builders, positive coaches, and uplifting friends. In summary, embracing change can spark a winning approach formulating ways to adapt in this new climate being open-minded for change, and practicing gratitude. This book provides the necessary tools to rejuvenate, recharge and redesign yourself. It is crucial to differentiate yourself and capitalize on this new mindset. Attitude is the bedrock for success. I have read all four of Alistair McCaw’s books, and I highly recommend Developing a Winning Attitude and Mindset. 5-star rating
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Page 14
Volume 22 Issue 4
Tech Corner
15 Insanely Useful Websites That’ll Come in Handy Someday By Ben Stegner
F
inding useful websites can be tough. There are well over a billion sites on the web, and a good number of them are totally useless. Of course, some of the most useful websites are quite popular, so you probably already know of them. But there are many other useful websites beyond the ones you may be familiar with. Fortunately, we’ve done the work of searching for you. Check out these top useful websites that each offer something worth checking out. www.cleanpng.com This website provides free high-quality PNG images without a background. Its millions of PNGs on offer work for brochures, banners, websites, and more. The website provides unlimited free downloads with no registration or other hoops to jump through. pixlr.com With Pixlr, you can edit pictures right in your browser, without Photoshop or GIMP. It’s an easy-to-use tool that doesn’t require installation, and is free unless you need more features. You can work in your favorite browser or download the app on your phone to edit pictures without any complicated tools. pixabay.com Sites like Shutterstock are too expensive for most casual users; Pixabay is a much more suitable option. It offers over two million royalty-free images, illustrations, videos, and vector graphics to download at no charge. privnote.com With Privnote, you can send a note that selfdestructs after it’s read. This is great when you need something more private than an email to send sensitive information. downforeveryoneorjustme.com When you’re having trouble accessing a website, it could be an issue on your end
or a problem with the website itself. This site makes it easy to find out. Just enter a website URL, and you’ll see if this tool has trouble accessing it. If it does, you’ll know the problem isn’t just happening for you. ninite.com Ninite is a must-know site when setting up a new Windows computer. On its homepage, you’ll find dozens of popular apps. Check all the ones you want to download and hit the download button at the bottom, then Ninite will download a file that installs them all. www.lucidchart.com/pages/ Here’s an easy-to-use website that converts your data into a neat diagram. It’s a great way to make flowcharts, task flows, and even wireframes. www.eatthismuch.com Eat This Much is an automatic diet planner. Enter how many calories you want to eat and how many meals to spread them across, and the service will help you create a diet plan. It includes weekly emails for what to buy at the grocery store, cooking instructions, and updated stats as you go along. www.diffchecker.com Diffchecker is a handy way to find out what someone else changed in your document. Paste two sets of text (or upload a pair of images, PDFs, or Excel files) and you can see what’s different between them. fast.com Curious about the speed of your current network connection? Open up Fast.com (powered by Netflix) and you’ll quickly see the speed of your current connection. It works for mobile hotspots, your home, or any other network you want to check. www.flightstats.com/v2 Whether you’re a globetrotter, student,
businessman, or concerned parent, this site allows you to track any flight. Just enter the flight number and you’ll see the real-time location and status of the journey. infogram.com This website lets you create stunning infographics as well as charts, reports, and social media visuals. It’s a modern and sleek editor that helps you present information in an interesting way. alternativeto.net Ever find an app that you want to use, but it’s too expensive or doesn’t work on your platform of choice? Or perhaps you’re looking to replace one of your favorite apps that was recently discontinued. In these cases, AlternativeTo can help. www.manualslib.com/Chances are that you don’t keep the manuals for every device you own. That can become a problem if you run into an issue with your device and need to consult the instructions for something. Thankfully, even if you’ve thrown away your copy of the manual, ManualsLib is an excellent resource for finding instruction manuals online. cloudconvert.com You’ll likely need to convert a file to a different format at some point. When you do, head to the useful website CloudConvert. This makes it easy to change any file to pretty much any other format. www.innerbody.com Among other resources, this site offers an interactive guide to human anatomy. It’s an easy way to study the human body’s various systems and segments, perhaps to teach students in school. The site also offers help with testing, health products, and telemedicine.
Standard
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Southern Officers The “Standard” is the official newsletter for the Southern Division of the United States Professional Tennis Association.
President Kevin Theos theos@sta.usta.com 205-790-7256 1st Vice President Tom Parkes pvcctennis@gmail.com 910-233-4755 2nd Vice President Kaitlin Flaherty-Bisplinghoff kflaherty07@gmail.com 832-656-4472 Secretary/Treasurer Ken Andriano kandriano0507@gmail.com 336-541-5876 Past President/Regional VP Todd Upchurch tupchurch1@gmail
Directors at Large Bill Riddle tennisun@aol.com 615-243-6698 Jason Hazley usptala@gmail.com 225-247-3028 Executive Director Pat Whitworth pat.whitworth@uspta.org 800-438-7782 (phone/fax) Head Tester Ron Gwyn rgwyn@haigpoint.com 843-341-8114 ALABAMA John Beaube jbeaube@green2grocer.com ARKANSAS patmalone67@gmail.com
GEORGIA Bill Anderson banderson@capitalcityclub.org KENTUCKY Tim McCollum mccollum@sta.usta.com 502-709-0021 LOUISIANA Bill Bryan billb1481@gmail.com MISSISSIPPI Emilia Viljoen stayplaytennis@gmail.com NORTH CAROLINA Fred Pfuhl usptanc1@gmail.com SOUTH CAROLINA Dean Mays deano959@bellsouth.net TENNESSEE Meg Bandy mbandy@mccallie.org
USPTA Welcomes Our New Members Cause, Robert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Winnabow NC Delany, Richard . . . . . . . . . . Mount Pleasant SC Lawson, Curtis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Durham NC Patchett, Leon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Clarkesville GA
Phillips, Cecil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cumming GA Robinson, Terrence . . . . . . . . . . . . Memphis TN Seman, Richard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pike Road AL
FAST FACTS
WTA Championship
The WTA championships were held for the first time in October 1972 in Boca Raton, Florida as a climactic event at the end of a series of tournaments sponsored by Virginia Slims, called the Virginia Slims Circuit. The WTA Finals have been held in 9 different countries and on 3 continents. Since 2003 there have been eight singles players divided into two round-robin groups, and eight doubles teams. Martina Navratilova has the most wins in WTA Finals history, eight singles and 13 doubles titles. Martina Navratilova has the longest consecutive win streak with 5 WTA Finals titles. Monica Seles and Serina Williams each won 3 straight WTA titles.
“ Spoon feeding, in the long run, teaches us nothing but the shape of the spoon” — E.M.Forster “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.” — John Quincy Adams “The best teachers are those who tell you where to look – but don’t tell you what to see.” — Alexandra K. Trenfor
USPTA SOUTHERN DIVISION
NEWSLETTER 337 Rhodes House Court SUWANEE, GA 30024
The Standard is published every 60 days by the Southern Division of the United States Professional Tennis Association. The opinions expressed in The Standard are those of the authors and not necessarily those of The Standard, the USPTA or Southern Division. Copyright© The Standard/United States Professional Tennis Association, Inc. 2021. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any portion of the newsletter is not permitted without the written permission from the USPTA Southern Division. Advertising information: All ads must be camera ready and in color, if possible. Prices are per issue. Full Page........ $400 Half Page........ $275 1/4 Page......... $140
ULTIMATE CONTROL Nike Zoom Vapor X for Men and Women.
Preferred USPTA MEMBER Pricing online at uspta.fromuthtennis.com
