Personality Profiling: Mental and Physical Predispositions- Part 1
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Personality Profiling: Mental and Physical Predispositions
What if I told you that you think you know your athlete, but you don’t?
What if I shared a tool to assist you in understanding why your son, daughter or student acts the way they do? What if I explained why different personalities are better suited for different sports, styles and/or positions? What if I said, to accelerate growth, it is essential that you get into your child’s world instead of forcing them into your world? What if I explained how motivating within their genetic guidelines will maximize their potential at a much quicker rate?
The old school teaching/coaching methodology demands the student get into the coach and/or parent’s training philosophy with total disregard to the student’s unique brain and body design. (Remember our friend Jose in the previous section?) More often than not, this archaic approach produces average athletes at best. At its worst, it quickly causes gifted athletes to leave the game.
Let’s begin by recognizing and respecting your child’s inborn characteristics.
Personality Profiling
Because the most universal personality type indicator is the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), I chose to use it to help you understand athletic/personality profiling. It must be noted that although profiling brain and body types is not a hard science and I am not a neuroscientist or clinical psychologist, I am qualified to maximize athletic potential.
Also worth noting, the founders of the MBTI, Katherine Briggs, and Isabel Myers, were not licensed, psychologists. They were students passionate about the findings of Carl Jung, the “father” of analytical psychology, and nurtured their love for their chosen field as they designed the now famous MBTI questionnaire.
The MBTI is grouped into four categories with 16 different possible configurations of personality profiles. The four categories list opposing brain types. Each person is assigned a four-letter acronym to best describe their primary tendencies. While each of us exhibits multiple sides of our personality, we possess a genetically dominant trait. For example, we all exhibit extraversion and introversion to some degree, but most of us tend to have an overall preference for one over the other.
Listed below are the four MBTI categories with their opposing personality profiles. To help identify your athlete’s personality profile, it may be in your best interest to first categorize yourself. Simply read through the four groupings listed below and choose your dominant brain function.
Industry Quotes
The following post is an excerpt from the Second Edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible NOW available through most online retailers! Click Here to Order
Industry Quotes About Frank’s Best-Selling Tennis Parent’s Bible:
“This book is a must read for any parent with a child who’s serious about competing in Tennis – or in any individual sport.”
Jon Wertheim, Exclusive Editor, Sports Illustrated
“Even if you think you are an ‘expert’ tennis coach or parent, you need to read this book.”
Johan Kriek, 2-time Grand Slam Champion Australian Open
“The Tennis Parent’s Bible is filled with invaluable information that any tennis parent or coach will benefit from in their quest to help children reach their full potential.”
Nick Saviano, WTA Professional Tennis Coach, Saviano High Performance Tennis
“Frank is quickly becoming one of the games most respected and influential teachers. As the coach of a #1 WTA player, I recommend The Tennis Parent’s Bible to anyone serious about developing a champion.”
Sam Sumyk, Former Coach of Victoria Azarenka
CONTENTS of the Soft Science of Tennis
THE SOFT SCIENCE OF TENNIS
CONTENTS
Chapter 1: Creating an Exceptional Culture
Chapter 2: Sharpening Healthier Communication
Chapter 3: Effective Listening
Chapter 4: Nonverbal Communication
Chapter 5: Personality Based Training
Chapter 6: Benefits of Personality Profiling
Chapter 7: How the Brain Affects Performance
Chapter 8: Assisting the 4 SP Typographies
Chapter 9: Assisting the 4 NF Typographies
Chapter 10: Assisting the 4 NT Typographies
Chapter 11: Assisting the 4 SJ Typographies
Chapter 12: Physical Skills Versus Life Skills
Chapter 13: Why Character Building Matters
Chapter 14: Life Skills Maximize Athletic Development
Chapter 15: The Importance of Nurturing
Chapter 16: Overriding Negative Past Belief Systems
Chapter 17: Building Coachable Athletes
Chapter 18: Eliminating Internal Judgment
Chapter 19: Changing Fixed Mindsets
Chapter 20: Managing Fear and Risk
Chapter 21: Developing Confidence & Self Esteem
Conclusion
Personality Based Training
The following post is an excerpt from The Soft Science of Tennis SOON to be released!
Personality Based Training
“Personality profiling assists coaches, athletes, and parents in understanding how individuals gather information and make decisions. It’s how we are wired. It’s what makes us tick.”
Personality Based Training (PBT) is a training method that focuses the attention on the athlete’s unique brain design as opposed to the educator. When applying PBT, tennis pros and parents welcome and respect the athlete’s unique preferred styles of learning, behaving and playing the game. The athletes feel empowered because their views and needs are recognized. And once understood, students are more motivated and inspired to learn and improve. An inspired student is more likely to take the leadership role in achieving their goals.
“Athletes would benefit from understanding the advantages and disadvantages of their unique brain design. It’s why they are naturally good at some things and uncomfortable with others.”
It’s important to note that while I’ve studied sports psychology for the past 30 years, I am a veteran, “In the Trenches” practical application tennis coach, not an “Academia” psychologist. But neither were Katharine Briggs and her daughter Isabel Myers, authors of the famous Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI- A psychological questionnaire used to understand individuals mental preferences.) published in the United States in 1943. Together Myers-Briggs noticed that individuals have different temperaments and unique ways of seeing the world.
While some scientists say the MBTI doesn’t stand up to scientific reliability, I can say with all honesty that it has helped me coach over 100 National Champions and several Pro tour athletes. More importantly, personality profiling benefits my athletes and their entourage of parents, coaches, and trainers at a much deeper level. A study conducted by Psychology Today, reports that approximately 80% of Fortune 500 companies use various personality tests to hire future employees, to assess progress, and to maximize efficiency and harmony through team building events. The time has come to broaden the role of personality profiling into the athletic realm, as I have outlined in The Soft Science of Tennis.
Getting to know the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
The MBTI is the most popular psychometric questionnaire designed to measure psychological preferences in how people perceive the world and make decisions. It is my intention to bring to light the usefulness of brain preference identification in the tennis industry. Each student has a preferred way of seeing the world. The basic MBTI theory categorizes preferences into four groups from which individuals identify their dominant cerebral preference.
The Typographies Include:
- Extraversion (“E”)- People/Places
- Introversion (“I”)- Theories/ Information
- Sensing (“S”)- Facts/Reality
- Intuition (“N”) Possibilities/Potential
- Thinking (“T”)- Logic/Truthfulness
- Feeling (“F”)- Harmony/Relationships
- Judgment (“J”)- Orderly/Structured
- Perception (“P”)- Flexible/Adaptable
For each of the above pairings, your athletes typically have a preference for one system above the other. The combination of their four preferences gives them their initial assessment in a four-letter acronym. An example is personality profile: ISTP (Introvert Sensate Thinker Perceiver)
“View your athlete’s brain design (dominant and auxiliary) the same way you would view right handed versus left handed body type functions. Each athlete has an inborn preferred system.”
In my experience, personality profiling is a soft science, meaning other factors such as nurturing and environments skew the data. With that said, I believe that athletes have specific preferences in the way they experience the world and these choices affect their actions, values, and motivational needs on and off the tennis court.
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Executing Game Plans
The following post is an excerpt from Raising Athletic Royalty NOW available through most online retailers!
EXECUTING GAME PLANS
“A GREAT GAME PLAN IS TO FOCUS ON ELIMINATING UNFORCED ERRORS. CONSISTENCY IS A POWERFUL WEAPON.”
“Shutting down your opponent’s primary game plan forces them to shift to a less comfortable, less successful style of play.”
“THE ABILITY TO EXECUTE THE SAME OLD BORING WINNING PLAYS OVER AND OVER AGAIN IS BRILLIANT.”
“Knowing how to apply strategy and actually executing it depends greatly on emotional control.”
“TO EXECUTE WHAT THE MOMENT DEMANDS SEPARATES THE GOOD FROM THE GREAT.”
“Overthinking usually ruins execution.”
On Court Emotional Evaluation
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The below On Court Emotional evaluation should be completed by the player, coach and parent. Together, as a team, identify any weak emotional issues and devise a plan to strengthen the weaknesses.
Good Luck! Frank
ON COURT EMOTIONAL (ISSUES & SOLUTIONS)
- Between Point Rituals: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Change Over Rituals: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Mistake Management: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Plan & Implement the Plan: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Designing Proactive Patterns: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Understanding Frustration Tolerance Levels: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Temperament (Controlling your emotions): 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Distraction Control: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Quieting the Mind: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Adapting/Problem Solving: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Controlling Lapses in Concentration: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Controlling Nervousness: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Controlling Self Condemnation (Negative self-talk): 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Controlling “Bad” Anger: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Limiting Unforced Errors: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Handling Cheaters/Gamesmanship: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Mentally Being In the Past/Present/Future: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Mega Point Control: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- Mini Mega Point Control: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
List the Top 3 On-Court Mental issues to work on this year:
1.
2.
3.
Write your Personal Action Plan:
CONTACT: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
Legal Gamesmanship Tactics
The following post is an excerpt from the Second Edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible NOW available through most on-line retailers! Click Here to Order
QUESTION: Should athletes employ legal gamesmanship tactics?
Frank: Yes, athletes should employ gamesmanship tactics-but legal gamesmanship tactics ONLY! Winners in all sports routinely apply physical, mental and emotional tactics. It is your athlete’s job as a competitor to profile the opponent and spot and attack their vulnerabilities. This is the art of being a competitive warrior. Let’s look at the ways top ATP/WTA professionals apply emotional warfare to control the match dynamics.
“Adaptive gamesmanship is perfectly legal. It requires doing what it takes within the rules that govern the competition. It’s an acceptably, healthy use of the competitive fire.”
Forms of Legal Gamesmanship:
1) Intimidating with an aura of confidence.
2) Dominating play by running their top 7 patterns and staying on script.
3) Going to the towel (Time Management) before each mega point, after they have committed two unforced errors in row, after a long winded point to lower their heart rate and to cool off an opponent who is on fire.
4) Apply between-point and change-over rituals to control the speed and tempo of the match.
5) Taking legal bathroom breaks to change the energy of the match.
6) Taking legal trainer breaks to attend to minor aliments when the opponent has all the energy.
7) Looking to break the opponent’s rhythm as they control the tempo of the match.
8) Remaining silent and composed. This makes them appear to be unflappable under stressful situations.
Employing an Alpha attitude is an important characteristic in competitive athletics. An Alpha-like confidence comes across in an athlete’s composure, demeanor and facial expressions. By mastering the legal forms of intimidation, an athlete controls the competitive situations.
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Attaining Tennis Excellence
The following post is an excerpt from The Tennis Parent’s Bible.
Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo
Top Ten Tools Needed to Attain Tennis Excellence
The mental and emotional strength of being a fierce competitor and a respectful human being is a learned behavior. Building mental and emotional muscle takes time and effort.
The way you think and feel effects how you perform. Rafa Nadal is a prime example of player that has built mental and emotional strength through hard work.
If your player truly believes in his or her game as a result of proper training and hard work he or she is bound for greatness.
No one can outperform their self-image. Due to their discipline, athletes like Rafa, have inner strength and inner excellence. They truly believe in themselves and their abilities because they’ve earned the belief.
Top Ten Tools Needed to Attain Tennis Excellence:
- Hit the gym to gain strength.
- Commit to improving with unrelenting determination.
- Develop the mental side of shot selection to master offense, neutral & defensive skills.
- Schedule time to strengthen their speed, stamina, and agility.
- Revise between point rituals to enhance “clear headedness” of shot selection on big points.
- Improve your ability to apply spin.
- Cultivate the competitive attitude. Do this by adding simulated stress with every drill. We call them “stress buster drills”.
- Perfect the ability to live in the moment (producing precisely what the moment calls for) by rehearsing closing out sets.
- Replace the need to win with the love of the battle.
- Reform calmness under stress, by simulating those intense moments.
For more information read The Tennis Parent’s Bible– hundreds of hours of lessons for less than a half hour lesson!
Contact: Frank Giampaolo
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