009 - Don't Rock The Boat Too Early

Today’s quick tip is: Don’t rock the boat too early.  Gain some trust and respect first 1. You are all confident and want to get all that you know out. Good, but it has to align with the clubs teaching philosophy (If they have one) Philosophy – A teaching system, pathway or method used to keep instruction consistent from level to level or even class to class. Even though you interned with the Coach of the Year for 27 years in a row, who has 172 national championships under their belt, you are working for someone else now This is probably a question that you should ask in the interview.  I was in same situation when I interviewed in front of a board……………. Something like, how much freedom do I have to teach with the philosophy that I am comfortable with……………….  As an intern, this should NOT be an issue.  2. Remember, as an intern, you are there to learn and as an assistant pro eventually, battling it out with the head pro is not going to get you very far up the ladder. 1. It can embarrass the lead pro in front of the membership (I have seen it happen) 2. You get a lot of “Coach Renee doesn’t teach it that way” 3. When members get conflicting instructional ideas, it hampers their progress. Here is an example:  As a teaching pro at a resort, I would get a lot of Hotel guests, which made my job a bit tricky. If I only had them for One hour, then the fundamentals were the key and trying to get them to conquer them within their own “Funky “ style.  I used a lot of quick fixes or what I call band-aid solutions. If they served with a semi western grip and I told them to switch to continental for their serve, how do you think the lesson went?  Do you think that they felt like they got their $70 worth? So the key was to work with what they had, even though I knew that there was a better way. What I would do is end up having them ask their pro something like, Coach Mick suggested that I eventually change to a continental grip, what do you think? Key was to ask them questions and find out how the pro at their club taught specific shots and then go from there. 4. Once you gain trust and respect from the pro staff, the rest will come easy. Just be careful about that first impression that you leave with the staff. Bottom Line: Don’t go too overboard with your philosophy at first, especially if it differs from the rest of the staff.  You should know this before you even walk in the door if you ask the right questions at the interview anyway………… Good luck with this and please email me with any questions, Coach Mick, USPTA