on the court, in life

I had another “at all moments” reminder yesterday while playing tennis.

At several points in the match, I found myself not giving it my complete attention. At others, I found myself evaluating whether or not my opponent’s shot would go in or go over the net rather than playing it as if it would – as if I’m so good, so beyond the club level hack that I am (almost Roddick-like in fact… no… maybe even Federer-like) to make those split-second calls... to not be bothered with investing the energy unless I’m sure it’s necessary.

It’s those split seconds of “evaluation” that helped me lose points more often than they helped me conserve my energy for later points. And those “evaluation moments” become a bad habit.

Once I realized it, I focused more, was better prepared for the shot and my play improved.

I wondered (on the court and out loud) where in life I do this (how’s that for focus).

I think my opponent just wanted play tennis.