← Writings Competing · Mindset — August 3, 2024

Play freely, don't look at my parents

“Play freely. It is just one match in a tournament that I will forget in a year.”

Scan of the handwritten notebook page, August 3, 2024
Notebook page — August 3, 2024

Transcript

Today, I am getting the opportunity to play the sport I love. I may have had a difficult match yesterday, but I will put that in the past. I will focus on today and what I want to work on. In the match, I want to make sure to play with the patterns I've been working on. I will hit the first two balls to the open court as often as possible, and I will not stray from it unless it is not working.

My goals for today are:

1. Play freely. It is just one match in a tournament that I will forget in a year.

2. Try not to look at my parents. Sometimes in matches, I will look to my parents to see what they are thinking or feeling. I have gotten much better about this, but I was doing it a lot yesterday, and it only stresses me out and distracts me from the match.

3. Play with the patterns.

4. Be intense with my feet from the warmup.