1 00:00:05,400 --> 00:00:09,760 Hello, and welcome to Pickleball Therapy, the podcast dedicated to 2 00:00:09,785 --> 00:00:12,010 your pickleball improvement. 3 00:00:12,040 --> 00:00:16,580 It's the podcast that focuses on your pickleball mind. 4 00:00:16,605 --> 00:00:17,520 I'm C. J. 5 00:00:17,545 --> 00:00:20,380 Johnson, and I'm not your usual host. 6 00:00:20,405 --> 00:00:23,700 Your regular host, Tony Roig, is taking the week off. 7 00:00:23,725 --> 00:00:28,700 Well, actually, I wrestled the microphone away from Tony because 8 00:00:28,725 --> 00:00:34,980 I wanted to dive deeper into something that he talked about in a recent episode. 9 00:00:35,005 --> 00:00:38,880 Now, before I jump into that, if you're listening around Black Friday when this 10 00:00:38,905 --> 00:00:44,060 episode drops, make sure that you check out the Better Pickleball Academy. 11 00:00:44,085 --> 00:00:47,480 It's a self-guided library of the finest pickleball instructional 12 00:00:47,505 --> 00:00:49,700 content available today. 13 00:00:49,725 --> 00:00:53,420 Right now is the absolute best time to join. 14 00:00:53,445 --> 00:00:58,860 You can get the details at betterpickleball. 15 00:00:58,885 --> 00:00:59,940 Com/academy. 16 00:00:59,965 --> 00:01:01,880 I'll put a link down in the show notes. 17 00:01:03,000 --> 00:01:08,560 So if you haven't checked out Tony's November eighth podcast, the title 18 00:01:08,585 --> 00:01:10,820 of it was Pickleball Mastery. 19 00:01:10,845 --> 00:01:11,930 A click away. 20 00:01:11,960 --> 00:01:15,130 I will include a link in the show notes. 21 00:01:15,160 --> 00:01:20,410 Because in that episode, Tony shared a very powerful perspective 22 00:01:20,440 --> 00:01:22,740 that he has about learning. 23 00:01:22,765 --> 00:01:28,620 And it's the idea that we are forever on a journey of improvement, 24 00:01:28,645 --> 00:01:36,490 that there's really no true endpoint, and that we should embrace and even 25 00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:40,020 enjoy—yes, he said enjoy—the struggle. 26 00:01:40,045 --> 00:01:45,740 Now, he compared learning to pickleball to solving puzzles or crosswords. 27 00:01:45,765 --> 00:01:52,570 Let me just read to you exactly what he said in that episode. 28 00:01:52,600 --> 00:01:58,100 But at the end of the day, it's not really about solving the crossword, right? 29 00:01:58,125 --> 00:02:01,850 It's not like, Oh, I finished a crossword. 30 00:02:01,880 --> 00:02:04,290 What does that mean, I finished a crossword? 31 00:02:04,320 --> 00:02:06,740 The joy is in the struggle. 32 00:02:06,765 --> 00:02:12,500 The joy is in looking at the clues and going, I have no idea what it is, 33 00:02:12,525 --> 00:02:14,610 and then just fighting through it. 34 00:02:14,640 --> 00:02:19,800 Then finally, you have that aha moment where you're like, Oh, yeah, I get it. 35 00:02:19,825 --> 00:02:21,480 I see it now. 36 00:02:21,680 --> 00:02:26,360 Or you work another one and you get another word and another clue and another 37 00:02:26,385 --> 00:02:30,060 piece of the puzzle, and then you work through that whole puzzle. 38 00:02:30,085 --> 00:02:33,280 Pickleball is the same way, and your growth as a pickleball 39 00:02:33,305 --> 00:02:35,380 player is the same way. 40 00:02:35,405 --> 00:02:37,340 All right, that's the end of the quote. 41 00:02:37,365 --> 00:02:45,060 Now, when I first listened to that, I thought to myself, What nonsense is that? 42 00:02:45,085 --> 00:02:46,780 It's not about solving the puzzle. 43 00:02:46,805 --> 00:02:49,420 Of course, it's about getting the answer. 44 00:02:49,445 --> 00:02:53,140 What do you mean that there's joy in the struggle, Tony? 45 00:02:53,165 --> 00:02:59,220 As a professional athlete and a coach, that's all I've done for my entire life. 46 00:02:59,245 --> 00:03:05,340 The idea of enjoying the struggle was completely foreign to me. 47 00:03:05,365 --> 00:03:10,220 I took some time to reflect on my learning journey. 48 00:03:10,245 --> 00:03:14,560 Today, I want to talk about what I discovered and that maybe a 49 00:03:14,585 --> 00:03:16,520 few of you may be feeling. 50 00:03:17,320 --> 00:03:20,060 I want to start with the reality of the struggle. 51 00:03:20,085 --> 00:03:23,980 First of all, it is unavoidable. 52 00:03:24,005 --> 00:03:28,420 And pickleball is my third sport as a professional coach and athlete. 53 00:03:28,445 --> 00:03:36,820 I know that there is no shortcut to proficiency when building motor skills. 54 00:03:36,845 --> 00:03:42,580 The absolute only way to master a skill is through repetition. 55 00:03:42,605 --> 00:03:47,340 You've got to practice it over and over and over again. 56 00:03:47,365 --> 00:03:54,940 During practice, you will inevitably face both success and failure. 57 00:03:54,965 --> 00:04:00,540 But let me be honest, I do not love the struggle. 58 00:04:00,565 --> 00:04:04,700 Struggle to me is frustrating and exhausting. 59 00:04:04,725 --> 00:04:12,060 It's that moment like when things don't click, when progress feels just 60 00:04:12,085 --> 00:04:13,980 impossibly slow. 61 00:04:14,005 --> 00:04:17,540 While the struggle is necessary, and it is non-negotiable. 62 00:04:17,565 --> 00:04:19,700 I realized that. 63 00:04:19,725 --> 00:04:24,240 It is not something that I find joy in. 64 00:04:24,560 --> 00:04:30,500 Now, what I've learned in looking at this is that for me, 65 00:04:30,525 --> 00:04:33,740 Joy doesn't come from the struggle. 66 00:04:33,765 --> 00:04:39,640 The joy comes from embracing the process of practice. 67 00:04:40,680 --> 00:04:44,820 My love for practice started really early. 68 00:04:44,845 --> 00:04:47,760 It started back when I was a young ski racer. 69 00:04:47,785 --> 00:04:50,180 That was my very first sport. 70 00:04:50,205 --> 00:04:54,420 I don't even remember my first time on skis. 71 00:04:54,445 --> 00:04:59,540 I was always going around gates and trying to go as fast as I could. 72 00:04:59,565 --> 00:05:03,260 And one One of my clearest childhood memories 73 00:05:03,285 --> 00:05:09,680 was running gates and skiing to the lift as fast as I could because I knew 74 00:05:09,705 --> 00:05:11,100 that I was against the clock. 75 00:05:11,125 --> 00:05:16,060 That lift was going to close, and I had to get as many laps through the gates as 76 00:05:16,085 --> 00:05:18,740 possible before closing time. 77 00:05:18,765 --> 00:05:24,780 Now, when the lifts finally did stop running, I'd sidestep up the hill over and 78 00:05:24,805 --> 00:05:31,940 over and over again until it got dark because I was determined to squeeze 79 00:05:31,965 --> 00:05:36,500 out every last turn around those gates. 80 00:05:36,525 --> 00:05:39,300 Now, even now, I still teach skiing. 81 00:05:39,325 --> 00:05:45,120 I spend just as much time refining my techniques on beginner and intermediate 82 00:05:45,145 --> 00:05:51,300 terrain as I do tackling the steep black diamond. 83 00:05:51,325 --> 00:05:52,720 Why? 84 00:05:52,800 --> 00:05:58,020 It's because I love that process of searching for the perfect turn, 85 00:05:58,045 --> 00:06:02,080 searching for the perfect technique, building the perfect technique, 86 00:06:02,160 --> 00:06:06,260 and getting the chance to feel that fleeting moment when just 87 00:06:06,285 --> 00:06:09,820 everything falls right into place. 88 00:06:09,845 --> 00:06:14,175 Now, I carried that same mindset that I built in skiing to my career 89 00:06:14,200 --> 00:06:15,240 as a golf professional. 90 00:06:16,240 --> 00:06:22,740 After long days as a new golf pro, they were 10 to 12 hour days in the golf shop. 91 00:06:22,765 --> 00:06:25,660 Most people would run for the hills and go home. 92 00:06:25,685 --> 00:06:29,220 I could not wait to hit the putting green. 93 00:06:29,245 --> 00:06:35,280 And One of my rituals was I would chip until I hold five shots from different 94 00:06:35,305 --> 00:06:41,100 spots on the putting green, or I would just simply put until the sun 95 00:06:41,125 --> 00:06:45,680 disappeared and I could no longer see the putting green. 96 00:06:46,600 --> 00:06:52,440 Now, this practice, these moments, they were really more than just the 97 00:06:52,465 --> 00:06:55,560 repetition of building a skillset. 98 00:06:56,040 --> 00:06:59,840 They were also times of quiet focus. 99 00:06:59,865 --> 00:07:03,020 It really wasn't about the struggle. 100 00:07:03,045 --> 00:07:09,720 It was about the stillness of just putting in the work, of being in the moment. 101 00:07:10,680 --> 00:07:16,600 Now, it shouldn't come as a surprise that, like Tony, I make the choice to put my 102 00:07:16,625 --> 00:07:21,200 game in the back seat and I focus on what I love, which is coaching. 103 00:07:21,360 --> 00:07:27,600 But when I do get the chance, I love to practice pickleball. 104 00:07:27,720 --> 00:07:32,960 It doesn't matter if it's drilling with with my pretty constant drilling partner, 105 00:07:32,985 --> 00:07:35,900 Jeanie, whether I'm using a ball machine or I'm just simply 106 00:07:35,925 --> 00:07:38,160 hitting against the wall. 107 00:07:38,280 --> 00:07:42,440 If I was left to my own devices, I would lose track of time and I 108 00:07:42,465 --> 00:07:45,680 would just do it for hours on end. 109 00:07:47,040 --> 00:07:56,080 To me, practice isn't just about paying the price that every athlete needs to pay 110 00:07:56,200 --> 00:07:58,280 to build a skillset. 111 00:07:58,400 --> 00:08:06,100 It is about finding joy in the process, being fully present in that moment. 112 00:08:06,125 --> 00:08:11,580 There is just something so satisfying about the rhythm of drilling and 113 00:08:11,605 --> 00:08:17,680 practicing and that really quiet repetition of hitting a pickle ball. 114 00:08:18,640 --> 00:08:25,300 Now, that said, if you're thinking that this means that I don't struggle, 115 00:08:25,325 --> 00:08:28,100 let me set the record straight. 116 00:08:28,125 --> 00:08:31,500 I struggle a a lot. 117 00:08:31,525 --> 00:08:38,140 I make mistakes frequently, and sometimes I just fail over and over and over again. 118 00:08:38,165 --> 00:08:42,380 But interestingly enough, that doesn't feel like a struggle. 119 00:08:42,405 --> 00:08:46,800 I wouldn't describe it as burdensome. 120 00:08:47,040 --> 00:08:53,140 But here's where I do struggle and where it gets really tricky for me 121 00:08:53,165 --> 00:08:59,720 when things don't click on my timeline, on my perceived timeline. 122 00:08:59,840 --> 00:09:03,800 And I think that's maybe what Tony meant. 123 00:09:03,840 --> 00:09:09,660 For me, it's that frustration of working hard on a skill in practice and to 124 00:09:09,685 --> 00:09:14,200 see it fail under the pressure of a game. 125 00:09:14,520 --> 00:09:19,740 Now, in those moments, it's hard for me to remind myself 126 00:09:19,765 --> 00:09:27,140 that when that skill doesn't show up in my performance, it doesn't mean I failed. 127 00:09:27,165 --> 00:09:35,860 What it really means is I just I have not had enough repetitions yet. 128 00:09:35,885 --> 00:09:40,280 Now, intellectually, I know that. I get it. 129 00:09:40,320 --> 00:09:45,140 I also understand that results are out of my control. 130 00:09:45,165 --> 00:09:50,060 That my focus needs to stay on the process. 131 00:09:50,085 --> 00:09:53,820 But emotionally, that's a really different story. 132 00:09:53,845 --> 00:09:59,620 For me, the impatient creeps in, and then the frustration follows. 133 00:09:59,645 --> 00:10:03,940 It It takes a lot of effort to step back and to reset. 134 00:10:03,965 --> 00:10:08,460 Now, what helps me to stay grounded a majority of the time 135 00:10:08,485 --> 00:10:13,980 is a really simple tool that I use after every practice or play session. 136 00:10:14,005 --> 00:10:16,120 I teach this tool at our camps. 137 00:10:16,145 --> 00:10:18,460 I teach it inside the pickleball system. 138 00:10:18,485 --> 00:10:23,180 I really teach it anywhere I can because I think it's that valuable 139 00:10:23,205 --> 00:10:25,600 for us on our journey. 140 00:10:25,625 --> 00:10:28,740 It's called 3, 2, 1. 141 00:10:28,765 --> 00:10:33,100 I first learned this from the book, It's Sports Psychology for Dummies. 142 00:10:33,125 --> 00:10:34,380 It's by Dr. Todd Kays. 143 00:10:34,405 --> 00:10:36,140 It is an excellent book. 144 00:10:36,165 --> 00:10:40,340 Dr. Kays has been our guest on a couple of different pickleball summits. 145 00:10:40,365 --> 00:10:46,380 This exercise is a way to shift the focus back onto the process 146 00:10:46,405 --> 00:10:50,220 and away from the results, and ultimately, where I feel the struggle, 147 00:10:50,245 --> 00:10:52,160 where I feel the frustration. 148 00:10:52,360 --> 00:10:54,520 Here's how that drill works. 149 00:10:55,160 --> 00:10:57,920 When you are finished, and you're going to write this down, 150 00:10:57,945 --> 00:11:03,060 old-fashioned pen and paper, The very first thing you're going to do is 151 00:11:03,085 --> 00:11:07,220 write down three things that you did well that day. 152 00:11:07,245 --> 00:11:12,020 Now, these three things, they do not have to be result-based. 153 00:11:12,045 --> 00:11:17,840 It doesn't have to be like, Oh, I hit my punch volleys to my target 154 00:11:17,865 --> 00:11:20,240 every single time today. 155 00:11:20,440 --> 00:11:25,560 It could be something very simple, like, I was a good partner today. 156 00:11:25,585 --> 00:11:33,240 I kept my mouth shut during open How about I kept my composure, I kept 157 00:11:33,265 --> 00:11:35,700 my focus during a tough match? 158 00:11:35,725 --> 00:11:39,920 So again, it doesn't have to be result-based. 159 00:11:40,680 --> 00:11:42,740 Then I move on to number two. 160 00:11:42,765 --> 00:11:48,700 Now, number two are two things, not that I can do better, but two things 161 00:11:48,725 --> 00:11:52,160 that I learned about myself today. 162 00:11:52,760 --> 00:11:55,420 This, for me, is about self-awareness. 163 00:11:55,445 --> 00:11:59,640 It's really easy for me to beat myself up and to say, I coulda, I shoulda, I 164 00:11:59,665 --> 00:12:02,340 woulda, I needed to hit this shot better. 165 00:12:02,365 --> 00:12:09,320 But by taking on an awareness about myself, two things I learned about 166 00:12:09,345 --> 00:12:16,060 myself, that helps me to bring it back to the things that I can control. 167 00:12:16,085 --> 00:12:21,860 It can be as simple as maybe I notice that I play better when I take 168 00:12:21,885 --> 00:12:26,020 a deep breath before serving. 169 00:12:26,045 --> 00:12:33,660 Maybe I noticed that I play better when I take my paddle out of my 170 00:12:33,685 --> 00:12:37,300 paddle hand between rallies. 171 00:12:37,325 --> 00:12:41,660 Whatever it may be, just two things you learned about yourself that day. 172 00:12:41,685 --> 00:12:45,240 Then the one is one thing that I'm going to do with 173 00:12:45,265 --> 00:12:48,780 that information in the next 24 hours. 174 00:12:48,805 --> 00:12:52,960 Now, for me, oftentimes this is the most important step because what it 175 00:12:52,985 --> 00:12:57,420 does is it pushes me into action. 176 00:12:57,445 --> 00:13:01,740 Because let's face it, most of myself included, 177 00:13:01,765 --> 00:13:04,980 we just stop at the knowing part. 178 00:13:05,005 --> 00:13:09,780 We don't follow through with the doing part. 179 00:13:09,805 --> 00:13:13,660 That's really where the growth comes. 180 00:13:13,685 --> 00:13:19,660 So three, two, one helps to keep me focused on the processes 181 00:13:19,685 --> 00:13:21,980 that go into learning. 182 00:13:22,005 --> 00:13:26,180 And ultimately, those are the things that I can control. 183 00:13:26,205 --> 00:13:28,180 I cannot control the results. 184 00:13:28,205 --> 00:13:32,320 Those are completely out of my hand. 185 00:13:32,800 --> 00:13:39,420 In thinking back on that podcast, what I've learned for me 186 00:13:39,445 --> 00:13:44,000 is the joy for me isn't in the struggle. 187 00:13:44,160 --> 00:13:48,000 It's in the process of practice. 188 00:13:48,280 --> 00:13:52,120 Struggle in building a motor skill is inevitable. 189 00:13:52,145 --> 00:13:59,940 It is going to happen, but it doesn't have to define the experience. 190 00:13:59,965 --> 00:14:04,300 So if you're feeling frustrated or you're stuck in your learning journey, 191 00:14:04,325 --> 00:14:07,420 why not give three, two, one a try. 192 00:14:07,445 --> 00:14:12,760 Go back, listen to that November eighth podcast, maybe even join us in 193 00:14:12,785 --> 00:14:14,460 the Better Pickleball Academy. 194 00:14:14,485 --> 00:14:19,920 But do something to take actionable steps forward. 195 00:14:21,200 --> 00:14:25,520 Now, if you enjoyed this episode, how about sharing it with your pickleball 196 00:14:25,545 --> 00:14:30,740 playing friends so that we can reach more pickleball players just like you? 197 00:14:30,765 --> 00:14:35,580 Because as Tony likes to say, if you like it, they probably will, too. 198 00:14:35,605 --> 00:14:39,460 Until next time, keep practicing, keep growing, 199 00:14:39,485 --> 00:14:44,960 and most of all, enjoy the process, because ultimately, I think 200 00:14:44,985 --> 00:14:46,600 that's where the joy lives. 201 00:14:47,040 --> 00:14:47,840 Have fun out there.