My Philosophy of Teaching
Brad Gilbert is considered one of the greatest tennis strategists to ever play the game. In his book, “Winning Ugly,” Brad attributes his success to keeping his opponents off-balance. If the other player liked a fast style of tennis, Brad would slow the tempo by returning high, floating shots. If he was competing against someone who preferred a slower, grinding style, Brad would deliberately charge the net to force his opponent to react more quickly. Brad’s ability to identify and execute a confounding game plan allowed him to frustrate his opponents and win matches. He won an Olympic Bronze medal in 1988, and he achieved a #4 World Ranking in 1990. In a way, Brad’s cunning methodology on the tennis court serves (pun intended) as a metaphor for how I strive to approach teaching in the both the classroom and clinical arenas.