By Larry Hodges, Member of US Table Tennis Hall of Fame

When you start out, the coach is the BOSS. If you are smart, you’ll do what he says. Sometimes you’ll have a coach that just doesn’t work for you, or perhaps he’s just not a good coach – and then perhaps you should switch coaches. But once you have a good and compatible coach, listen to the coach.

But as you advance in the sport, you become more experienced. As I’ve written in the past, if you want to become a good player, you have to become the world’s top authority on Your Game. As you approach that, your work with a coach becomes more of a collaboration. He’s the expert on developing table tennis players; you are the expert on your game. If the coach is a good one, he’ll listen to you, and you should listen to him – and then, working together, you can become the best you can possibly be.

Make sure to discuss your game with the coach. You need to both have the same vision as to where you are trying to go in terms of style and level. Take the long strategic view, and GO FOR IT!

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