This is for people starting out or who wants to start playing more often socially. Also everyone is different so results may vary.

Play to improve, not to win.

My friend and I started playing each other twice a week for a year at college(we played socially in HS) The first couple of months our level was identical but I just started pulling away because I wasn't concerned about how many FH winners I was blasting and became technically more sound. He was the opposite, played for the W and actually didn't get one that whole year.

Fast forward a couple of years and I have become a really decent social player and a massive advantage I have compared to players on the same technical level as me is that I dont choke, I make big plays under pressure, and I dont get angry.

When youre constantly thinking about improving on the court your actually exercising your "focus muscle". I have a lot of control over my focus, I can dail it down when Im trying different things or rev it up in a tie breaker. I play as loose as a goose and my biggest shots come out under pressure.

Playing this way also makes me enjoy tennis and not be a bad loser because I know I played as best I can. I'm always improving while having a laugh, so goodluck if you see me on the other side of the net because I come to play.