The Pickleosophies - Our whole approach to Pickleball
The Pickleosophies - our approach to coaching, learning and playing pickleball
PICKLEOSOPHY: HOW WE SHOW UP
I used to find needles in haystacks for a living – executive search, six-figure salary, the whole corporate dance. Then I discovered pickleball, and everything clicked. Not because I wanted to escape the desk (though that helped), but because I found something worth building: a community where getting better and having fun aren't opposing ideas.
Fair Dinkin isn't about grinding through joyless drills or chasing ratings like your life depends on it. It's about showing up with purpose, learning something every session, and being brave enough to try things that might not work. Because that's where the breakthroughs happen – and where the fun lives.
Everything I coach comes back to five pillars. They're not motivational posters or corporate buzzwords. They're how we approach every session, every point, every moment on court.
1. ALWAYS BE LEARNING
Pickleball rewards curiosity. The players who improve fastest aren't the ones with the best natural talent – they're the ones who ask "why did that work?" and "what if I tried this instead?" Every session is a chance to add something new to your toolkit, whether that's a smarter third shot, better court positioning, or just noticing patterns you missed last week.
We don't do autopilot here. We pay attention, we experiment, we steal ideas from each other. And when something clicks? That's the good stuff.
2. PLAY WITH PURPOSE
Random hitting is fine for a warm-up. But if you want to actually improve, every ball you hit needs a job to do. Are you working depth? Placement? Speed control? Transition footwork? Pick one thing each session and make it your focus.
This doesn't mean robotic drilling – it means being intentional. You can laugh, chat, and have a brilliant time while still making sure every rep counts. Purpose and fun aren't enemies. They're mates.
3. BE PREDICTABLY UNPREDICTABLE
Your opponents want patterns. They want to know you'll always dink cross-court, always reset to the middle, always play it safe. The moment they've got you figured out, they've won before the point even starts.
So mix it up. Keep your foundation solid – consistency, placement, positioning – but throw in enough variation that they can't settle. A well-timed speed-up, an unexpected lob, a cheeky around-the-post. You don't need to be flashy. You just need to keep them guessing.
4. THERE IS NO SPOON
Stolen shamelessly from The Matrix, but it applies perfectly to pickleball. The limitations you think exist – "I'm too old," "I'm not athletic," "I'll never have a decent serve" – most of them aren't real. They're just stories you've been telling yourself.
We don't coach to your limitations. We coach to your potential. And once you stop believing the old narratives about what you can't do, you'd be amazed how quickly you prove yourself wrong.
5. HAVE FUN FAILING FABULOUSLY
If you're not missing shots, you're not trying hard enough. Every missed speedup, every shanked return, every time you completely misjudge the wind and send one into the next postcode – that's data. That's how you learn what works and what doesn't.
The players who improve fastest are the ones who aren't afraid to look silly while they figure it out. They try the ambitious erne, they go for the big serve, they experiment with weird grips and angles. Some of it works, some of it doesn't, but all of it makes them better.
So yeah, fail fabulously. Laugh about it. Try again. Repeat.
This isn't just philosophy – it's how we operate.
Every session I run, from Pee Wee Picklers to advanced STRIP drills, comes back to these five pillars. Because pickleball is brilliant, and it deserves to be coached in a way that honours both the improvement and the joy.
Ready to see what this looks like in practice? Let's get you on court.