My path into the coaching ranks took a weird path at the beginning. I have written a few times about how I got into coaching so I won't go into too much detail about that topic today. I will just say that my first full year as a head coach came before I had attended any type of coaching clinic, gotten any form of training or received the usually required certification. The team I coaches qualified for nationals and my coaching skill set revolved around approaching training games as a player who had been captain of various teams. I knew the game quite well ( although I soon discovered that knowing the game and coaching it effectively were two very distinct things.
After my initial year in coaching, I was very strongly encouraged by my club and the federation to enroll in the certification program in order to meet requirements, if I were to want to continue. Like many at the time, I figured, "whatever" I'll just go and get the required levels but what will I really learn. I can tell you that all these years later, the very first words out of the course director's mouth are something that has stuck with me every since and has become the basis for everything I have done or planned in coaching. He entered the room and said " The most important advice I can give you is to remember that without athletes, there is no need for coaches. Always remember, coaches exist for the benefit of athletes, not the other way around". This is in many ways the most important lesson I have learned in all the clinics, stages, conferences etc on coaching that I have attended over 27 years. The relationship between a coach and athlete is important. No matter how competent you may be as a coach, no matter how well you know your sport, if you can't interact with your athlete(s), they won't benefit from your coaching. As athletes prepare for a new season, a new level of competition, seek out a new team, etc they will have competitive objectives and will hope to have a coach that can provide the support and teaching that will have them attain these objectives. As coaches, we’re all in this business because we want to help others reach their goals and because we are passionate about our sport ( or perhaps I should say, we should be). However, coaching is not just about designing an annual training plan or prescribing an individual session. It’s about building successful coach/athlete relationships, and that takes hard work. For such relationships to work requires mutually compatible philosophies and an ability to get inside of the head of the athlete. This way we can work out what they want and more importantly what they need. ‘Want’ and ‘need’ are not the same thing. For most coaches, it takes time to learn to coach someone effectively. It is no different for most athletes, who often need to learn to be coached. Writing plans and prescribing training sessions is only a small part of the coaching process. Then comes getting athletes to provide effective feedback, data analysis, and for us to adapt our plans and sessions almost continually. For the coach-athlete relationship to work, athletes must have the ability, willingness and desire to be coached. Over the last few years, I have given my athletes a questionnaire that includes a series of questions, prepared to allow the athlete to share with me, what they feel are their strengths, weaknesses and what they want they feel will help them attain their potential. I include questions about how, when and what kind of feedback they want. In many ways the various questions have one basic theme to them which I hope can solicit replies to the following basic questions: “Why do you want to be coached and what do you think the role of a coach is?” The answers to the various questions allow me to get some early insight into how I need to prepare myself to interact with athletes on an individual level while still focusing on the good of the group. Regardless of the sport, at its core, coaching is a people business. As my first course director said, coaches are there for the athletes, so seeing the world from the athlete’s perspective is key. It very quickly becomes apparent if an athlete views coaching as a benefit or a hindrance who puts all kinds of rules in place. It can allow us to see how much all athlete is willing to invest in their own success or are they expecting someone else to do the hard work for them. . We must care as much as, but not more than the athlete about their success, otherwise frustration is likely to result. We must also define what that success looks like. Success to me is simply to be able to support a healthy and happy athlete who enjoys their sport. Lots of little process goals along the way give plenty of opportunities for success. Coaching a successful athlete is not about making them care about success, or pushing them in a direction they are not interested in going, but rather knowing how to take the raw potential they have and create an environment that both motivates and facilitates them to keep putting in the time and effort. When I am surrounded by athletes that I can see are really committed to their own and the team success, There’s never that moment over the course of a season when I think I can’t be bothered planning training sessions, watching video, or sometimes simply taking a few moments to have a chat. That’s because I know that all the efforts I put in will be appreciated and the athletes will apply themselves to the task at hand. As a coach, I will do everything in my control to give my athletes an experience that they will cherish for the rest of their lives when I see that they don't take the opportunities presented to them for granted. As coach, its important that one realizes that it can take time to reach goals. No matter how talented they group or individual athletes might be, time and effort have to be put in. When a coach is working with a group of individuals, with their own issues, fears, strengths, weaknesses, concerns, motivations and so many other factors, there has to be trust and communication for any coach-athlete relationship to work. A good coach can create an environment where the athletes feel they are an integral part of the plan. Regardless of what level or age group you find yourself coaching remember the wise words from my course director, "you are there for them"
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AuthorAfter many years of coaching at various levels and with different teams, I thought I would share some of my experiences and thoughts about coaching. Archives
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