Coaching 101. What is most important for young coaches to know? With 30+ years of Coaching and 19 years as a Principal. I have learned A LOT about coaching and leadership. Here are 10 of the most important things I have learned as a COACH. 1: Start with the R-word! Everything starts with Relationships. We are in the people business, and the people matter. Get to know your players. Ask them questions, listen to them, and be vulnerable. Let them know you care. Let their parents know you care. Team sports are not easy, and there will be ups and downs. These relationships will get you through the tough times. You will get much more out of them when they know how much you care. 2: The Rule of 3’s Simplicity matters in coaching. Less is almost always more. How do you simplify? Work in groups of 3's. When you are presenting a concept, try to always group it into 3's. An example? Our defensive philosophy is No Paint, Contest, Rebound. Nothing more, nothing less. Obviously, we break this down, but it is simplified. Our school rules: Positive Attitude, Best Effort, and Respect Others. Keep things simple. More often than not, simple wins. 3: Communication is Vital Live by this mantra, "where this is a void in communication, negativity fills it." Communication is vital as a coach and leader. While you want to keep things simple as a coach, you want to over-communicate. Never assume kids or parents know. Communication shows competence, and you will need this at critical moments in your coaching tenure. 4: Culture is Every Day The #1 job of any coach is to build their culture. Every Day. Culture never arrives. It is built each and every day with the daily decisions of what you allow and what you emphasize. Kids are kids - they will push the envelope. You must think of every decision you make and the impact this will have on your culture. 5: With-It-Ness This is my favorite word as a leader. Do you "get it" as a coach or leader? It is the art of coaching. Do you make the right decisions as a leader? What do you allow and emphasize within your culture? When do you push, when do you pull, when do you love, and when do you discipline. Some coaches get it right away, and some coaches never seem to get it. 6: The Process is the Prize A season is a journey. It is like writing a book. You are never defined by a win or a loss. You are never as good as you think after a win and you usually did not play as bad as you think after a loss. Trust the process. Focus on creating great habits, developing a winning mindset, and doing the things that impact winning. The process is always the prize -> in sports and in life. 7: Leaders Build Leaders Player-led teams win. Good coaches know this. When things go bad in a season it can usually be pointed to a bad culture or poor team leadership. Know this. Good coaches are purposeful in developing their team leaders. This is exactly why I built the Team Leader OS. Start when they are young and mold them into the leader you hope they will be. 8: The Standard is the Standard Every team wants to win. Every team practices. Every team thinks they work hard. The difference in great teams is always the standard at which this is done. This is ultimately what separates good teams from great teams. What standards do you operate at? 9: Win the War, Not the Battle Great coaches know how to pick their battles. They know what is truly important. They do not get hung up in the little battles that may take time and energy. They focus on winning the war and picking the right battles. 10: When the Stars Align Finally, when you are in this long enough, you know what I mean here. A few times in a career, if you are lucky, the stars will align. You will have great player leadership, positive energy, no injuries, enough talent to win, and the ball bounces your way. These years are special. Remember them. Take them in. Create great memories because they are not guaranteed. The memories that are formed from these years last a lifetime! Good Luck! _____ Follow me @gb1121 for more Actionable Ideas on Coaching, Leadership, Culture, and Teams. Join 9300+ others and subscribe to my free weekly newsletter. The subscription link is in my profile.
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@gb1121 Most important? Treat all your players the way you would have wanted to be treated as a player. Everything else is easy.