Coaches Toolbox

John Wooden Desirable Coaching Traits

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  1. Attentiveness to Detail You must prepare to win in order to be a winner. Failure to prepare is preparing to fail.

  2. Impartiality This is a must, but you must remember that you must not treat everyone alike as they are all different. Give each one the treatment earned and deserved.

  3. Teaching Skill It isn’t enough that you know the game, you must be able to teach it. Follow the laws of learning.

  4. Discipline Most essential for proper concentration and group organization.

  5. Affability The coach must be of an affable disposition because of the various groups with who he must associate.

  6. Forcefulness You must be firm without being bullheaded.

  7. Alertness Constant observation of all going on around and about are necessary for improved learning and decision making.

  8. Optimism The pessimist isn’t likely to produce a confident team that will play near to their full capability.

  9. Desire to Improve Lack of ambition will result in complacency and laziness.

  10. Vision A Picture of the possible must be shown to your players to provide a goal for them.

  11. Consideration For Others You must be truly considerate of others if you expect them to be considerate of you. You must listen to them if you want them to listen to you.

  12. Resourcefulness You must be ever ready to make necessary adjustments according to the situation and the personnel that you have available.

  13. Cooperativeness An essential for all who work with others and are dependent on others in various ways.

  14. Leadership Trust be commanded, not demanded. Others are working with you, not for you. Be interested in finding the best way rather than having your own way.

  15. Industriousness There is no substitute for work. Worthwhile things should never be easy to attain.

  16. Enthusiasm If you are to stimulate others, your heart must be in your work. Enthusiasm brushes off upon those with whom you come in contact.

  17. Sympathy You must be truly interested in those under your supervision and be sympathetic with their problems.

  18. Self-control Good judgment must be exercised in your decisions and they must be made through reason not emotion.

  19. Sincerity Insincerity can be spotted very quickly and cause loss of respect.

13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do

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I am always looking for mental toughness resources and just finished reading the Book “13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do.”

The lessons are applicable to all areas of living a happy and successful life, including athletics.

A blog post on the was the precursor to the book has some thoughts on mental toughness for us to apply to our own personal and professional lives as well as to share with our staff and players.

~by Amy Morin, LCSW
AmyMorinLCSW.com

Mentally strong people have healthy habits. They manage their emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in ways that set them up for success in life. Check out these things that mentally strong people don’t do so that you too can become more mentally strong.

1. They Don’t Waste Time Feeling Sorry for Themselves

Mentally strong people don’t sit around feeling sorry about their circumstances or how others have treated them. Instead, they take responsibility for their role in life and understand that life isn’t always easy or fair.

2. They Don’t Give Away Their Power

They don’t allow others to control them, and they don’t give someone else power over them. They don’t say things like, “My boss makes me feel bad,” because they understand that they are in control over their own emotions and they have a choice in how they respond.

3. They Don’t Shy Away from Change

Mentally strong people don’t try to avoid change. Instead, they welcome positive change and are willing to be flexible. They understand that change is inevitable and believe in their abilities to adapt.

4. They Don’t Waste Energy on Things They Can’t Control

You won’t hear a mentally strong person complaining over lost luggage or traffic jams. Instead, they focus on what they can control in their lives. They recognize that sometimes, the only thing they can control is their attitude.

5. They Don’t Worry About Pleasing Everyone

Mentally strong people recognize that they don’t need to please everyone all the time. They’re not afraid to say no or speak up when necessary. They strive to be kind and fair, but can handle other people being upset if they didn’t make them happy.

6. They Don’t Fear Taking Calculated Risks

They don’t take reckless or foolish risks, but don’t mind taking calculated risks. Mentally strong people spend time weighing the risks and benefits before making a big decision, and they’re fully informed of the potential downsides before they take action.

7. They Don’t Dwell on the Past

Mentally strong people don’t waste time dwelling on the past and wishing things could be different. They acknowledge their past and can say what they’ve learned from it. However, they don’t constantly relive bad experiences or fantasize about the glory days. Instead, they live for the present and plan for the future.

8. They Don’t Make the Same Mistakes Over and Over

They accept responsibility for their behavior and learn from their past mistakes. As a result, they don’t keep repeating those mistakes over and over. Instead, they move on and make better decisions in the future.

9. They Don’t Resent Other People’s Success

Mentally strong people can appreciate and celebrate other people’s success in life. They don’t grow jealous or feel cheated when others surpass them. Instead, they recognize that success comes with hard work, and they are willing to work hard for their own chance at success.

10. They Don’t Give Up After the First Failure

They don’t view failure as a reason to give up. Instead, they use failure as an opportunity to grow and improve. They are willing to keep trying until they get it right.

11. They Don’t Fear Alone Time

Mentally strong people can tolerate being alone and they don’t fear silence. They aren’t afraid to be alone with their thoughts and they can use downtime to be productive. They enjoy their own company and aren’t dependent on others for companionship and entertainment all the time but instead can be happy alone.

12. They Don’t Feel the World Owes Them Anything

They don’t feel entitled to things in life. They weren’t born with a mentality that others would take care of them or that the world must give them something. Instead, they look for opportunities based on their own merits.

13. They Don’t Expect Immediate Results

Whether they are working on improving their health or getting a new business off the ground, mentally strong people don’t expect immediate results. Instead, they apply their skills and time to the best of their ability and understand that real change takes time.

You can see a portion of the contents of the book by clicking the cover of the book.


What is a Coach of Excellence?

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This article is included in Alan Stein’s, Coaching Nuggets.

I like many of the points made in this article. I am sure that there will be some disagreement with some of the statements, but I think that this is a very good article to inspire some reflection.

By: Brian Vecchio.

“You can’t plays today’s game by yesterday’s rules.”

 

What is a Coach of Excellence?

  • Same person in sport, home, and work
  • Keeps perspective and makes it fun
  • Prioritizes developing servant leaders
  • Mentally tough-comfortable with being uncomfortable
  • 3:1 ratio of praise to criticism

21st Century Coach of Excellence

  • “Easy to please, hard to satisfy”
  • Consistency breeds excellence, excellence breeds trust, trust breeds loyalty
  • “Great leaders can’t give away what they don’t possess themselves”
  • Must have a failure philosophy! (Admit it. Fix it. Don’t repeat it!)
  • Great coaches find ways to get players “all in”
  • Establish your OWN identity
  • Two non-negotiables: Humility and non-stop learner
  • You are too close if you can’t hold players accountable!
  • Manipulates situations daily that athletes will encounter
  • Can teach all types of learners at once (audio, visual, intrapersonal)
  • Can get players “on fire” about something!
  • Coach to player-player will retain 70% of what you said
  • Player 1-Player 2-will retain 85% of what is said
  • Player 2-another player after having learned skill-95% retention rate
  • Principles and values don’t change, the “how evolves”
  • Sterile communication on a team=sterile results
  • Each coach is at a different place in the journey! Get better every day!
  • Coach attitude and effort before X’s and O’s

3 Dimensional Coaching (3 questions to ask yourself)

1. Why do you coach? (Inside-Out Coaching)
2. What is your philosophy?
3. How do you measure success?

Level I

  • Competency (strategy, techniques, biomechanics
  • Lots of info out there for coaches to improve
  • 80-85% of coaches

Level II

  • Mind of the Athlete
  • Psychology
  • 10% of coaches

Level III

  • Relationship EXPERT
  • Critique without resentment
  • “Do you know “what time it is?”
  • 5% of all coaches

Coaching Thoughts

  • There is a double standard about teaching and coaching. Must be both!
  • Create a climate and culture that values people over productivity
  • Want to know if you are a good coach…ask your worst player
  • Only job w/ higher divorce rate is law enforcement
  • Do you have a bat phone? (Direct line of communication w/ team)
  • Are you just “coaching” or do you “care”?
  • Do you have self-control routines for yourself?
  • Assistant coaches are in charge of HC in heated moments
  • Give feedback
  • No feedback-coach that rolls out balls and lets “athletes be”
  • Over feedback- “paralysis by analysis”
  • Best know just the right time and right thing to say!
  • “You’re either coaching it, or allowing it to happen”
  • Coach Obvious/Knowledge of Result- “Catch the ball”
  • Knowledge of Process-checklist, specific feedback, drill that isolates problem
  • Speak Greatness into others
  • Cursing and sarcasm not effective with 21st century kid. Tune you out!
  • Replace “but” with “now” when talking to players. “I like your release, now try to get your elbow over your knee”
  • Be Uncommon. Sprint back after a made basket.
  • “See what people can be, not what they are.”

21st Century Players

  • Top 2 ways they communicate – USE THEM; DON’T FIGHT THEM
    1) Facebook-Every team should have a page!
    2) Texting
  • Right and wrong is determined by age 13
  • What happened to the “gym rat”? Players have evolved and changed
  • 50 million sports participants ages 6-14, by age 15 only 7 million
  • #1 predictor of success is self-talk
  • Now dealing with 2nd crop of “trophy generation”

10 Expectations 21st Century Athletes Have

1. They want to contribute immediately
2. They want to feel important and do important things
3. They want to receive feedback immediately
4. They want to be treated as an individual
5. They want to have access to the head the coach
6. They want to experience meaningful relationships
7. They want a plan of measurable growth steps
8. They want to learn from their peers
9. They want to see results quickly
10. They want coaches to be innovative and have high expectations

Additional Thoughts

• 90% of plane crashes in US are caused by pilot error. Have a checklist!
• Can’t have a “scoreboard hangover mentality”. The past can’t affect the future!
• “I want to honor your time”.as a way of reengaging listeners when you speak
• Old coaches must learn from new coaches and vice versa (community of learners)
• “I won’t know if I’m a good parent until I see my grandchild act up in front of my son.”


Stoplight Theory of Improvement

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This article was written by University of Washington women’s Basketball Coach Mike Neighbors and shared with his permission.

I have made slight editing changes to adapt the message to all professions, not just basketball coaching.

If you want to download the original pdf, you can click here: STOPlight Theory

As coaches, we strive daily for improvement in ourselves and in our athletes. This article outlines a system to use to be intentional about those efforts to improve.

I hope you can find a few ideas from the list that you can apply. In Mike’s words” “All of these things are just examples to choose from… You could NEVER do them all so don’t try…”

A good way to get started is to select one idea from each color (or come up with one that fits for you) to focus on throughout the day.

If you find the article useful, please use one of the social sharing icons at the left of the article on a desktop or laptop, or at the top of the article on mobile devices.

THINGS I AM GOING TO STOP DOING: So many times in our day we make TO DO lists. It is just as important to have a list of things you WON’T DO! Those things vary for us all. Eliminating the distractions is vital to you making the most of your 24 hours in a day. Actually making a list of the things that WON’T do in your day to refer to throughout the day is a valuable tool. Examples: won’t check email until certain time, won’t “surf” the web until x number of things are done, won’t focus on anything that doesn’t effect your job until after the day’s most important task is completed, won’t focus on my “turkey’s” until my “eagles” are fed, won’t go home until my urgent pile is cleared, won’t go to lunch alone, won’t use sarcasm, won’t let things I can’t control effect the things I can, won’t resent others success, won’t fear failure, won’t be afraid of hearing bad news, won’t try to make everyone happy.

THINGS I AM GOING TO CONTINUE DOING: Identify the things that are positively impacting your day that you need to continue doing but might need to do so cautiously. These things can be positives when executed correctly but can border on negatives if you over/under utilize. Examples: Seek out people with opposite opinions, argue/debate/disagree, read and write, use data to make calculated decisions, telling others the truth, learn about leadership techniques but don’t be afraid to be different (Muppets principle), be unconventional, lead by insuring others can deal with adversity, focus on bright spots rather than total focus on deficient areas.

THINGS I AM GOING TO START DOING: List actionable things you want to introduce into your daily routine that will positively impact your 24 hours. Examples: Speak in images, use least invasive correction that is needed, surround yourself with smart people that challenge you, earn trust, whisper criticism/shout praise, confront then move on, build relationships, show people how much you care rather than how much you know, Separation in the preparation, teach rather than coach in practice, coach rather than teach off the court, REHEARSE things more often in practice, focus on being better rather than being good, trust “blink” decisions, get all the facts, simplify, be productive rather than busy, spend time with the right people, take people with you.

 

 


37 Thoughts Your Athletes Must Hear

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These are 37 of the 366 daily motivational thoughts for coaches to share with their players that we have compiled.

If you are interested in the entire list of 366 thoughts, you can download it at the bottom of the page.

I hope that there are several thoughts here that you can either use or give some thought to and tweak so that they become your won and fit what your athletes need to hear.

Toughness is a skill and can be practiced and improved like all other skills.

You should always want your coach to be critical. It gives you an opportunity to learn and to overcome adversity.

The more things you can do, the harder you are to keep out of the lineup.

You either get better or we get worse. You don’t stay the same, so we have to use every practice and workout to get better.

Concentrate on effort and execution; the results will take care of themselves.

No excuses, no explanations. You can either have results, or you can have excuses, not both.

Buy in or buy a ticket.

Good players give second efforts, great players give 3rd, 4th, and 5th efforts in both practices and games.

The only way for an individual athlete to improve is to work at an uncomfortable pace in practice and during their improvement season workouts. If you aren’t uncomfortable, chances are you aren’t improving.

“There is do and do not, there is no try.” Yoda in Star Wars

A player’s goal every practice should be to improve yourself for the benefit of the team.

Success is the sum of small efforts repeated day in and day out.

“Don’t mistake routine for commitment.” Don’t just show up, but give it everything you’ve got, every single time.

“Anyone who doesn’t make mistakes isn’t working hard enough.”

There are two pains in life, the pain of discipline, and the pain of regret. Take your choice.

Your energy level is controlled by your thoughts. Make a concentrated effort to think thoughts that increase your energy level.

We rate ability in people by what they finish, not what they start.

Successful and unsuccessful people do not vary greatly in their abilities. They vary in their desires and how smart and hard they are willing to work to reach their potential.

“Most people fail in life not because they aim too high and miss, but because they aim too low and hit.” Michelangelo

Play Hard, Play Smart and Play Together”. Hard means with effort, determination and courage; Smart means with proper execution and poise, Together means unselfishly, trusting your teammates and doing everything possible not to let them down.

“We all need a daily check up from the neck up to avoid stinkin’ thinkin’ which ultimately leads to hardening of the attitudes.” Zig Ziglar

“Any person capable of angering you becomes your master; he can anger you only when you permit yourself to be disturbed by him.” Epectetus

You don’t have to be bad to change. All too often, people resist change because they assume it means they were not OK to begin with.

It takes a minimum of 21 days of conscious repetition before anything becomes a habit. That means when you are learning or improving a skill, you must stick with it for at least 21 practice sessions or you will not see any improvement.

If you think small things don’t matter, think of the last game you lost by one point.

Teamwork: The fuel that produces uncommon results in common people.

Good enough is neither.

R.E.P.S.- Repetition Elevates Personal Skills.

“A person really doesn’t become whole, until he or she becomes a part of something that’s bigger than himself.” Jim Valvano

“Effort is only effort when it begins to hurt.” Jose Ortega y Gassett

“Your toughest competition in life is anyone who is willing to work harder than you.”

“The highest reward for a person’s toil is not what they get from it, but what they become by it.” John Ruskin

Life is like a bucket of water. We are a part of the whole. But how big is the hole that is left when we take away a large cup of water? The hole suddenly fills up and…life goes. The nature of life is that there is always someone who can and will take your place, when you think you are irreplaceable.

It’s not the hours you put in, it’s what you put in the hours.

Victory or defeat is not determined at the moment of crisis, but rather in the long and unspectacular period of preparation.

“When nothing seems to help, I go and look at a stonecutter hammering away at his rock perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred and first blow it will split in two, and I know it was not that blow that did it, but all that had gone before.” Jacob August Riis

This is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was asked to do it. Everybody was sure Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that, because it was Everybody’s job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn’t do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.