tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60897636254310151502024-03-15T18:10:25.351-07:00Arizona Sidelines Coaching BlogUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger182125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-74083430585926708922022-12-09T06:06:00.004-08:002022-12-09T06:09:31.092-08:00Coaching Takeaways from a Season in the Rearview...<p><i><span style="font-family: helvetica;"> At the end of a long volleyball season, it's not hard to see how they are a microcosm of life. The season; some good, some bad, filled with memories of grace and fortune and memories of grief and regret. It's the best time to ask coaches who were willing to share, what was their biggest takeaway from the season just ended.</span></i></p><p><i><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Please enjoy these high school and college coaches who opened up and shared a piece of themselves with you for all of us to learn.</span></i></p><p><i><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Thank you Coaches!</span></i></p><p><i><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></i></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #242424;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Never underestimate
the power of being flexible. Flexibility can open so many doors for both
players and coaches alike. For example: don't pigeonhole a player in one
position. If they want to try something new, find a way to let them experiment
with it. During our season due to injuries, illnesses and just not working
out in certain positions, we had to shift athletes around. Some of those shifts
worked out to enhance our lineup better than before the switches. Some found
out they were better than they thought and gained newfound confidence.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="color: #212121;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="color: #212121;">My biggest coaching
takeaway this season is that bigger isn't always better. After 22 matches,
going 14-8, putting our biggest players at the net, we switched to a faster,
small-ball lineup that put our two liberos all the way around in six rotations.
Our increased ball control allowed us to go 16-1 to end the season, only losing
one five-set thriller 17-19 at the state tournament against a 6'4" block.
Ball control, defense, and serve receive matter more than hitting and blocking.
We may have looked like a middle school team size-wise, but volleyball is just
a simple game of don't let the ball hit the floor.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #212121;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">My biggest takeaway is
finding a way to train resiliency.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="color: #212121;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="color: #242424;">My biggest take away from this season would be
to never look past the importance of each individual athlete and I learned it
is good to give your players power. When you empower them with knowledge and
give them mindfulness of their own skills, they can move mountains. My team was
an amazing group of players who played for themselves and their teammates. They
loved each other on and off the court. That is a tough combination to find in
our youth of today.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="background: white; color: #242424;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="color: #212121;">Players need to believe that they can win any
given match and must stay focused throughout the entire match in order to have
the best opportunity for success!</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #212121;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #212121;">Love my tribe,
grateful to be surrounded by a FUN and inspiring coaching staff. Players that
are ALL IN, seeking to be the best version of themselves, and looking to Be
About Others. Love that we can laugh, grow, and compete together. </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #212121;">Without stress there is no adaptation... more
controlled chaos... to explore what we are made of we need to be uncomfortable.
Seek to expose holes in our game, embrace failure, next point mindset...</span></span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="color: #212121;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #242424;">My biggest takeaways
from this season are that no matter the talent level in the gym or on the
roster, you will not be as successful as you would like to be unless EVERYONE involved
buys into the goal of the group. Team cohesion, unity, & valuing each
other's contributions are even more important than who jumps 30" and hits
straight down.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="color: #212121;"> </span><span style="color: #212121;">The biggest takeaway
from this season was that at the end of the day our athletes need to feel
loved, valued and appreciated. Whether the team exceeds your expectations or
underperforms the relationships between both their coaching staff and teammates
will determine how the season went for them. Intentionally cultivating
relationships and investing in community seems like it can never truly be overdone.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #242424;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">One of my biggest takeaways was just
reinforcement of an idea I try to incorporate every year if at all possible,
during playoffs. Basically, it is this; introduce something new before a big
match. I do this a lot and whatnot seem to do is convince the players that we
have something up our sleeve that is going to give us a competitive advantage.
They really buy into it most times. I know they did this year. We beat a team
in the quarterfinals that we weren't supposed to beat. They had tremendous
size, a 6'7 Florida commit and several other talented players. We moved the
lineup around a bit and changed our approach as to how we would serve them. It worked
and we punched them in the mouth. The girls played with so much confidence. So
my takeaway is, never get complacent with the successes, you can always adjust
the smallest of things to help your players with their confidence.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-14129332212345537842022-09-30T05:44:00.000-07:002022-09-30T05:44:01.447-07:00Getting in the way...<p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e;"><i>In December of 2021, the Az. Region hosted our "Education Weekend." Despite over 1000 coaches in the region, only 22 attended and only 16 finished the 2 1/2 day clinic. One of these 16 was a young coach from Tucson, a former player, who had just started working with her middle school team. </i></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e;"><i>With an open mind and willing to make changes, you can read here what it has brought her and her program.</i></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e; font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;">I wanted to let you know that the school season started a little more than a month ago and I have been implementing what I learned at the coach training from back in December. Practices are dedicated to either playing speedball or doing full bump/set/spike practice, which is very different from what I was doing before. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e; font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;">The girls are not only getting in maximum touches, but they absolutely love practice! I haven't heard "When can we...." which I did get in the past. We are still working out the logistics, but we have mostly figured out how to get two nets between the basketball hoop poles so there are practically no lines anymore. Not only did we not cut any players this year (we have 21 on the team), but they all are getting the entire practice at a net.</span></p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e;">This season we are also 4-1 with still more than half of the season to go, where in the three previous years our best season winning record was 3 games total. There are a few reasons why they are doing so well that are out of my control, but I feel like I am now supporting their experience instead of getting in the way of it. </span></span><div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e;">I can see exactly what they have been doing in practice applied in the game and they are even running plays now, which they never did before because I was so focused on bumping lines. </span><br aria-hidden="true" style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e;" /><br aria-hidden="true" style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e;">Because of everything I learned, I am finally feeling like I have some idea about what I am doing as a coach. I want to thank you again for organizing the training and to let you know that even almost a year later, it is still extremely impactful and was without a doubt worth the time and expense to attend. Also please pass along my thanks to John, Marouane, and all the other presenters.</span><br aria-hidden="true" style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e;" /><br aria-hidden="true" style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #201f1e;">PS We had an unfortunate season ending ankle injury with one of our players and I am planning a practice dedicated to sitting volleyball so she can play with the team again. I would not have thought about that without having heard from Whitney!</span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-20391391837486305202022-09-05T22:46:00.002-07:002022-09-05T22:46:30.088-07:00...The Same River Twice...<p> <span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">"Alexa, make me a better coach..."</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYhKZxdsY1gh3FNvcD0RvREAZz7OEJjmNgPyenVOunT5vHEqJvV6pwJ_OnUYQlby3h8lEE33BM-UhOWmMBohIgkL8EI5TdxHw_cmKPrGYXF6qFs5brnsHGucGXmETV65qCJ42yI0tjwl4O6pmfbjWht_JGfxnOqgwWQiNfgmlwqfqB6vgrAyME0DrsJw/s333/istockphoto-1138637695-612x612.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="308" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYhKZxdsY1gh3FNvcD0RvREAZz7OEJjmNgPyenVOunT5vHEqJvV6pwJ_OnUYQlby3h8lEE33BM-UhOWmMBohIgkL8EI5TdxHw_cmKPrGYXF6qFs5brnsHGucGXmETV65qCJ42yI0tjwl4O6pmfbjWht_JGfxnOqgwWQiNfgmlwqfqB6vgrAyME0DrsJw/s320/istockphoto-1138637695-612x612.jpg" width="296" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p>Why wouldn't this work? </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">We can ask Alexa to play me side 2 of Pearl Jam's Vs. album in it's entirety at the volume we want, when we want by just asking loudly.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">We can get on the phone and order pretty much any food we have a hankering for and it will be delivered to us within the hour to our front door.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">We don't have to wait for next week's installment of our favorite television show, we can just download all the episodes and watch them in class, or on our bathroom or lunch breaks. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">We don't have to take the film down to a photo processor to get our prints an hour later. We can just pull up the thousands we have on our phone right now AND send them to anyone in a split second.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">We can jump into a group text and sit in the comfort of our bedrooms while we chat with our friends without all the messy facial expressions, voice inflection or learning how to read people. We can just chat on our terms.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9GCRTfSGemN8_IVnezxXmkw4Wv0GkrttVPG0RCBeipFurP6A0rAITbHnOB5soUnzl2s_am1fdk2aFtJ244A9s4_mMPnE7QxIg33kUBxR_vnfuxwbuzYqu-y6SSD0lswIHvnveO7GchxibRVFalfd5wxo5gqifKyzp7a0mWNE6fDi3v0CwTQGo1yGqgQ/s3423/GettyImages-930257858-5c3d3159c9e77c000129861b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1781" data-original-width="3423" height="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9GCRTfSGemN8_IVnezxXmkw4Wv0GkrttVPG0RCBeipFurP6A0rAITbHnOB5soUnzl2s_am1fdk2aFtJ244A9s4_mMPnE7QxIg33kUBxR_vnfuxwbuzYqu-y6SSD0lswIHvnveO7GchxibRVFalfd5wxo5gqifKyzp7a0mWNE6fDi3v0CwTQGo1yGqgQ/s320/GettyImages-930257858-5c3d3159c9e77c000129861b.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p>We can hop on a number of social media spiderwebs to see all the good things that happen to our friends or teams, but not nearly as often do we see the losses or bad moments. These are too traumatic. Losing isn't in the playbook!</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">"Alexa...I'm waiting..."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">It's not anyone's fault. We are in a society based on me, my time, my comfort, my likes and dislikes and my tolerance for those around me.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Not just the kids you are coaching, or the Parents you will be involved with this season, but your co coaches, your assistant coaches, your Club Director.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">So if no one will tell you this, it's time someone did.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Watching a video is a miniscule part of being a better coach. Listening to podcasts is a step. Volunteering to assist a coach or a team is a step. Reading is a step. Not just coaching books, but science journals and asking questions are steps. </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigm239yLFO5l5VpX5Qh2QsXY6Jt9OcDZQoRfklv4tjj1RrWzxilOIYJShn-0LUUIgbVfNRcMvakzAblaCjNf4J5GXONEx2xaOvc4vC3jrBpk6Xich626gKsyLF23Z6qLWgwMmG4wBHuWTZlC7VuIoCbruF06WNyO_up3aTMxgfS5Cllur8QaStDSRjxA/s620/6-Steps-to-Uncover-Your-Inner-Greatness.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="380" data-original-width="620" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigm239yLFO5l5VpX5Qh2QsXY6Jt9OcDZQoRfklv4tjj1RrWzxilOIYJShn-0LUUIgbVfNRcMvakzAblaCjNf4J5GXONEx2xaOvc4vC3jrBpk6Xich626gKsyLF23Z6qLWgwMmG4wBHuWTZlC7VuIoCbruF06WNyO_up3aTMxgfS5Cllur8QaStDSRjxA/s320/6-Steps-to-Uncover-Your-Inner-Greatness.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p>The good news is that all the things we talked about up top are also things that can help you in your quest. It's easier than ever to hear great coaches talk via podcasts and YouTube. It's never been easier to read a book or listen to it. You can watch volleyball online at almost every level with minimal cost and high speed internet. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">But Alexa isn't the answer.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicKz2SEXd6HoattQ18s99g6LgCC6zo21eXuh21copJKOTlOB2CunEBM9fcr-BPJvOANxBnMWYsa6Py19L9CcuuVCOG04fSB92E8uP-I6r9WqZd1CkRJBdsRJgQcfbs4cm-FGuWCVqTOTJfbn5Jtmdk7r_OgIDSbYBhYFxuVge25ZOcbxrJF9eG20xaCA/s244/download%20(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="244" data-original-width="207" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicKz2SEXd6HoattQ18s99g6LgCC6zo21eXuh21copJKOTlOB2CunEBM9fcr-BPJvOANxBnMWYsa6Py19L9CcuuVCOG04fSB92E8uP-I6r9WqZd1CkRJBdsRJgQcfbs4cm-FGuWCVqTOTJfbn5Jtmdk7r_OgIDSbYBhYFxuVge25ZOcbxrJF9eG20xaCA/s1600/download%20(2).jpg" width="207" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p>Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher born in 544 B.C. said, “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.”</span><p></p><div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Experience is the ultimate teacher, in both success and failure. But it can't be gathered from inside our bedrooms or inside our cars or all from our phones. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Meet us halfway. If there is a clinic you think will help, find the excuse TO go. If there is a coach you want to see or a team that interests you, make the effort. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">We ask so much of our athletes all season and beyond. Why shouldn't they expect the same from us?<br /><br /></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-58526536427159449722022-09-05T02:39:00.005-07:002022-09-05T22:16:32.906-07:00Magic Beans and Fairy Dust...<p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Bill coaches a medium sized high school team in New Jersey.
He did a 4-day camp the week before tryouts and two scrimmages to see his team
together, experiment with some different line ups and situations, try to find
leadership and help solidify some decisions going into week one with as much
concrete information as possible.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Camp ended and he was ready. His outside hitter was a beast,
and she was also a team leader. Although she had only been playing for just
barely a year, she had blossomed as an athlete in volleyball and the team was
better because of her. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Two days after camp and one day before tryouts, the outside
hitter was playing football with her brothers. A hard pass, a late hand and she
broke a finger on her attacking side. She was done for a good part of the
season.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Bill was angry, then disappointed and then in reorganization
mode. What to do now? <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Z1masMtdq2smztHImGICmK7F9NPprnXlj27MwhBibIfxuingYsuFae9EOmqpvCzDvUcO6YxZC-42FGdSDI6cQqebprYK2NO0f2uMFP98dTIy8YNdOIp2xNSxkc-W2C8IkzYTeLc-wDARXADgVdIgLCMDjVIIXKscwcNmjfmoO2D3fM6IZUYCo1GW4A/s1200/3f9e500e-c217-4222-a4a6-c04bf966ac3b.24c6af0b51889929224dc5ce4470641c.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Z1masMtdq2smztHImGICmK7F9NPprnXlj27MwhBibIfxuingYsuFae9EOmqpvCzDvUcO6YxZC-42FGdSDI6cQqebprYK2NO0f2uMFP98dTIy8YNdOIp2xNSxkc-W2C8IkzYTeLc-wDARXADgVdIgLCMDjVIIXKscwcNmjfmoO2D3fM6IZUYCo1GW4A/s320/3f9e500e-c217-4222-a4a6-c04bf966ac3b.24c6af0b51889929224dc5ce4470641c.webp" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><span style="font-size: medium;">On February 4</span></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><sup style="font-family: helvetica;">th</sup><span style="font-family: helvetica;">, the Phoenix Mercury became one
of the betting favorites to win a WNBA title even though the season was still
months away. They had acquired a seasoned post in Tina Charles to a one-year
deal with the pure intent of this being an all-in go at the trophy. All Stars
Brittney Griner, Diana Taurasi and Skyler Diggins-Smith were ready to lead this
team to it’s fourth Championship with the deep and star studded talent fashioning
the box score.</span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Two weeks later it all began to unravel.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Center piece Brittany Griner was arrested in Russia where
she still sits today, at the writing of this blog, in a Russian prison, found
guilty of drug charges. The team was distraught and played distracted and affected
for their new coach. Charles asked out of her contract after just 17 games
because she didn’t think she was getting the ball enough. Taurasi suffered an
injury and despite, somehow, still making the playoffs, Diggins-Smith also left
the team the last two weeks of the season. What had begun with such high hopes
crashed into a 2-0 sweep in the playoffs.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK5eY5lr63X86p2UmFLEWtZOEnmFgrR2KAAglWWVidmSpNIeFf30GhQk2ADqQ-077DeRCVY-bMqhv4w2mTFUqvw22apjKOWQjDc5XVg60WH0Q8fMjIuCpU2sOxamh3WJwNVHNsDk95BJMhgLb7YJFC9BiwAQcKFxS7wlv42GFgKsvOmCu-Tac0uLFi9A/s1320/16596269404436.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="743" data-original-width="1320" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK5eY5lr63X86p2UmFLEWtZOEnmFgrR2KAAglWWVidmSpNIeFf30GhQk2ADqQ-077DeRCVY-bMqhv4w2mTFUqvw22apjKOWQjDc5XVg60WH0Q8fMjIuCpU2sOxamh3WJwNVHNsDk95BJMhgLb7YJFC9BiwAQcKFxS7wlv42GFgKsvOmCu-Tac0uLFi9A/s320/16596269404436.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">As Coaches AND Parents, we have stories we tell ourselves. “This
team is good enough to win it all.” “My daughter is the best player on this
team!” Rarely do those stories flesh out into reality and yet we continue to
tell ourselves these fairy tales over and over. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">As coaches, we must prepare for the worst. In 1988, Paul
Westphal was a 37-year-old ex player looking to get some experience and coached
Grand Canyon College to an NAIA Championship. What is forgotten is that late in
the season he suspended two of his best front court players and highest scorers
for team violations. Despite being short AND shorthanded, Westphal used what he
had and beat the favorite Auburn-Montgomery 88-86 for the Championship.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn53Gihp693cXUiCKTejkdHt9laacGoTUF_3632RNFDxX03XferNcvTyeZMlVHzuekRD3k7EMXpf1fR1lWGPlthl12m00fLye6daQ7KgFKPogtkeNeAa2lkBpUkGer0mBQ6uq2u4nRlFX0s5m-cEbf7NvRk6zTUS9pVhKDP23-2oX5RmWdAtdW-JiKCQ/s300/Westphal_1988.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="213" data-original-width="300" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn53Gihp693cXUiCKTejkdHt9laacGoTUF_3632RNFDxX03XferNcvTyeZMlVHzuekRD3k7EMXpf1fR1lWGPlthl12m00fLye6daQ7KgFKPogtkeNeAa2lkBpUkGer0mBQ6uq2u4nRlFX0s5m-cEbf7NvRk6zTUS9pVhKDP23-2oX5RmWdAtdW-JiKCQ/s1600/Westphal_1988.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><br />Did Westphal expect to lose two crucial players as the playoffs loomed? Probably
not but he did what great coaches do: he prepared for the worst! He had plans
ready just in case. <o:p></o:p></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzWCRcZFb4_cWJIS1Kkmjv8bqRG8hWeYuRV8jguZOFpGpr-sRtAx9W6smysD84xxfstSYAFmlpLlUcnd1O0Uo21nJOFiMgQb65eRYRPv5ouj3dHgILDVNW8GDrzdrvI2Zf3FFJO8IFb_V0r9rIyi4RAASUZB5BZumBEBzsrD_MR2GZ6e9BFDhb3gxqRg/s270/image_handler.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="186" data-original-width="270" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzWCRcZFb4_cWJIS1Kkmjv8bqRG8hWeYuRV8jguZOFpGpr-sRtAx9W6smysD84xxfstSYAFmlpLlUcnd1O0Uo21nJOFiMgQb65eRYRPv5ouj3dHgILDVNW8GDrzdrvI2Zf3FFJO8IFb_V0r9rIyi4RAASUZB5BZumBEBzsrD_MR2GZ6e9BFDhb3gxqRg/s1600/image_handler.jpg" width="270" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;">If your best player goes down tomorrow, do you raise the white
flag and cry foul? Or do you have another option? Do you have back up plans after
back up plans ready? Are your players ready to play one position or volleyball?</span></p></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">The chances your high school or club season will go exactly as planned is a winning
Lotto ticket. Think, as coaches and Parents, all the things that could DERAIL
your season, then work backwards to help stem those tides. Bad grades, family
emergencies, injuries, burn out, Parent over involvement and disruption,
coaching change, etc. And in all of these, you an still not account for everything
and anything that might happen. Life is random.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Your expectations of the narrative we tell ourselves is just
that, a narrative. Our lives are full of them, daily. When things don’t meet the
expectations of our narrative, we become disappointed, even though often our
expectations are rooted in magic beans and fairy dust.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDE9crsjYkv810-3lUrnmejoNoQcMjV6_-Xnf2Vum3Ppz30ngDIai_M9cdY3j8o6s6dPSzyehItelcInPePM_W145zMHenV7vfLH8eqppKAMO5xg6Csi68w1gpgIXM15-EdXri88xR_HsvEBMkpK-LyIByYFeuP-UA3_ok3a9N8CnhATykvI26u9myow/s786/The-Expectation-vs-reality-trap.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="786" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDE9crsjYkv810-3lUrnmejoNoQcMjV6_-Xnf2Vum3Ppz30ngDIai_M9cdY3j8o6s6dPSzyehItelcInPePM_W145zMHenV7vfLH8eqppKAMO5xg6Csi68w1gpgIXM15-EdXri88xR_HsvEBMkpK-LyIByYFeuP-UA3_ok3a9N8CnhATykvI26u9myow/s320/The-Expectation-vs-reality-trap.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><p class="MsoNormal">Be realistic, see beyond the obvious and understand that which has become clear
to every great coach and parent in the world. </p></span>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Life teaches us humility. </span><o:p></o:p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-90923541939292855782022-08-21T16:00:00.003-07:002022-08-21T16:00:44.122-07:00"One, two or three contacts and don't let the ball hit the floor..."<p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"> </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Send it over the net in 1, 2 or 3 contacts and don’t let the
ball hit the floor on your side.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">She started with that simple formula. She was a college
basketball player who was offered a job coaching High School basketball BUT was
told she would also have to coach volleyball.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">She didn’t know anything about volleyball. She had never
played the sport. So she enlisted the mother of her best friend who was a
volleyball coach, travelling hours to her home the day before the season
started to copy drills, learn the game and come up with any idea on how to
coach something she didn’t know at all.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1-oNYpblI71zCiESn9hNQIwD6mZjqsui5N3dcrHCLK39r8ARYyLHDMxN4r09JrnXkUHxoteNwnU7tAjPRbD2cEGJ8eaep5YRAUoLRtL5kHU-PQisowtnzP7DzzKqqGtRRhQryl_gSBD_AJw8VdJMMLLYZe6T7lUywtVBtW1all6_1ncbNfnv7FX-aeg/s806/Anna.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="806" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1-oNYpblI71zCiESn9hNQIwD6mZjqsui5N3dcrHCLK39r8ARYyLHDMxN4r09JrnXkUHxoteNwnU7tAjPRbD2cEGJ8eaep5YRAUoLRtL5kHU-PQisowtnzP7DzzKqqGtRRhQryl_gSBD_AJw8VdJMMLLYZe6T7lUywtVBtW1all6_1ncbNfnv7FX-aeg/s320/Anna.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p>Another coach described his journey</span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">. “I became
involved in volleyball when I went to college with the intention of being a
basketball coach and happened to go to a school … that doesn’t exist any
longer, and it happened to be a school that was very good in volleyball. Just
randomly got involved in volleyball because of that. I never took a volleyball
class before I got to college, so I transitioned from basketball to volleyball
while I was there. I just took a couple classes and learned how to play and was
on the team and had terrific mentors that were open to sharing their passion
for the game with people who knew nothing about the game.”</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj30kErK_2XPPUtYx1Cu-x_Ycop_88mRSJH735XVBjB7hhMTfk6n5MFstcfwke6baJ0OARQmSN8P3iClqd-cWlNwUIwMPSG1Zo_oArgfCRr5r5HosE617cDCRY_J2XLhuJw8H5Beg5aE_8PQRz1jokacbDAFOLeLhq95eI5APflzsHVRLzjHdTdHXtDFA/s640/Dl4VWR-WwAA8KwS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="393" data-original-width="640" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj30kErK_2XPPUtYx1Cu-x_Ycop_88mRSJH735XVBjB7hhMTfk6n5MFstcfwke6baJ0OARQmSN8P3iClqd-cWlNwUIwMPSG1Zo_oArgfCRr5r5HosE617cDCRY_J2XLhuJw8H5Beg5aE_8PQRz1jokacbDAFOLeLhq95eI5APflzsHVRLzjHdTdHXtDFA/s320/Dl4VWR-WwAA8KwS.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p>Another coach graduated from a high school in Indiana
and a classmate was coaching the JV team at their alma mater. This coach casually
offered his services not thinking she would ever call. This fan of the game,
who used to go watch his sister play, he got hooked as the JV team he was
helping with went undefeated as did the varsity. The next year he jumped to
another school and a coaching journey saw the rubber hit the road.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh81p8IDI3TDMCJyzsRshdd_o2sI4wcP5acmZR1MuC0AvcvSftfh3rZ_ZT526FLtNDJ4Fhj3Cxd_ORX9g6U2gfbKuE7QNgvkjl-Bo0YnTvdkOcFBMc-F7Zv5jnIB0kOWytyGmDCMwC2phQRO9Ge-hGKwQkUPvLBq25zQ83o9T6akGVMFxisTJG5PtRw5Q/s800/laurencarlini_0.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="532" data-original-width="800" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh81p8IDI3TDMCJyzsRshdd_o2sI4wcP5acmZR1MuC0AvcvSftfh3rZ_ZT526FLtNDJ4Fhj3Cxd_ORX9g6U2gfbKuE7QNgvkjl-Bo0YnTvdkOcFBMc-F7Zv5jnIB0kOWytyGmDCMwC2phQRO9Ge-hGKwQkUPvLBq25zQ83o9T6akGVMFxisTJG5PtRw5Q/s320/laurencarlini_0.webp" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p>How did you get started? Your daughter played? Someone
at your city or park program needed coaches? Maybe you just wanted to assist
and got caught up in the excitement and rewards of coaching young people?</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The why is important. The who is important. The how is
most important.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Coaches must be flexible, chameleons of social and behavioral
changes in their athletes. Cultures change, society changes, attitudes, and
influences change. Coaches must change with them to survive the profession.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The coach who graduated from a high school in Indiana
won his first NCAA National Championship last season as coach of the University
of Wisconsin Badgers. Kelly Sheffield is heading into his 35</span><sup style="font-family: helvetica;">th</sup><span style="font-family: helvetica;"> year
of collegiate coaching and is one of the preseason favorites to repeat as
National Champions.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBlKlqN6K-XhSFZNVqbEaw3cdqPcHyTDgh5jdnwqQZlBgw1c5G0p2p0-hoLu_I896fE_WyAImtkewqYF0VkssiO1bqSsbPAHYmCSEt0BEC6kc9-Tkd1j_OBC4wxuvuXCahVrckvdVR3rqGGPH1nhHvjUOZoq_FcJOf22P4EFIpNtD_yimzujScEXwYUQ/s1400/1198118600.jpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1400" data-original-width="1400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBlKlqN6K-XhSFZNVqbEaw3cdqPcHyTDgh5jdnwqQZlBgw1c5G0p2p0-hoLu_I896fE_WyAImtkewqYF0VkssiO1bqSsbPAHYmCSEt0BEC6kc9-Tkd1j_OBC4wxuvuXCahVrckvdVR3rqGGPH1nhHvjUOZoq_FcJOf22P4EFIpNtD_yimzujScEXwYUQ/s320/1198118600.jpg.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p>The coach who went to college to coach basketball
retired last season after 43 years, 7 National Championships and leaves the
Penn State volleyball program as a perennial powerhouse. Russ Rose embraced the
sport as both a player, a coach and an official and his ideas and strategies
are DNA for many coaches and programs across the world.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipAeQ1K8xzv4LuO79PVngwnE3xMi8cn_yoTXOX0Wjur1aLey54TxI92E1Q4Rxb-3OCeHpsSZSu1Mh8sDs378Z6vdcoWVzHuB9-W5cSwkkCfL9ay9Bwz2wTjZkIvGtN_dI-In6wEbyLr7I2x4H7IH7yTay-ho8IT4aTlqQ0t1XJ0qF1aBBy82RGP1B1xA/s620/6_5571877.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="620" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipAeQ1K8xzv4LuO79PVngwnE3xMi8cn_yoTXOX0Wjur1aLey54TxI92E1Q4Rxb-3OCeHpsSZSu1Mh8sDs378Z6vdcoWVzHuB9-W5cSwkkCfL9ay9Bwz2wTjZkIvGtN_dI-In6wEbyLr7I2x4H7IH7yTay-ho8IT4aTlqQ0t1XJ0qF1aBBy82RGP1B1xA/s320/6_5571877.png" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p>The high school basketball player who boiled down the
game to two mantras is starting her 41</span><sup style="font-family: helvetica;">st</sup><span style="font-family: helvetica;"> year at Dorman High School
in South Carolina. Paula Kirkland has won 14 S.C. State High School
Championships and is poised for another this season. She admits it took her 10
years to be comfortable with what she was doing as a coach, but she has been a
cornerstone of both club and high school ball in South Carolina since.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZXwECN96A2SrdHMHPYfAyX7nmH4k_8bPXWAhnn3L1FqdFQ6B1kCgpUriFzOnInaYSAq2nXldZyrQZb9AF0_zhIErjxmOeAbon3Jj5-RnN2qJjDUf9d2I1W5Vyhgi02fizEgAIxSmq7CkmliISKrXW5-O9FYMKX-tsET7SqOjd6I2A-CAeoSDXANyOpQ/s1200/61FD0B1A-6A86-4179-903E-0D75D7C04AC6.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1200" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZXwECN96A2SrdHMHPYfAyX7nmH4k_8bPXWAhnn3L1FqdFQ6B1kCgpUriFzOnInaYSAq2nXldZyrQZb9AF0_zhIErjxmOeAbon3Jj5-RnN2qJjDUf9d2I1W5Vyhgi02fizEgAIxSmq7CkmliISKrXW5-O9FYMKX-tsET7SqOjd6I2A-CAeoSDXANyOpQ/s320/61FD0B1A-6A86-4179-903E-0D75D7C04AC6.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p>All three of these legends had to change. The things
they practiced, the way they practiced. They opened their minds and never
thought they knew it all. They continued and continue to learn from others,
gather more information from different sources and read and listen to make
themselves better.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Chances are you won’t see 35 or 40+ years coaching. But
your athletes deserve nothing less than a coach who is a lifelong learner. A
coach who doesn’t think they have all the answers. Your athletes are asked every
practice to get better.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It’s a standard we should hold ourselves to as well.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Paula, Russ and Kelly have.</span></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-61448245255914713192022-06-17T07:25:00.010-07:002022-06-17T07:29:54.673-07:00"Cold and Timid Souls..."<p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">The Golden State Warriors won the 2022
NBA championship last night, defeating the Boston Celtics in six games. This is
the fact. And now comes the noise…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Pundits will crush Boston’s All-Star
and Olympic Gold Medalist Jayson Tatum because he only scored 13 points on 6 of
18 field goal attempts and he had 5 turnovers. Of course, Tatum is to blame….<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Think for just a minute of the
silliness of that statement. Jayson Tatum is to blame for the Celtics losing.
He led the team in scoring this season, averaging 27 points and chipping in 8
rebounds and 4 assists per game. He was their best player and without him it’s
hard to imagine the Celtics would have even made the playoffs.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXcRgV4nK-r5BRuDh--2hWvjOD8cgOWz0ooKTyNepSm3vNNW3HasV8fNQVP8Nosa7SlFEgY4zfdHCc5qTspVwW8gs9yd5T5idQ9-gODA1bkzp1gCZgcSHSuP2N6C8nE3N6pwIdFSNG86g7516W7z5GIcYOtzDUcYpBTYYTHiu2lswdLY2kIsHzJeFECg/s1920/a15ba-16554409574761-1920.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1279" data-original-width="1920" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXcRgV4nK-r5BRuDh--2hWvjOD8cgOWz0ooKTyNepSm3vNNW3HasV8fNQVP8Nosa7SlFEgY4zfdHCc5qTspVwW8gs9yd5T5idQ9-gODA1bkzp1gCZgcSHSuP2N6C8nE3N6pwIdFSNG86g7516W7z5GIcYOtzDUcYpBTYYTHiu2lswdLY2kIsHzJeFECg/s320/a15ba-16554409574761-1920.webp" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>But it’s Tatum’s fault that Golden
State won.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Go back to last week and one of Golden
State’s best players, Klay Thompson was only 4 of 15 in his three-point attempts
in the first two games. ESPN analysts boldly predicted that the Warriors would
lose if Thompson continued to play this badly. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">He didn’t and the blame was redirected
to the next player who was in line with the type of statistics that those who
ARE NOT playing in the NBA think they should have. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Yes, this is the definition of preposterous.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">But it isn’t just a professional sports
infection.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">The word stems from the 1100’s Latin
word “blasphemere” which was to “speak lightly or amiss of god or sacred
things,” the word whittled down to its current adaptation: blame.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">If you have been asleep, comatose, or
living in a bunker for the last 50 years, maybe you haven’t noticed. But blame
is the currency of American politics, the driving force behind sports talk
shows, the rationale for unforeseen and unfortunate outcomes and overall, a
self-serving AND face-saving strategy for all.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjYYVo4S0hceTuVki7l7c_9rii_mMd4qgAn7_PUd0uaGt6rdIoLUr3gFRDmdqEQk6zT-myj_uK0aLeMxNzVJBIVzBZPvAUzdYcAfJGEE2GB5TTVxihDdxLbQfMqqMdMx6eAEIxbp2qbubSnodccltbwy-1e6uT1Z-GBcmK1fOlqm3_sO5ZyCmpXNy9Iw/s932/blame.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="932" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjYYVo4S0hceTuVki7l7c_9rii_mMd4qgAn7_PUd0uaGt6rdIoLUr3gFRDmdqEQk6zT-myj_uK0aLeMxNzVJBIVzBZPvAUzdYcAfJGEE2GB5TTVxihDdxLbQfMqqMdMx6eAEIxbp2qbubSnodccltbwy-1e6uT1Z-GBcmK1fOlqm3_sO5ZyCmpXNy9Iw/s320/blame.png" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Blaming others has been around since
Eve coaxed Adam to take a bite of an apple, but it is becoming more a coursing lifeblood
of athletes, fans and coaches of youth sports as well.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">The last tournament you attended; can
you count how many times YOU blamed someone else? The official? The coach? The
site director? USAV rules? The club? Another player or parent on the team?
Another team or coach? Just this ONE instance, this literal teardrop in an
ocean of a youth sports career and we have used blame like it’s oxygen. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Have you ever wondered why? Why are we
so quick to blame? The person driving slow in front of us made us late! It
wasn’t the fact that I was late leaving the house and now trying to speed up
for the time I wasted earlier.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">The official that just called my
daughter for a double isn’t calling anything on the other team and hates our
team, it’s not likely that my daughter is still learning to set and is still
making mistakes in the learning process.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0p-1QXjVaNFY6WbWeUFHuRJ9WERpW4rEPA7ZU_gPXOrTDEkS1iYzEUoIyMuagyz0M-4eUVBo-56bSkifZ9CYLvMJNuwUjplf5lH3Cr8PX7bkmC5bFlo5SrCVSxx1yfI9J7KBv_UV5eebUfJucDLqjitvmWrMYjuSZ3gAgRa5Lh0IilE6dy6ZUbDBhbw/s3200/636676090332663391-soccer-mom.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1808" data-original-width="3200" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0p-1QXjVaNFY6WbWeUFHuRJ9WERpW4rEPA7ZU_gPXOrTDEkS1iYzEUoIyMuagyz0M-4eUVBo-56bSkifZ9CYLvMJNuwUjplf5lH3Cr8PX7bkmC5bFlo5SrCVSxx1yfI9J7KBv_UV5eebUfJucDLqjitvmWrMYjuSZ3gAgRa5Lh0IilE6dy6ZUbDBhbw/s320/636676090332663391-soccer-mom.webp" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><p class="MsoNormal">My team lost their rivalry game
because the coach is an idiot and doesn’t know how to coach, it’s not the fact
that for today, for this moment, the other team was better.</p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Why blame others? <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Noted author Simon Sinek skims the
argument and comes up with this: <span style="background-color: white;">“<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419;">Accountability
is hard. Blame is easy. One builds trust, the other destroys it.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Renowned
author Brene’ Brown scuttles blame into two quick points. “Blame is simply the
discharging of discomfort and pain.” And, “Blame is faster than
accountability.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">The
Harvard Business Review talks about blame as “the germ that spreads and is the
goal of protecting one’s self-image.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">And in
a wonderful article from a few years back, Andrea Blundell in the Harley
Therapy counselling blog gives 5 valid reasons for blame:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;">1.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;">Blaming others
is easy.</span></span></li><li><span style="background-color: white; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #0f1419; font-family: helvetica; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">2.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; font-family: helvetica; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">Blame means you
don’t have to be vulnerable.</span></span></li><li><span style="background-color: white; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #0f1419; font-family: helvetica; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">3.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; font-family: helvetica; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">Blaming others
feeds your need for control.</span></span></li><li><span style="background-color: white; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #0f1419; font-family: helvetica; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">4.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; font-family: helvetica; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">Blame unloads
backed up feelings.</span></span></li><li><span style="background-color: white; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #0f1419; font-family: helvetica; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">5.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; font-family: helvetica; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">Blame protects
your ego.</span></span></li></ul><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><!--[if !supportLists]--></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Unpacking
these ideas gives us a sense of why we are so quick to blame others. But there
is a moral casualty from our behavior that festers under the surface.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Our
children, our athletes become victims.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Blame
stokes the furnace of the “poor me” attitude. The athlete that is misunderstood
by their coach, hated by the officials, chided by the other parents, not the
coaches favorite. “Why should I work hard? No one on the team gives me the ball
anyway!” <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">This
mentality is a hop, skip and a jump from walking away from sports, perhaps
forever.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Are
their coaches with favorites? Of course. Is an athlete hated by an official?
Perhaps but highly unlikely. Other parents treat this athlete badly? Maybe, but
a better explanation is that kids can hear what they want to hear. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">The
bottom line is that every mistake on your life can be blamed on something or
someone other than you. That is the reality of blame.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">But
when you see coaches take the blame for a loss, or players stepping into the mouth
of the media lion, there is something refreshing and courageous about those
moments. Probably because they are so rare. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">As always,
the mirror is our best teacher. Next time you want to blame someone, stop.
Remember that young athletes are not professionals and are still learning. Remember
that officials are not perfect and miss things. Remember that professional
athletics are and will always be random. Remember that a jump shot in
basketball is not automatic and that a swing on a volleyball court isn’t always
a point.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0f1419; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="1200" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1RpUdr6Lfy9y64mrJ54swWrCBWTHDItrnlb-gtnKVA3VygUPkyvYErFjC6XOTna61eEdCfe3ueEJonQoffRDP9mivYaYLTsgypfHAKNK5ix0iHNFBomanl7fc_ufuUCyNGGOi8HjHukxw6swtXcb3e-xFhsfZXi1akKNnwNypY_uBY0a9fKSjHStvcQ/s320/president-theodore-roosevelt-glacier-point-yosemite-national-park-1903-loc.jpg" width="320" /></span></div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><br /><span>But
most of all, remember what Theodore Roosevelt said in his famous quote.
Appreciate the effort, the hard work, the commitment. And those critics that
spend their time and make a living criticizing others don’t deserve our
attention:</span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 15.75pt; margin-bottom: 11.25pt; mso-outline-level: 1;"><i><span style="color: #181818;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: medium;">“It is not the critic who counts; not
the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds
could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the
arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly;
who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without
error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows
great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause;
who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at
the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place
shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor
defeat.”</span></span></span></i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-82936794369314870882022-05-22T11:22:00.002-07:002022-05-22T11:22:13.221-07:00"What are you willing to do?"<span style="font-family: helvetica;">There is nothing simple about coaching. </span><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br />Nothing.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Managing personalities: athletes, parents, staffs, administrations, it's a full time job BEFORE you get to the practices and match management. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">But certain ideas and methods help. Are you a coach of science or habit? Are you a coach of ego or inclusion? Are you a coach that loves what you are doing or always feels undervalued and underappreciated.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Another principle comes to mind in this chaotic world we are balancing daily.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Volodymyr Zelensky is overseeing the invasion and destruction of his country. Russia attacked Ukraine in a highly anticipated military juggernaut in early February and since those opening days, President Zelensky has been the face of freedom, courage and integrity in a country the world saw just a few months ago, as helpless and doomed.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8-5qeY2WTAeL33uRlx-q8u6-6VS1Xysj2g7EdAZ-dKXOOXT6YC-wO52S29mVzsOeaNhj-lpO3cFKxosDFVR3SM0RlDqj6L_zEDvjz7pTF2DTfVpdCv5XmT6mSAAWA2OeU6n9Lu1_rsBOHNtKJHBphEcFWOJdnXToxCzrOR2oXPzAiufBLjkQJLycY0g/s275/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8-5qeY2WTAeL33uRlx-q8u6-6VS1Xysj2g7EdAZ-dKXOOXT6YC-wO52S29mVzsOeaNhj-lpO3cFKxosDFVR3SM0RlDqj6L_zEDvjz7pTF2DTfVpdCv5XmT6mSAAWA2OeU6n9Lu1_rsBOHNtKJHBphEcFWOJdnXToxCzrOR2oXPzAiufBLjkQJLycY0g/s1600/images.jpg" width="275" /></a></div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">He has, more than any other world figure in recent memory, transformed this once thought to be slaughter of his people by Russian forces into a nail biting, give and take daily struggle for freedom. The underdog is alive and well at the moment!</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Zelensky has captured the hearts of the world with his courageous videos. He has lowered himself to take meetings with important US political figures, (many of the Americans looking for an election photo to bring in more fundraising), and has begged and pleaded for help from the US and other western countries, putting his ego aside for the good of his people and his nation.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It is too soon to tell how this war will be reconciled but Zelensky is now cemented in history books and social media memes as a beacon of courage and integrity.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Why has he taken the world's imagination? Perhaps it's because we have little to no one in power these days that is courageous and demonstrates integrity.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Coaching 12-14 year old's, it's hard to imagine how they will view the U.S. political system. What President will they write their essays about in the coming years that won't create havoc within their family or social circles? </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Currently, rife with lies and mistruths, we are voting on our future with people willing to sell their souls and convictions for high donors and opportunities for election results. We have government positions being decided by a "big lie" that even it's perpetrators know (and have slipped to say) is fake. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br />Integrity is a missing ingredient in our leadership around the country and the world. Not just in politics but in business and of course, sport. Daily examples of doping, cheating and less than model behavior saturate our hunger for online content. None of this is new of course. In this global theater now just a swipe away, we have instant access to the foibles in our jean pockets.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFKx8GTMjscG4YIqPidb8mmbCTg7yZ6MXFzKPigxyFDlOM2tarLAqUn1u7DzagDdEN3K5tXLCrLlCbUm2wms2h4cMoNEsFM7jp6AaAUFP4KKXGbM7P_SJIn9yRsrkW0CCO_CkCYGBCsO6h1d9zgYLIwvZoAdQ0CY33X3LtAfE2s5_yn7TER37mBecDEg/s1024/p0wSnFieP_Ox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="752" data-original-width="1024" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFKx8GTMjscG4YIqPidb8mmbCTg7yZ6MXFzKPigxyFDlOM2tarLAqUn1u7DzagDdEN3K5tXLCrLlCbUm2wms2h4cMoNEsFM7jp6AaAUFP4KKXGbM7P_SJIn9yRsrkW0CCO_CkCYGBCsO6h1d9zgYLIwvZoAdQ0CY33X3LtAfE2s5_yn7TER37mBecDEg/s320/p0wSnFieP_Ox.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">We choose to vote for those that affect our daily lives and so some of these principally devoid mouth pieces will be overseeing your state, or maybe your school board or local municipality. In this, you have a choice to vote or not.</span></div></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">And in the case of our athletes, we have a choice as well. While usually not held to a vote, we can decide to hold ourselves to a standard of integrity or decide on a scorched earth policy of team well being vs. what it's worth it to get the win at the next National Qualifier.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Have you ever told a player one thing and then did something contrary to what you had said earlier? Have you ever cheated on the score? Bullied an official or a scorekeeper? Have you ever watched a ball land in, saw the lines person call it out and then agree because it benefits your team and gives you a big point?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Rob Evans, former ASU basketball coach used to ask coaches this question: "What are you willing to do?" He was asking to what level will you go to cheat to win? In basketball, with three officials, the game is called with much more autonomy than in volleyball. The human element is a central part of the game. Would you grab a player illegally to slow him down? Bump a player to knock the ball loose? Argue a call where you knew you were wrong with the hope of getting a call later in the game?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAdnPUZ9FTYpv-2BjpZP5vGsKjRXMqSoB0lgvdL0YieyVzC0ROE-xOg-zWgTUDumebPh31JyOPvFpmlpCewjCPKHBBPF0-mvId65nbRTiBaNFD3tSbU_5rvPjoGR2m0vhdCVi4Zg3sp_0A4TdgfqFUwHPDOGI8fHemYETmUbKO-vvQjbtw4gacWmkd7w/s250/PKGWIAZGUPOMXXI.20130517205858.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="250" data-original-width="150" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAdnPUZ9FTYpv-2BjpZP5vGsKjRXMqSoB0lgvdL0YieyVzC0ROE-xOg-zWgTUDumebPh31JyOPvFpmlpCewjCPKHBBPF0-mvId65nbRTiBaNFD3tSbU_5rvPjoGR2m0vhdCVi4Zg3sp_0A4TdgfqFUwHPDOGI8fHemYETmUbKO-vvQjbtw4gacWmkd7w/s1600/PKGWIAZGUPOMXXI.20130517205858.jpg" width="150" /></a></div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">In our sport, would you put your college graduated Assistant Coach into your 16's Regionals match for the advantage? Would you fix your roster so you could have one of your clubs best players play on two teams? Would you allow a player to play that was ineligible? All of these are examples of what has happened just in our Region.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Some coaches would call this "being competitive." Coaches with flexible morality refer to the oft quoted, "If you aren't' cheating, you aren't trying." But imagine your son or daughter watching this behavior. Are you comfortable with this? Especially if your son or daughter is directly affected by this fracture of integrity?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">What can you do tomorrow, next week, next season to be that moral compass for your athletes? Can you tune out Parents that want the win at any cost? Can you teach your athletes that a win won fairly is a win they can be proud of and a loss where they gave their all is worthy of praise as well? Can you make the right call, even if it hurts your team? <br /><br />Using Rob Evans' question, "What are you willing to do.....to show integrity to your team?" What things do your athletes do that you can point out as shining examples at every practice? </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">How can we make integrity as talked about a quality as "the big lie" is talked about as an election strategy?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">You may be coaching 12 year old's, but your athletes will not be with you their entire athletic careers. They will become students in high school and college and transition into voting adults, hopefully looking for the candidates who show the integrity and courage they learned as an athlete.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">What are you willing to do?</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-14924740332553557602022-04-08T08:58:00.002-07:002022-04-08T08:58:47.661-07:00Tis the season...<p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">A Club Director from the east coast called this week for advice.
He had two coaches on the same team that had basically “checked out.” They were
coaching from the bleachers, just yelling, negative, berating their athletes.
They had two weeks, four practices and two tournaments left but fewer and fewer
players were showing up at practices. The team was disbanding before everyone’s
eyes because of the behavior of the coaching staff.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">This week, a close friend and coach found another job and
was done with coaching. Even though she has a month left in her season, a
season in which she was asked to coach one team and assist on another, she was
fried. She was at a tournament almost every Saturday, 4 hours a night during
practice nights and it had taken its toll. She was done with her coaching job
in club and in high school. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHQl2-mg5u9WYQKvCQk-X7ibd0tdAIiOcylHLA1RjdK52W_RnpjWD2jPykmmWLP0nxuX6BFQnxai20bp8Y0Y0lByQ3V_8MBIgBFwqNVEXZoasyyxNFt8EMebNBqcOqZQp2cMfKjMcwg3v6jtzaoQXGBDyGeN8yx6lZu7z5U7k4IunGVCDP9AmuiggcvA/s502/employee-time-clock-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="502" data-original-width="400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHQl2-mg5u9WYQKvCQk-X7ibd0tdAIiOcylHLA1RjdK52W_RnpjWD2jPykmmWLP0nxuX6BFQnxai20bp8Y0Y0lByQ3V_8MBIgBFwqNVEXZoasyyxNFt8EMebNBqcOqZQp2cMfKjMcwg3v6jtzaoQXGBDyGeN8yx6lZu7z5U7k4IunGVCDP9AmuiggcvA/s320/employee-time-clock-1.jpg" width="255" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;">Tis the season. Burnout, malaise, boredom for all. While
some teams are competing for championships and medals, most teams are quietly
slipping into the off season abyss.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">As a coach, this can be the hardest part of the season. The
same kids, same attitudes, same drills, same practice plans: it all adds up to,
“NOT AGAIN!”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLFAsoWIFf4s457PsFQm9ySFsPbNsn4fZeJ136CzFQqTUTf78_eVMW8EVPicvmbFyExujsuEjpp-uHus2zae8McUdrjZhs3lckhO3o_xBhDt0eWkFsqkCSILSRbtWskT_zwkPF1HmxYLlCECj11O4i6F-aeFnq_mZaDzt7P4yJYq1zw-tKrRBv-SqwQg/s800/players-football-team-shakhtar-bored-bench-26329988.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="531" data-original-width="800" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLFAsoWIFf4s457PsFQm9ySFsPbNsn4fZeJ136CzFQqTUTf78_eVMW8EVPicvmbFyExujsuEjpp-uHus2zae8McUdrjZhs3lckhO3o_xBhDt0eWkFsqkCSILSRbtWskT_zwkPF1HmxYLlCECj11O4i6F-aeFnq_mZaDzt7P4yJYq1zw-tKrRBv-SqwQg/s320/players-football-team-shakhtar-bored-bench-26329988.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><p class="MsoNormal">This dangerous month is most perilous for your athletes. Will
they see you as either a coach who is still working to make practices efficient
and productive or one who has punched the timecard and is just trying to get through
these last few weeks?</p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">If your son or daughter was on the team, how would you want
your coach to behave?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">If you are doing the same drills you have been doing all
season, think of the idea of Bernstein’s “repetition without repetition.” How
can you do this drill differently but get the same result that is engaging and
fun for the team? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">What skills can you introduce that will engage your team and
push them out of their comfort zones?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">What non-volleyball practice can you come up with that will
be fun and engaging for them? Sitting volleyball? Basketball? Skills contests
with prizes? Let your imagination run wild.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">It’s easy to tell a coach to stay positive, stay engaged,
engage your athletes. But a team that has struggled or hasn’t been very good
all season might have the mentality of the Los Angeles Lakers this season after
their disappointing campaign: let’s just END this!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie6yE-jm6CxSWu2fcy20r5JSK1D0N_9gAkRs8zi8wNjegMZsYz5BScu_a5ptGk_YouK17M5qyTZdigiA7TOmvxfdgp5OnwUbdjUUmlfmDtP4tcXrNMTnGrR9yhsT3iSiSv9gG9WJBSbkWYM6Mm9CAEcyL5jK_3ze0lU2VKFEi8_wizAplxAHPlvnUhkg/s2250/Picture1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1499" data-original-width="2250" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie6yE-jm6CxSWu2fcy20r5JSK1D0N_9gAkRs8zi8wNjegMZsYz5BScu_a5ptGk_YouK17M5qyTZdigiA7TOmvxfdgp5OnwUbdjUUmlfmDtP4tcXrNMTnGrR9yhsT3iSiSv9gG9WJBSbkWYM6Mm9CAEcyL5jK_3ze0lU2VKFEi8_wizAplxAHPlvnUhkg/s320/Picture1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p>But you still have the opportunity to hold value to one of
John Kessel’s pillars of great coaching: <b>Don’t be a child’s last coach!</b></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">You have a few weeks left. Push yourself to learn how to
better teach a skill you aren’t comfortable with and teach your athletes. Find
a smart, efficient game like drill you have never done before and try it. Maybe
it works, maybe it doesn’t but you will never know unless you try.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">You ask your athletes every day to give you their best, to
work hard and be engaged. They might ask the same of us.</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-14429295462852343432022-03-02T07:11:00.003-08:002022-03-02T07:17:26.280-08:00三节课- Three Lessons<p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"> The winter Olympics limped to a close in Beijing a few weeks
ago. While TV ratings for the games were down over 40% and a general waning of
interest has begun to pervade the quadrennial event, it is still one of those
rare collections of the best athletes in the world competing in their specialty
events and from these athletes and their circumstances, the rest of us can
learn some valuable lessons.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><b>赎回- Redemption</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">In the 2006 winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, a young 20-year-old
American snowboarder named Lindsay Jacobellis competed in the final of the
snowboard cross. Watch what happens: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWD1yVLqbpY">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWD1yVLqbpY</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Jacobellis puts a little mustard on the dog on the last jump
and it cost her a gold medal. She was vilified by the press and spent the next
years of her career apologizing and regretting her youthful indiscretion. Yet
16 years and four winter Olympics later, at the age of 36, she had this moment:
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mny01JBunQM">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mny01JBunQM</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">As one of her competitors says to her before their post-race
hug, “You finally got it!” Jacobellis didn’t retreat from her miscue, she
fought upstream. She stayed with what she loved, trained hard and gave herself
opportunities to continue competing at the highest levels until she finally got
her golden moment. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj7YakSram3t7hfKpMWS647eOCMlAAlmX8Er7TZSbTmXJyX9tTBqKPm_w2iwQZwXmgiBK5aoyDCMkRbassjAZiXXp6OPRaByZl3c5LFqibnG5qn30Nuegf4El8iB4DGjM-6pAZ6RePyw0R_GjTcSJ5QxaLMNUyv0zzq1BexavY5019sJ0ODt3uLX4uSCg=s1500" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1500" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj7YakSram3t7hfKpMWS647eOCMlAAlmX8Er7TZSbTmXJyX9tTBqKPm_w2iwQZwXmgiBK5aoyDCMkRbassjAZiXXp6OPRaByZl3c5LFqibnG5qn30Nuegf4El8iB4DGjM-6pAZ6RePyw0R_GjTcSJ5QxaLMNUyv0zzq1BexavY5019sJ0ODt3uLX4uSCg=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p>She never let her regrettable moment define her, she worked
hard to redefine herself. Congratulations Ms. Lindsay.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><b>从年轻开始- It starts with the young</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">If you use medal counts as the basis for who “won” the
winter Olympics, Norway topped the charts. Oh yeah, they also “won” in 2018.
Um…also in 2014.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">What is going on here?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Norway is a country of 5.4 million people. How can this
country have more medals than Russa, (144 million), Germany, (83 million),
Canada (38 million) or the United States, (330 million)?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Sure, it’s their Nordic climate. They don’t do as well in
the summer Olympics as they do in the winter games, although Norway DID win the
Men’s BEACH volleyball gold medal in last year’s Tokyo games! They win medals
in just a few winter Olympic events. They are great skiers, ski jumpers and
biathletes. They don’t really factor into any of the bobsled or luge events and
the last figure skating medal they had was 86 years ago.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">What they do have is a program for their youth. A program
that features things we should look to emulate here in the U.S. First, they are
inclusive. Skiing is available for youth across the country. The cost is
minimal. It is fun, it is well coached. It is not scored until kids creep into
their teens. Children of Norway get to enjoy their sport without the pressure
of wins and losses. They aren’t worried about the score or stressed by coaches
and Parents.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhsVKC89iz7fTfCIy9Z1g_iuAAmaQKcUQdChHqGzEFZwJPAkrcDUbUwxR4nc6hgmhx_6NGss0e9Rd2IU3oZctFqAOBLSfl_AMexX8RJmmYY3PsQ_ekqyQV9rIq_4zFQeFnS69kTyJtSDIRxDm_jRJGk8cyeZTlUh-QyXT6Ce38rkzSbOtP3EEf2dsRkiw=s2121" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1414" data-original-width="2121" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhsVKC89iz7fTfCIy9Z1g_iuAAmaQKcUQdChHqGzEFZwJPAkrcDUbUwxR4nc6hgmhx_6NGss0e9Rd2IU3oZctFqAOBLSfl_AMexX8RJmmYY3PsQ_ekqyQV9rIq_4zFQeFnS69kTyJtSDIRxDm_jRJGk8cyeZTlUh-QyXT6Ce38rkzSbOtP3EEf2dsRkiw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><br />They learn to love the sport because they have nothing pulling the love away
from them. <o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Imagine your next tournament, and the kids are just playing
volleyball for the fun of it. Beach is the closest thing we have to this in
America, but even this is being overrun by clubs and coaches in the last few
years. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Is it possible to pull back and let kids find their passion
for a sport and then keep our hands off while they are learning hands on? With
the $20 billion dollar market of youth sports in the United States, it seems
unlikely. But can you, Mom and Dad, just allow your sons and daughters to find
their own passion, their own path to sporting success? It may not lead to
Olympic golds, but it can lead to better, happier and more productive athletes.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><b>见光- Seeing the Light</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Fifteen year old figure skater Kamila Valieva was set for
her golden moment. Despite being shackled by a doping accusation throughout her
Olympics, the Russian went into her final skate as the favorite to win gold.
Then came her performance: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPJJIBidYYs">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPJJIBidYYs</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">As she came to the bench after her performance, she was
greeted with this from her coach: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlLFgZu3rcQ">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlLFgZu3rcQ</a>.
“Why did you let it go?”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Whether Valieva is guilty of doping or not, the conduct here
is on her coach, former Russian skater Eteri Tutberidze. The rest of the world
watched in literal horror as this 15 year old skated off one patch of ice into
another- a stern lecture from the person she is most trying to please. It’s
hard to imagine Valieva falling on purpose, trying to embarrass herself, her coach
or country, but the bruised ego of Tutberidze lashed out with those sentiments.
It was described as “chilling,” “alarming” and “ugly” by a world press.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjPcpo_OJ9aEcaiLPH2hov2Av7z35990vd3oIDgF7_lhcKl9MbgMcJD9_GSmnamdL53vYBnYwD_5Ahtc7im_91eQgIO5oiOUeUoK_-GZDPWNf55AfM21Bv1Q82uzLVdS0PvGNoKVmoRyQmef12ZV2ugz91DNMRc6p1oWb_AFMGtmWYGlCat4J3tNn638w=s931" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="524" data-original-width="931" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjPcpo_OJ9aEcaiLPH2hov2Av7z35990vd3oIDgF7_lhcKl9MbgMcJD9_GSmnamdL53vYBnYwD_5Ahtc7im_91eQgIO5oiOUeUoK_-GZDPWNf55AfM21Bv1Q82uzLVdS0PvGNoKVmoRyQmef12ZV2ugz91DNMRc6p1oWb_AFMGtmWYGlCat4J3tNn638w=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><span style="font-size: medium;">Yet, look around and listen on Saturday at your next club
tournament. Listen to the things some coaches are saying to their athletes.
Listen to the way some parents talk to their child. You might be surprised to
hear the same sentiments and maybe worse. The rancor with which some coaches
and parents use to “coach” their players can be humiliating and harmful. We
allow this because we are competing; winning and losing. It’s what separates us
from them.</span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Maybe this will help some coaches and parents see the light,
we can only hope.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">There was a lot written and talked about after the Beijing
Olympic games about the Olympic brand being sullied. Doping scandals, allowing
countries to participate despite proof of cheating and struggles to find cities
to host are all at the nucleus <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">of this conjecture. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">But lest we forget the creed of the Olympics put forth by one of
the pioneers of the event, </span></span><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Baron de Coubertin: <br /><br />"The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle.” <br /><br />Lessons are learned at every sporting event, usually by those who came up short. And great athletes, great coaches, great people, embrace these lessons and learn from them. And there is no one place where more lessons in sport can be learned than at an Olympiad. <br /><br />Congratulations to the medalists, congratulations to those that struggled. Respect and love to both.</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-86895208317433043422022-02-17T05:59:00.002-08:002022-02-17T05:59:55.427-08:00...A Hard Pass...<p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"> The Los Angeles Rams just won the Super Bowl in the final minute of the game. Look no deeper than that, and it is a great accomplishment for a program and a team who haven't won a Super Bowl in 22 years.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">But INC. magazine's Justin Bariso did dig a little deeper into the success of the Rams, writing a piece titled, <a href="https://www.inc.com/justin-bariso/super-bowl-2022-rams-bengals-positive-psychology-emotional-intelligence.html">"The Los Angeles Rams Used a Simple Rule of Psychology to Win the Super Bowl."</a></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj9CU-6HIQfHQS3wWBijCXdI6lQ4-rCHzEqXMoDS1Fh02hxYjHAcOUd_qIBpeWb0352qjOXKguN_lNMsrVWpK2L2BSVglzQF_gkizEbxpO8Eb92djz-LbjeTAZFfEy6IWTGlRcsa1Q8-q0EmO3waUPAtZrz10cNzzL3Anb6N9yKidHBBgxUVg2TX39GAQ=s640" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj9CU-6HIQfHQS3wWBijCXdI6lQ4-rCHzEqXMoDS1Fh02hxYjHAcOUd_qIBpeWb0352qjOXKguN_lNMsrVWpK2L2BSVglzQF_gkizEbxpO8Eb92djz-LbjeTAZFfEy6IWTGlRcsa1Q8-q0EmO3waUPAtZrz10cNzzL3Anb6N9yKidHBBgxUVg2TX39GAQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Positive psychology.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Not that being positive is that grandiose a revelation, but in the NFL where negativity, abusive behaviors and punishments are the norm, the Rams joined those teams who have seen the light and are using the powers of the human brain to get the best out of their athletes.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Rams offensive tackle, Andrew Whitworth, a 40 year old veteran, said of Coach Sean McVay's coaching style, "We don't have coaches out there screaming at people. That's not allowed on our field. It's about having energy and positivity and belief that no matter what happens on one snap, the next snap's the next best one you can have." </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Wait a minute. All those sports movies where Coaches are yelling and screaming and breaking down their athletes all season to get the big game, and then they give them the rousing speech in the locker room that propels the comeback win against all odds, isn't this how it's supposed to be?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Excuse my language, but hardass is a hard pass.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">You need look no further than downtown Phoenix where at the time of this blog, the Phoenix Suns are rocking the best record in the NBA coming off a Finals appearance last season and one of the prohibitive favorites this season.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Coach Monty Williams has put in place a culture of respect, integrity and fun. You don't see Williams yelling at this players on the sidelines, he doesn't have to. He has put them in positions of success, communicated their roles and given a team that prior to his hiring in 2019, hadn't made the playoffs in a decade. The team has bought into his coaching style and culture that even on the days they get off during the season, they still come to the gym to see their teammates and put extra work in.</span></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhTRH9jt7BDQeUjjXkiLH96msHY3vZ7ejWs6ttCurMryKLbeJV08ebBiw-cd3LJGDyd5AwmmEZuY3jZVSETAkkpnFf3q3RXx2HYlUwn7nCR0mf0X8l2Ucvt05oY1XfsAccJwUtQmLNGgTLlrtY0p6pMxtR9gAmcPcgJE7_xONJBayA1_nsR35T0M79UcQ=s660" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="660" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhTRH9jt7BDQeUjjXkiLH96msHY3vZ7ejWs6ttCurMryKLbeJV08ebBiw-cd3LJGDyd5AwmmEZuY3jZVSETAkkpnFf3q3RXx2HYlUwn7nCR0mf0X8l2Ucvt05oY1XfsAccJwUtQmLNGgTLlrtY0p6pMxtR9gAmcPcgJE7_xONJBayA1_nsR35T0M79UcQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;">Williams holds his team to high standards but also said in a 2021 interview, </span><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">“I hope that when our players are around our staff, and in particular me, they know I’m here to serve them in any way that I can,” he said. “I want to help guys get better. I want to help them get paid. I want to help them win games, but I want to do it in a way that allows for them to think, ‘That guy cares about me. He cares about my family. He cares about me as a person.'"<br /><br />These are young, professional men being paid a lot of money to play football, baseball, basketball, soccer, hockey, etc. Some coaches have figured out that the human brain shrinks from negativity, corralling other bodily resources and rarely getting the best out of an athlete. <br /><br />Fear works for a while. Players are afraid of punishment, to get screamed at, to be embarrassed in front of their peers. Coaches too!<br /><br />In a 2012 paper titled, "<a href="https://www.blogger.com/#">Handshakes, BBQs, and bullets'; self -interest, shame and regret in football coaching,"</a> author Paul Potrac detailed his time coaching an elite soccer program. In it, he talks about coaches "looking out for themselves," how "coaches come and go," how coaches need to "watch their back," and "seize any opportunity." When Potrac realized the human toll on his character, he left the profession.<br /><br />Go to a youth sporting event and count the number of teams, courts, fields with coaches raising their voices at children: berating and embarrassing them. At times, you will see a coach get angry and call a time out just so they can punish their players IN THE MIDDLE OF THE MATCH with running lines or pushups.</span><p></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjJXn7fDcrDs5HyE3194qUZiq0rssUfTaGsj_zfQiYnesMuxtYw9slKoroiElqVpZ__M_9wFXdiaMYCDEL0sY3QqHcxPoLQYnqeMYhO82MZObrv1WScwU0sFc5R2408p0kJ4lpuQGxgbzHWlh2bRxoW4eCx2rYSQs1Bj5jPtVTuPI80SMUgqhkq52wcfg=s550" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjJXn7fDcrDs5HyE3194qUZiq0rssUfTaGsj_zfQiYnesMuxtYw9slKoroiElqVpZ__M_9wFXdiaMYCDEL0sY3QqHcxPoLQYnqeMYhO82MZObrv1WScwU0sFc5R2408p0kJ4lpuQGxgbzHWlh2bRxoW4eCx2rYSQs1Bj5jPtVTuPI80SMUgqhkq52wcfg=s320" /></a><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><br /><br />Seemingly, this coach feels embarrassed and their reflex is to embarrass those who they think embarrassed them. <br /><br />As that coach, it may work for a while. But eventually players will tire of these theatrical and baseless punishments and leave that coach, that club or sadly, perhaps the sport.<br /><br />Are you that coach? Not sure?<br /><br />If you have an assistant coach, have them pull out their phone and record your voice during a match. Is it positive or laced with things NOT to do, insults and volume? <br /><br />If you don't have an assistant coach, ask a Parent to film you during a match. Is your body language positive? Are you bringing more anxiety to your team with your antics or are you a calming presence for them? <br /><br />None of this is easy. Hollywood has taught us that being a hardass = success. Early professional coaches in every sport league were part of this blueprint. It's all we knew at the time.<br /><br />But now that the wiring of our brains is under academic eyes, we see now that this isn't the best way to teach, to learn or to inspire. Those coaches are not only becoming extinct because they refuse to adapt, but the videos, lawsuits and complaints pile up upon their terminations. It can be an ugly send off.<br /><br />Coach, teach responsibly and with your athletes' learning at the forefront of what you do and how you do it. No one likes to be embarrassed, yelled or screamed at, insulted or berated. <br /><br />Need more research? <a href="https://www.blogger.com/#">E mail us</a>. Want some feedback? <a href="https://www.blogger.com/#">E mail us</a>. Want a clinic to help coaches adapt to a positive, player centered runway to coaching? <a href="https://www.blogger.com/#">E mail us</a>.<br /><br />We're here to help.</span><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-19218896560615945672022-02-17T04:44:00.004-08:002022-02-17T04:44:48.637-08:00Low Hanging Fruit...<p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;">In December of 2021, the Arizona Region held their semi
annual Coaches Education Weekend. The preeminent Youth Coaching guru in the US
headlined a cast of cadre that included a former NBA coach and author, a
lynchpin of the science community of Motor Learning and new author, a USA
Women’s National Team assistant coach who talked about scouting at the 2021
Tokyo Olympics, a gold medal Paralympian in Sitting Volleyball and one of the
best Cadres in USA Volleyball.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">The line up was announced 70 days before the event. In 2019,
affectionately now known as “pre pandemic,” Education weekend hosted over 120
coaches between indoor and beach presentations. So this clinic was going to be
a home run! People had been locked down for a year or more. Now was the time for
coaches to come out and learn. With over 1000 coaches in the Region now,
registrations opened and on the first Friday night of Education Weekend, we had
our number!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">22.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">.02% of the coaches in the Az. Region attended.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">What had we done wrong? Reaching out to some coaches, they
complained that it was a busy weekend. There were a few preseason tournaments
going on, but not everyone was playing in them. .02%? One coach joked that
maybe the coaches in the Region thought they knew everything already. Maybe
they weren’t far off…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">This is not a reprimand but a call to action. Coaching is
THE silver bullet. A great coach can make up for a mediocre or poor club, but a
great club cannot make up for a poor coach. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">YOU are part of the equation of athletes improving, enjoying
the sport, pushing themselves to their limits and beyond. <br />
YOU can also be part of the equation of athletes quitting the sport, feeling
insecure about themselves and their performance and inflicting physical and
mental harm.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Being better at coaching is paramount. Not just the X’s and
O’s but the relationships, the psychology, the methods and philosophies of
training. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">So what did we do wrong?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Before the advent of YouTube and streaming services, if you
wanted to watch a program, you had to be in front of the television on THAT
channel at THAT time on THAT day. And to find out what happened next on the
show, you had to tune in the next week at THAT channel at THAT time and THAT
day again. You had to have some skin in the game. When you wanted to watch a
sporting event, you had to tune into the station at the time it began. There
was a commitment to that event you had to make. If you wanted to know who won
the Oscars, you watched the presentation or you had to read about it the next
day in the newspaper, there was no in between.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Of course, now, you can watch games hours, days or even
weeks and months later. You can find most television shows streamed later and
you can binge watch an entire season to your hearts content. No more waiting,
no skin in the game. Oscars are streamed and if not, just pull the phone out of
your pocket to see in real time who won. The same with sports. If you didn’t
get to see the Super Bowl, you could have just as easily pulled up ESPN and
watched the play by play. There is no more commitment. What you want is at your
fingertips, when YOU want it, WHERE you are at WHATEVER time fits YOUR schedule.
<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhWcYi_XDyz-NYbFunnORnz08WiKW0PFT9ZUhiz-E9UsWo8plku0xtieQGCURqyy-jpoJiM5RXFANBFJ3PMLqTTWa7PQJ-vpOUYXs8HXH67ipxsjbLpLH3W6dM2s8fKPqW2Z04cgEAyaQt6jX-DhFTeMPCEzQMux-ANo2eev-Q5c8K98xa6f9Bers25sw=s1920" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1920" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhWcYi_XDyz-NYbFunnORnz08WiKW0PFT9ZUhiz-E9UsWo8plku0xtieQGCURqyy-jpoJiM5RXFANBFJ3PMLqTTWa7PQJ-vpOUYXs8HXH67ipxsjbLpLH3W6dM2s8fKPqW2Z04cgEAyaQt6jX-DhFTeMPCEzQMux-ANo2eev-Q5c8K98xa6f9Bers25sw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Seemingly, the Netflix-verse applies to coaching as well.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">If you want a coaching drill, pull up “volleyball drills” on
Google and get 24,700,000 in a half a second. Type in “coaching drills” you
YouTube and the scroll seems endless. Why do you need a clinic? Everything is
at your fingertips on YOUR time where YOU are at THAT moment. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Following this logic, how many of you would be comfortable
rewiring the electricity of your house watching a YouTube video? How about
learning to surf or base jumping with a wind suit? Why not? Because there is
the potential for disastrous and life changing results. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Yet isn’t coaching the same? How many bad coaches in youth
sports leave a scorch earthed landscape in their wake? Kids quitting sports,
feeling insecure or suffering from mental and physical anguish- how is this not
disastrous and life changing?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">How many questions are asked during these video or google
interactions? How much feedback can coaches get from these quick hits? Further,
is the coach able to disseminate the drill to see if it fits the skill set,
age, playing level of their athletes. Is it a drill that fits with the ideas of
how athletes learn best; motor learning principles and philosophies and the
optimal ideas of teaching?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">An organized clinic is an exceptional learning environment.
How many times have you, as a coach, gone to a college practice to watch how
that coach does it? The ASU coach, Sanja Tomasevic, recently commented that in
her five years at the helm of the Sun Devil program, she has had 4 coaches e
mail her and come watch her practices. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">4.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">True learners have skin in the game. They are reaching
beyond the comfort of their couch and mouse. They venture to other avenues to
gain more knowledge. Imagine the thing you are most passionate about in your
life other than your family and children. How did you learn more about this?
Was it by taking the easiest road possible?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">E mail a college coach and ask to come watch their practice.
Call the Region office and let’s set up an online or in person coaching clinic
for your club coaches. Reach out to Coaching Education in the Region and let’s
grab some coffee. Have a dialogue that will force your mind to work a bit more,
open to ideas, debate others. This is how we learn as humans. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">You can take any drill online and run it, but it is helping
your team? Is it efficient and the best way for your team to learn? Or is it
the lowest hanging fruit.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjC4Pq4mMB4UBtRX7AQCAH95TQG27Z2Z_RnTXnJRZYTh4slR1KmlzkEdYZj58B1dv2U3GyBdlpj8GtFen15ayhksDb62zarvdzzfbmOfdv8x55t4WqyVUnC2tpKs0Op_WjBUhsvi-_7169V5yFMWwSAZxVDF7KFxhYbyxK-3MTY7ZnTRR_s4Fydr-96Pw=s447" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="242" data-original-width="447" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjC4Pq4mMB4UBtRX7AQCAH95TQG27Z2Z_RnTXnJRZYTh4slR1KmlzkEdYZj58B1dv2U3GyBdlpj8GtFen15ayhksDb62zarvdzzfbmOfdv8x55t4WqyVUnC2tpKs0Op_WjBUhsvi-_7169V5yFMWwSAZxVDF7KFxhYbyxK-3MTY7ZnTRR_s4Fydr-96Pw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Imagine coaching athletes with this mentality: always taking
the easiest way out, never pushing themselves and always making sure the
learning they did was on their time table, where they want it to happen when
they feel like it. How successful a team would you be coaching?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Excuses, rationalizations and doing it how it’s been done
before is laziness in any profession. You are coaching the next generation of
leaders and Mothers and Fathers and teachers. Can this be any more important?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: medium;">Season 7 of Seinfeld is a Netflix subscription and two
clicks away. Bringing out the best in that 14 year old learning the game
shouldn’t be so easy.</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-74235852247702896962022-02-07T09:23:00.001-08:002022-02-07T09:23:43.120-08:00Embrace the Gray<span style="font-family: helvetica;">Are you Pro Vax or Anti Vax?</span><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Are you for gun control or against it?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Are you a coach that uses random training or block training?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Do you believe in the ecological dynamics or information processing form of coaching?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It's either or. Our national debate has become binary: yes or no? Right or left? Republican or Democrat? Pro or Anti? </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br />Except, is this how life really is?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">For fundraisers, it IS their world. The more divide, the more vitriol, the more anger they can concoct, the more money flows into their coffers.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">But the rest of the country isn't so polarized. Many people are in the middle- the gray. Some like some of one side's arguments and some of the other side's arguments. For the money grab, pundits from both sides will pull hard to get these folks to choose a side. But many of us understand that these arguments have complexities and can't be decided by three paragraphs on a leaflet or a customized website with a "donate here" button attached.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br />The same is true for coaching. Our profession is NOT black and white!</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi_XtrzsWj6GC7JFCDxoxqThIGKBdD2lIJAI53bU0IHW0XDhTip9LapO1n6GubIHDhodm3yTxQEdjY7JJGs0szuDr3o8fRLuGll3serefiy4nwZotQCKGnVyPwuuPIK3qvkecK7kPMEcOT99Xp1d68ztA3cDz9xYIQ-6bDeqa2ZdJbZQWSkJCfnjx8F8g=s999" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="507" data-original-width="999" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi_XtrzsWj6GC7JFCDxoxqThIGKBdD2lIJAI53bU0IHW0XDhTip9LapO1n6GubIHDhodm3yTxQEdjY7JJGs0szuDr3o8fRLuGll3serefiy4nwZotQCKGnVyPwuuPIK3qvkecK7kPMEcOT99Xp1d68ztA3cDz9xYIQ-6bDeqa2ZdJbZQWSkJCfnjx8F8g=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br />Embrace the gray!</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Random or blocked training. Why can't you use both? While our game is random and it's beneficial to train the way your game is played, can't block training help with some skill work, or help with certain athletes? Why do we have to draw a line down our gym and choose sides?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br />Currently, the Ecological Dynamics approach to Coaching is getting a lot of interest, discussion and argument. It is fundamentally opposite of the way most coaches were taught to coach AND the way they currently teach. Heels are dug in, the line is the sand a growing chasm every day.<br /><br />But the reality is, there is a lot to look at here. Giving our athletes more autonomy is a proven scientific trope for happier and more engaged athletes. This works better with the way our brains learn. It is 100% the only way to teach? Maybe not, but as a coach, aren't we supposed to find the best ways to reach and teach our young athletes? If dipping from both ponds is a better learning environment, why would you dismiss it just because it's "new" or it doesn't align with your current teaching/coaching style?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjvc4HlEa2labBpMTHZD_TQ97PgMBi3y96ZLZ0VXp7Q8EyTN5UtXOCgVNgcfpiOBTpXtRQY__IiEjTi5AvlBzN2pGVUC5fn8mSFZ9nwETQBJIfjLNI6gmuP8UnEYMNKGWrjVnrrpypKDj6IHU829OEBAdGU4PeaGa0XXrV3rmtPHPDab3ylEWWANL_usQ=s1045" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="588" data-original-width="1045" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjvc4HlEa2labBpMTHZD_TQ97PgMBi3y96ZLZ0VXp7Q8EyTN5UtXOCgVNgcfpiOBTpXtRQY__IiEjTi5AvlBzN2pGVUC5fn8mSFZ9nwETQBJIfjLNI6gmuP8UnEYMNKGWrjVnrrpypKDj6IHU829OEBAdGU4PeaGa0XXrV3rmtPHPDab3ylEWWANL_usQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Leonard Cohen once wrote, "There are cracks in everything, that's how the light gets in!" We have no interest in debating politics here. We are looking at coaching and asking you, as a coach, to constantly keep learning. Embrace humility, learn from others, take the good you see and jettison the bad that is unreliable and not working in your trainings. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Binary coaching may have worked well 30-40 years ago, when options for sports and athletes was limited. But today, every athlete has 10 options for their time, dozens of sports dot the landscape and coaches are often the greatest conduit to success and failure for impressionable youth.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Embrace the gray!</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-4321883884563111562022-01-21T06:58:00.000-08:002022-01-21T06:58:08.065-08:00Action and Example...<p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Leadership.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">We hear this word brought up in every team sport, from pee wee leagues to juniors to the Olympics and Professional Leagues.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">We listen as coaches praise their team leaders, players who pay homage to those leaders and in some cases, when teams don't fulfill promise, it is often due to a lack of leadership.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">John Kessel's coaching philosophy has been culled to just three words: "Develop amazing leaders!"</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">So why is it so hard to find them? Some schools have developed leadership academies. Some teams have leadership councils. Leadership in that buzzword that helps separate elite teams from the average.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Scanning the media world from the last few weeks might help us understand why.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The Arizona Cardinals lost their first 2022 playoff game last Sunday. Immediately after, their on the field leader, quarterback Kyler Murray was skewered by the punditry. The highest paid voice on ESPN called Murray's performance, "Atrocious!" He was labeled "too short" and that he "choked."</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhf175jp8T649N1qZ62ifM-e40UTbgwPn6-KYAb_dy3CytpIvnRYI2GYX01Hym9-rY_f8Mgp67na2bOef8G5DS2YcQl42cxbBtGQF9k7yB3RS9UxFSocayTXf5SU_iYsCs5uy4WQfWPgOTrlKW7XWZ-Hqb_Na9K3DU2QQKmJHdDteZL91dLTGwpGqpa_Q=s2812" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1875" data-original-width="2812" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhf175jp8T649N1qZ62ifM-e40UTbgwPn6-KYAb_dy3CytpIvnRYI2GYX01Hym9-rY_f8Mgp67na2bOef8G5DS2YcQl42cxbBtGQF9k7yB3RS9UxFSocayTXf5SU_iYsCs5uy4WQfWPgOTrlKW7XWZ-Hqb_Na9K3DU2QQKmJHdDteZL91dLTGwpGqpa_Q=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p>A couple of things to bring to light. First, the Cardinals posted an 11-6 record, the best record for the team since 2015. Murray missed a few of those games with an injury. As late as Thanksgiving, Murray was mentioned prominently by this same media that spent the week eviscerating</span><span style="font-family: helvetica;"> him, as an NFL Most Valuable Player favorite! </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">To his credit, and as a leader should, Murray took responsibility for his play, calling his play "disappointing." He gave credit to the Rams and made no excuses. He was being the leader of his team.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">His coach, Kliff Kingsbury, was the Coach of the Year favorite in December. He was hired just three years ago, compiling 5-10, 8-8 and 11-6 seasons in his first three years. That in itself shows a definite trend upward. However, after the loss to the Rams, the calls for his firing began. </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg488llguHCyG_g0eOIAqAJxGWwe_5JcD7k-e9w01UQn9kb31XT_nMQ-w6Cml1bjmHdP2fdHRYRu7HgkMhPqsdtgi9hImnyTqF9IRJ9ixKZ5jKdxtA672mYWU0eKz10GGsOHHexuuuu2rj-7SciiL4FjKCw1b864vVyAZutbAw0fCrE1Yqb_zEgu0Qcyw=s660" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="440" data-original-width="660" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg488llguHCyG_g0eOIAqAJxGWwe_5JcD7k-e9w01UQn9kb31XT_nMQ-w6Cml1bjmHdP2fdHRYRu7HgkMhPqsdtgi9hImnyTqF9IRJ9ixKZ5jKdxtA672mYWU0eKz10GGsOHHexuuuu2rj-7SciiL4FjKCw1b864vVyAZutbAw0fCrE1Yqb_zEgu0Qcyw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p>What a difference a month makes. Or maybe, a loss? One loss...</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The Los Angeles Lakers, perhaps the premiere franchise in NBA history, was supposed to contend for a title this season. They added an all-star point guard to a team already with the best player in the modern era, Lebron James and one of the top 10 players in the league, Anthony Davis. This team won the Championship two years ago and adding Russell Westbrook would certainly put them on top again.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiS7Z4e0a7JfQeh3b8ruNq82-ncSm3KqTEeCbkZFG09fDpYqd7NLxDr6Z8rnywjvPtihG5Wr4GUdITvCvOF0E1wm0xTgN1Ak6u5iDhOCF4kJz84grK5g0nWP_Jpm99mGatoQRHUbFaK2LTyYaJqdvHIA3mXm4ZxRw_cf7xIHhMbzZzSJ-VvWt0JcFeGNQ=s1400" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1400" data-original-width="1400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiS7Z4e0a7JfQeh3b8ruNq82-ncSm3KqTEeCbkZFG09fDpYqd7NLxDr6Z8rnywjvPtihG5Wr4GUdITvCvOF0E1wm0xTgN1Ak6u5iDhOCF4kJz84grK5g0nWP_Jpm99mGatoQRHUbFaK2LTyYaJqdvHIA3mXm4ZxRw_cf7xIHhMbzZzSJ-VvWt0JcFeGNQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p>However, with the Lakers playing just .500 ball this midseason, and Davis injured for the past month, everyone is blaming their leader Frank Vogel and James for their dyer situation. Calls to fire Vogel are mounting. James is blamed for helping build a team that doesn't seem to work. While he can't be fired, the media blitz is relentless.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Even the youngest of players hear and see these criticisms. They are hard to miss as "content" becomes the bedrock of modern attention. It doesn't matter the people in positions of punditry have never played professional football or basketball, have never been in the locker rooms or know these coaches and players personally, it only matters that they make headlines spouting their ill conceived opinions for all to hear.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">So why would anyone, ANYONE want to step into this maelstrom?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">They don't. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">For every leader being pummeled by the unintelligencia, there are others out there that have shown amazing leadership. But that isn't news. That doesn't drive likes and sell ads. We love the dirt. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">How Karch Kiraly lead the women's USA team to a gold medal victory in Tokyo last year is a model of leadership. So too is the "Gov," Jordan Larson. the veteran on that team who put together zoom calls during the pandemic to keep the team together, who worked as hard or harder than anyone on the team to be in the best shape of her life for the competition and who appropriately killed the gold winning point for this country's first Olympic gold for a women's team. </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjNgE3WUR9esRBRRZFhX6_dC4A0GZmAV6ZxadyB1d8g0cwQc0KFmqA7lISciIObBwyI5BHqXPVkJIZx5InO-ZmRY65Qbo7lTIkEKpwwXug1Od6CNT1PxbGmvxdt4Yeg2HZvLqVWpc0ELpgYqTMOX0dfHgv1xcCxC7Qk-AusT_-2My3U7OrVhH9k1upa9g=s1200" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="1200" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjNgE3WUR9esRBRRZFhX6_dC4A0GZmAV6ZxadyB1d8g0cwQc0KFmqA7lISciIObBwyI5BHqXPVkJIZx5InO-ZmRY65Qbo7lTIkEKpwwXug1Od6CNT1PxbGmvxdt4Yeg2HZvLqVWpc0ELpgYqTMOX0dfHgv1xcCxC7Qk-AusT_-2My3U7OrVhH9k1upa9g=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">What about the leadership shown by Lora Webster during the women's sitting Paralympic march toward a repeat gold medal? A calming voice, a mentor and mediator, she helped the team overcome their anxiety before the Games and their confidence during. Leaders are made, not born. </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhQI9b2_vsoPUufeKzSQOl8LMqpD7Rnu4D1MGOCE6CbHwRtu25iQb8g9pr0RQ9Gr9JuML-csOqKoyg0XZJd41CHX2e_aIhRW9STTFTinc39RDTp19nX3jOOOPpfBv6Mj14ITEp3JOpJoKio6sfqKxd2w3PalKBEqWboYSzWCB6RlJV_4nwOI21a0lBRkQ=s1000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="370" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhQI9b2_vsoPUufeKzSQOl8LMqpD7Rnu4D1MGOCE6CbHwRtu25iQb8g9pr0RQ9Gr9JuML-csOqKoyg0XZJd41CHX2e_aIhRW9STTFTinc39RDTp19nX3jOOOPpfBv6Mj14ITEp3JOpJoKio6sfqKxd2w3PalKBEqWboYSzWCB6RlJV_4nwOI21a0lBRkQ=s320" width="118" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Every exceptional leader is different. Some call attention to themselves while others show humility and grace. They compliment others and stay out of the spotlight. Some are vocal and directive while others are quiet and lead by example. Sometimes a leader is born out of a life changing event or a part of their life that was a struggle. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It's no secret that humans don't like to be criticized. It often enlists a backlash of animosity and negative feelings. And leaders must endure this from time to time. Yet, every day is a new journey. Every match, every game, every serve is something different to learn from, take from and lead with. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Make it a priority. Give your team leadership opportunities before, during and after the season. Show them that criticism can be helpful, and that the carping from the uninformed critic is just noise. Help them learn to separate the valuable from the din. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">"Leadership is not a position or a title, it’s action and example." Donald McGannon.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Let the search continue!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-58562080738652348452022-01-09T15:21:00.002-08:002022-01-09T15:21:12.279-08:00PROactive, not REactice coaching at next week's practice...<p> <span style="font-family: helvetica;">The official week one is in the books. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Many of you played this weekend and much was learned. As a coach, you began to conjure up the next few weeks practices and what to work on before or on the drive home.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The team served terribly, so Monday will be serving practice for an hour and a half and the conditioning, working on shoulders and arms since we can't seem to get a ball over the net or in bounds.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Or maybe our passing was rough. Forget about the fact we were playing teams that were maybe older and better than we were, but come Tuesday's two hours, we will break down passing again! Starting on our knees so we know what a platform should look like! Then tossing balls to partners or maybe even the coaches tossing the balls so our players learn to move their feet, all the while calling out all the things done wrong over the weekend's play!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Sound familiar?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Take a second and absorb this quote from author Todd Beane: <b><i>"The problem with creating training sessions merely as a response to a match are numerous. 1. It is reactionary 2. One match is unreliable data 3. It thwarts a cohesive learning journey 4. It will leave massive development gaps."</i></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">In other words, be PROactive, not REactive.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Volleyball is a random game. Sometimes teams serve great, sometimes terrible but most of the time, probably, in between!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The Brooklyn Nets, as of today, are the number 1 free throw shooting team in the league with a 81.9% conversion rate. Yet, the best free throw shooting team in the Association in its last 10 games had the following free throw percentages:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">93.8%</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">75.0%</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">81.5%</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">68.8%</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">77.8%</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">84.0%</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">80.8%</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">89.7%</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">95.0%</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">86.4%</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Um...68.85? 77.8? 75.0% This can't be! This is the best professional free throw shooting team in country! (as of 1-9-2022) </span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEidCauI9wB-Q4KirV1XTCrVlpBPdlYneCm-4YehYZTxPnyR-GmWLW8hg7ZVoH8QuW6tb2SD7jYwz5naRMzwsNlGd18xizYKWuCV5Knf72Uuk1mCp_65hYuUvmUHBptVrmUEh3wjdbIkK6Qly4-mYoIp1BG0u7QwvdRvkFelT350--qh9vTEiUxvJsRp=s1400" style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: helvetica; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1050" data-original-width="1400" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEidCauI9wB-Q4KirV1XTCrVlpBPdlYneCm-4YehYZTxPnyR-GmWLW8hg7ZVoH8QuW6tb2SD7jYwz5naRMzwsNlGd18xizYKWuCV5Knf72Uuk1mCp_65hYuUvmUHBptVrmUEh3wjdbIkK6Qly4-mYoIp1BG0u7QwvdRvkFelT350--qh9vTEiUxvJsRp=s320" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: helvetica;">But it not only can be but it IS. It's called <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_n6kiLZH4Q">regression to the mean</a> and it helps you understand why you don't need to work on serving for the rest of the month after having a rough match from the line.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Another factor is the biases a coach has imbedded in their subconscious. A text from a high school coach a few months ago exclaimed her frustration, after having lost a close and important match in five sets, with "...how do I get a good pass served between zones 6 and 1! It cost us the match tonight!"</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">With a little follow up, it didn't cost them the match that night. Inexperience, a better, stronger and more experienced opponent cost them the match. But two of the last three points were mishandled serves to the zone 1-6 gap. <br /></span><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Recency bias in action! Defined, <b><i>recency bias is a cognitive bias wherein we give more importance to the most recent event.</i></b> If your team missed their last three serves of a match, chances are you are thinking serving is your biggest hurdle to winning in a few weeks.</span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgZUZgwUQLbWmFWVueMtFW6HUjJc6VlybYY8bf-ypXru1FXY-WJLQ-9msTAakFfRy8F2rAoKnDLJWVzz06VLhJldlGrv6KD5svz2J32YubCZ_hg59FB1PJFtwKg7ikpnwe-mEz9a4ATMYAVOJ5p_qifEPVlgTuaOro8i8pEGbh0Eat3H_xo3NKgjqx7=s1200" style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: helvetica; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="628" data-original-width="1200" height="167" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgZUZgwUQLbWmFWVueMtFW6HUjJc6VlybYY8bf-ypXru1FXY-WJLQ-9msTAakFfRy8F2rAoKnDLJWVzz06VLhJldlGrv6KD5svz2J32YubCZ_hg59FB1PJFtwKg7ikpnwe-mEz9a4ATMYAVOJ5p_qifEPVlgTuaOro8i8pEGbh0Eat3H_xo3NKgjqx7=s320" width="320" /></a></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It's hard not to get lost in these human thought processes but stop and think, "what is best for my team next practice?" If serving is a rough spot, are you serving in all your games and drills? If it's serve receive, how many serves are going over the net in games or drills or the infamous "serve and chase" with no reception opportunities?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Don't panic, it's a long season. Do you have a season plan drawn up? Where your team is starting and where you want them in May or June and most importantly, what- by month- are you doing to get them there? If you don't have one, buy your assistant and another outside observer a cup of coffee and have them help you put one together. Use this tool as your compass to what to practice and when. <br /><br />Don't allow biases and the idea of regression to the mean to dictate next week's practices. Stay the course toward what you want your team to look like in the end and plan accordingly. </span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: helvetica;">(Speaking of staying the course, apologies to those few who read this blog. After some time spent looking at other avenues, this blog will continue. Please let us know if you have questions or subjects you would like to address. Outreach@azregionvolleyball.org)</span></i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-13910808270617763542021-07-11T10:10:00.000-07:002021-07-11T10:10:19.913-07:00Three to ponder...Coaching education never seems to stop. Scroll social media and there are thousands of people chiming in, some opinions based on fact and others based on..well...opinion! But there is no shortage of content, in it's various forms, for coaches to glean from.<div><br /></div><div>Humbly, here are three recommendations for you to ponder.</div><div><br /></div><div>First is one of the best coaching books to come out in some time. Doug Lemov is a teacher of teachers and has written extensively on the subject of teaching more efficiently and successfully. In December he released a book for coaches called <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Coachs-Guide-Teaching-Doug-Lemov/dp/1913622304/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=lemov+books&qid=1626022770&sr=8-3">"The Coaches Guide to Teaching."</a> Upon the books release and promotion, COVID forced teachers to change how they taught and Lemov pivoted and focused his energies on students learning from Zoom and video and the hybrid styles of learning that teachers were being forced into. In some ways, this may have cost Lemov some readers but this book is invaluable. </div><div><div><br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNbsIxdt9aFBMKtz_NYvyGbHWqeLfpvxxBcz6RbE6SyuqikGV7z-HERLp9wPAAGhvuw-GPLngmckArdLzMD_j6Zg6U253jjyG5twEruryREeACQIpUoqiXuI2WonTSDS9Zz6MXX9siH9P6/s422/516SFT76hCL._SY445_SX342_QL70_ML2_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="342" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNbsIxdt9aFBMKtz_NYvyGbHWqeLfpvxxBcz6RbE6SyuqikGV7z-HERLp9wPAAGhvuw-GPLngmckArdLzMD_j6Zg6U253jjyG5twEruryREeACQIpUoqiXuI2WonTSDS9Zz6MXX9siH9P6/w324-h400/516SFT76hCL._SY445_SX342_QL70_ML2_.jpg" width="324" /></a></div><br /><div>Most coaching books talk about many of the same things, just with different acronyms and stories that sell the same ideas. In Lemov's journey, he touches on things that many of us don't think about. For example, there is a significant number of pages dedicated to forgetting. The idea of your athlete taking in everything you said at practice and implementing it at the next one is, in a word, absurd. He candidly talks about how much we all forget and how to help teach after the forgetting happens.</div><div><br /></div><div>Lemov dives into this idea of learning and focuses much of his book on Coaches becoming better teachers, and uses both field and classroom examples you can pull up on YouTube as a companion to the point he is making. </div><div><br /></div><div>The book is practical, well written and devoid of fluff. Every coach should look into Lemov's ideas to become a better teacher and this book is a valuable asset in that journey.</div><div><br /></div><div>Another less obvious choice for coaches this summer is a play turned into a streaming movie. Illusionist, card shark and memorist Derek Delgaudio's one man show, called <a href="https://www.hulu.com/movie/derek-delgaudios-in-of-itself-19b9d405-40b2-483e-8e1f-e25fe10c7299">"In & Of Itself"</a> was recommended by Coaching Guru John Kessel. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLt5UNuodzln8d6zZpwwjag0anQ9qxi6-QS-bKu6QDU6XkUx0m-zoMOWayqFmt645Bb1kZKyMfQPhvTekvrGahYIEJFPuKvFG4ZpyrfgRUQa_0vNpoSkmKpRKVPSrOG0CoHGUh03gbzcns/s1480/DEREK-DELGAUDIOS-IN-OF-ITSELF-Key-Art-Poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1480" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLt5UNuodzln8d6zZpwwjag0anQ9qxi6-QS-bKu6QDU6XkUx0m-zoMOWayqFmt645Bb1kZKyMfQPhvTekvrGahYIEJFPuKvFG4ZpyrfgRUQa_0vNpoSkmKpRKVPSrOG0CoHGUh03gbzcns/w324-h400/DEREK-DELGAUDIOS-IN-OF-ITSELF-Key-Art-Poster.jpg" width="324" /></a></div><br /><div>Delgaudio forces viewers into the notion that too often, we see people how we want to see them and often how they want to be seen. But in a thoughtful progression of stories and audience participation, we realize that we are not just one thing. We are so many things and in an extraordinary exercise midway through the film, we see the transformation of people before your very eyes.</div><div><br />Think of how many times we have looked at an athlete and branded them with our perception? "She is slow," or "He is lazy," or "She will never be a setter!" Who gives us the right? More importantly, why should that athlete be boxed into someone else's perception?</div><div><br /></div><div>Delgaudio forces you to look at how we put people into categories and how we can upend those ideas with a little more effort., kindness and opening of our minds.</div><div><br />The film is riveting, funny, irreverent and will have you thinking about it for days after. </div><div><br /></div><div>Finally, while many of you probably already subscribe to this podcast, Ryan Holiday's <a href="https://dailystoic.com/podcast/">"The Daily Stoic"</a> is a quick and rich daily thought about the ideas of stoicism in your busy life.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZlVIbGFAqCwXNH62FncSjolShiYLxfeXvSMmhv8KAx3chL2YuFv9YuLHqcIEyHa5ZXiOItFqC-329d-rp8LZrWa5_1M9kvIF2qC7sEyBdZlT_b2GhjyEMRerDM-p6l9H0hufqM34EzRY1/s1200/1200x1200bb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZlVIbGFAqCwXNH62FncSjolShiYLxfeXvSMmhv8KAx3chL2YuFv9YuLHqcIEyHa5ZXiOItFqC-329d-rp8LZrWa5_1M9kvIF2qC7sEyBdZlT_b2GhjyEMRerDM-p6l9H0hufqM34EzRY1/w400-h400/1200x1200bb.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div>Holiday has taken the tenets of Stoicism and put them into several best selling books that are often sprinkled on a coaches shelf. Those include, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Ego-Is-Enemy-Ryan-Holiday-audiobook/dp/B01GSIZ9EY/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=ego+is+the+enemy&qid=1626023116&sr=8-1">"Ego is the Enemy,"</a> <a href="https://www.amazon.com/The-Obstacle-Is-Way-Ryan-Holiday-audiobook/dp/B00K5JUNSU/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=the+obstacle+is+the+way&qid=1626023187&s=books&sr=1-1">"The Obstacle is the Way"</a> and <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Stillness-Is-Key-Ryan-Holiday-audiobook/dp/B07QR7LMXR/ref=sr_1_1?crid=9WSKXO8VRCO9&dchild=1&keywords=stillness+is+the+key&qid=1626023231&sprefix=stillness%2Caps%2C325&sr=8-1">"Stillness is the Key."</a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>In this 3-4 minute podcast, Holiday takes an idea from the Ancient Stoic's writings and philosophy and helps you implement those ideas into your daily rigor. The four ideas of what they called virtue: wisdom, justice, temperance and courage and sifting them into your coaching practices may help you cement your coaching philosophy going forward.</div><div><br /></div><div>Holiday's podcast also offers many in depth interviews with a range of people, from authors and athletes to scholars and historians. But the three to four minutes spent with Stoic philosophy can help open your mind to a better athlete centered coaching style.</div><div><br /></div><div>If you have some recommendations like these, please share with us and the other coaches. </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-64019801956701403792021-07-11T09:21:00.002-07:002021-07-11T09:21:55.936-07:00Find a way...<p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">At the end of every season, UCLA coach John Wooden would sit down with his coaches, pore over his statistics for the season, talk with his players and come up with this question: "What do I need to get better at?"</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQU4Pw0HE7z2w2E6nVeQY0Mr2uMU33GsYV4z-XmYcTNwGIXlClfC4dBr4FEp_O23vJuPh0GimcRl95egKRwGxG3pFDjvlslcBZk9IuAeU0-4_kS1T-1SvOrlnVRwEXJNO0-joTtISbACrY/s600/05wooden-a-articleLarge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="600" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQU4Pw0HE7z2w2E6nVeQY0Mr2uMU33GsYV4z-XmYcTNwGIXlClfC4dBr4FEp_O23vJuPh0GimcRl95egKRwGxG3pFDjvlslcBZk9IuAeU0-4_kS1T-1SvOrlnVRwEXJNO0-joTtISbACrY/w400-h210/05wooden-a-articleLarge.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It might have been in bound plays, it might have been isolation sets or maybe just how he interacted with players in certain situations. In the era before the cell phone and internet, Wooden would write letters, make calls, drive to camps to watch other coaches and discuss the things Wooden thought they were better at then him. He would take these ideas and changes, put them into his upcoming season and then do it all again the next summer, win or lose. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">For most of us, our seasons are over. <br /><br />What do you need to get better at? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Can you sit down objectively and make a list of the things you did well and the things you did not? If you DO make that list, show it to your assistant or head coaches for their honest feedback. Show it to your club director, mentor or coaching friends. Show it to your players as they are the ones that will have the best feedback for you.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It can be scary to be examined like this. Your defensive hackles will rise up, your excuses will pour out of you- we are, after all, human. But what can you do to make this exercise work? If you struggle with taking criticism or compliments, do it through text or e mail. If you can handle it in person, it is much more pure and free of interpretation. But find the way to get the information and feedback and then act upon it.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">There are thousands of coaching books- most of them on tape as well. There are more podcasts now than books in the New York Public Library- many volleyball pods. But also, coaching pods, sports psych pods, motor learning pods, etc.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">If you don't have coaching friends, make some. Talk to some higher level coaches and ask for advice. Ask to take them to lunch or coffee and pick their brain. Find a team you liked and admired from last season that did the things well that you didn't and talk to that coach. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Find a way.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Like many coaches, some sharks must keep swimming and moving forward or they will drown and die. Coach, either start your journey or continue it, but being a life long learner is paramount to coaching success. </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpMaghUeszk-QuaOgXFIkycPLA8QOd6e7NczVFZfPPZFoCTFpht_zwtwAlrKQIz403d2vyOkJjLn1SFn-pBVk5Nd1BZo_Gs4gkF_PeSlSXoOdxSPa39HmucqHuP6JuIlNgbsxfP-enZUIr/s600/depositphotos_288749782-stock-illustration-doubtful-man-looking-in-the.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="528" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpMaghUeszk-QuaOgXFIkycPLA8QOd6e7NczVFZfPPZFoCTFpht_zwtwAlrKQIz403d2vyOkJjLn1SFn-pBVk5Nd1BZo_Gs4gkF_PeSlSXoOdxSPa39HmucqHuP6JuIlNgbsxfP-enZUIr/w353-h400/depositphotos_288749782-stock-illustration-doubtful-man-looking-in-the.jpg" width="353" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">As always, our most important coaching tool is the mirror. Look inside- what can you get better at?</span><p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-38328879409250160012021-06-18T11:28:00.007-07:002021-06-18T19:45:13.252-07:00Resemble or rebel?<p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">There is one gift than any coach should be excited to receive. It would be motivating, eye opening and hopefully generate self reflection that makes us better teachers AND better learners.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It's not a video series, a book or a cool leather organizer with clipboard, lineup wheel and small white board inside. It's much simpler.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">A mirror.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbHPR77GcRl_XKxaX8VqflTvCqBI6VPZHNZ1Nnw3vGv7x6srkgfQ66I9A0nSETRRra2WTbsHjOYORIGOy3hTw9cfc106hrPjcQiC4iZlFwyXyfvar5Sw7IqIuK7wT2DlfS7vzQBBzlcPyy/s900/mirror-675x900.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="675" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbHPR77GcRl_XKxaX8VqflTvCqBI6VPZHNZ1Nnw3vGv7x6srkgfQ66I9A0nSETRRra2WTbsHjOYORIGOy3hTw9cfc106hrPjcQiC4iZlFwyXyfvar5Sw7IqIuK7wT2DlfS7vzQBBzlcPyy/s320/mirror-675x900.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p>As a player, working hard- hustling and running and hitting the floor, what does it tell them when the coach is sitting...SITTING on the other side of the court watching and shouting instruction?</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">What does it tell a team when a coach enters and plays in the drill while eligible players are left to stand off, waiting their turn to get better at a sport they might now be falling out of love with? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">How about the beach coach that pulls up a chair in the shade and sits down, watching the kids in the clinic sweating and running through their drills and workout under the blazing sun.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Put yourself in their shoes for just a minute. How do YOU feel about the boss that flies first class but leaves you in coach? How about when she decides to take the afternoon off to be with her family but doesn't allow you the same opportunity? Or the manager that makes you wear a mask while you are working but then never wears theirs? Can you feel your blood starting to boil just reading these scenarios? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">American Statesman Adlai Stevenson once said, "A hypocrite is the kind of politician who would cut down a redwood tree, then mount the stump and make a speech for conservation." </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #333333; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaco7TQrwgznG318PuVTlrEtuKtoSHHzTKdgCVua4GJGhoC7UgfERn89I_pPJdOz1Z4sUDGSBw04SrRW5G4NGJa1UwO3gjprBhnZRzTtd94DTktVCzS03h-frDipgZNR5bX_4qdFHUkQD1/s512/unnamed.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="384" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaco7TQrwgznG318PuVTlrEtuKtoSHHzTKdgCVua4GJGhoC7UgfERn89I_pPJdOz1Z4sUDGSBw04SrRW5G4NGJa1UwO3gjprBhnZRzTtd94DTktVCzS03h-frDipgZNR5bX_4qdFHUkQD1/s320/unnamed.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #333333; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-family: helvetica;">Look in that mirror and check yourself. If you were an athlete, would your posture, your body language, your conduct be that of which your athletes would want to resemble or rebel against? If a player sat down in your team huddle, what would be your response? </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="color: white;">A culture is only as good as the model of it's leader. As a coach, you have a chance to significantly impact your culture, your athletes and how they represent the sport you are coaching. Hypocrisy is a curse upon culture that is an ever opened wound.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-family: helvetica;">Let's see our reflection and be the intention.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #333333; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #333333; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><br /><span style="color: #333333; font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-52462314735634562692021-05-12T10:20:00.003-07:002021-05-12T10:20:23.324-07:00Finding the grace in the random...<p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"> </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">In the evening of April 2nd in San Antonio, random was
exposed.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It happened again the next evening in Indianapolis and again
the evening after that back in San Antonio.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Hearts shattered and redeemed, coaches vilified or christened
in just 17.6 seconds across three of the most important basketball games in the
lives of these programs. And they all fell to one thing:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The last possession. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It’s that moment where coaches moonwalk on a razor blade.
It’s where a player’s confidence, future and brand can be enriched or scuttled.
Every coach wants it and hates to have it taken from them, like spoiled
toddlers fighting over a toy. And in three days in early April, with the NCAA
Men’s and Women’s Division I basketball Championships on the line, it took 17.6
seconds over the ending of three games to prove something that we all must
embrace.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Random rules! </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">As coaches, we play to our strengths. If we have a good
serving team, we want the ball in our hands serving at 24-23. At the higher
levels, we want the ball served to us so we can run our offense. The last
possession is the stomach churning, nail biting crescendo of sports.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">And as much as we think we can control it, random wins more
times than not. Arguably the greatest basketball player of all time, Michael
Jordan had 18 last shot opportunities in the playoffs over his career. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">He made 9. The greatest player of his generation made 50%
which is a remarkable number, but still just half. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Most of us coaching would LOVE to have MJ taking the last
shot in our playoff game. We love to have our best server at the line at 24-23.
We would love to have our best rotation receiving serve at 24-23. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">And here is where the place card holder for Random is placed
because sometimes, as the game goes, you will have your best server at the
line, and sometimes not. At that point, the volley gods are in control.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Players miss serves, balls get blocked or hit out of bounds,
passes get shanked or in rare cases called in when they are out or vice versa.
The randomness of sport is the DNA by which we exist. We train and practice so
those moments WILL work when called upon on that last possession, but even with
all the training and reps and experience, sometimes random wins.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">April 2<sup>nd</sup> in the Alamodome, the last 8.2 seconds
of their NCAA Women’s semifinal, South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston stripped the
ball from Stanford’s 6-4 Freshman Cameron Brink. Boston saw teammate Brea Beal
streaking down the court and shoveled the ball to her. Beal ran the left side
of the court in three dribbles and put up an 8’ falling away layup attempt that
caromed off the back of the rim into the hands of Aliyah Boston who gathered
and pushed up a 7’ shot at the buzzer…that was an inch too long. It bounced off
the back of the rim and Stanford was heading to the National Championship game.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySPdzkYSrnY">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySPdzkYSrnY</a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">While so much is going on in this last 8.2 seconds, three players’
lives were casually altered by random. The Stanford Freshman Brink would have
been devastated if one of the South Carolina shots had fallen. On the flip
side, both Boston and Beal might have been heroes if their shots had connected.
The road less travelled…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">As it was, Boston has probably made that shot thousands of
times in practice and in games, Beal’s layup is probably something she has shot
and made hundreds of times in her career and Brink, at 6-4, probably doesn’t
have the ball stripped from her all that much. But that night, that 8.2
seconds, random ruled and Stanford went on.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The next night in Indianapolis, the Men’s #1 seed Gonzaga
saw their game v. UCLA in the semifinal tied in overtime when UCLA’s Sophomore
Johnny Juzang put back his own shot with 3.3 seconds left. Gonzaga immediately
inbounded the ball on the run to Jalen Suggs, a 6-4 freshman guard who raced up
the court in three dribbles and pulled up 40 feet from the rim, in front of the
outstretched arms of UCLA’s 6-4 David Singleton and extending his legs and
arms, launched the ball which arced into the back of the glass and banked
through the net. Gonzaga was moving on to the National Championship game. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sx3LuhZOFn8"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sx3LuhZOFn8</span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The Monday morning quarterbacks might have wondered why
Juzang didn’t take a little more time off the clock before his shot? Why didn’t
UCLA pick up Suggs full court defensively and make him burn time running around
defenders. And if Singleton had maybe timed his jump a little differently,
maybe he gets a finger tip on the ball that changes that shot enough to force a
second overtime. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The What if’s…Why didn’ts…They should’ves….I would’ves…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The moment is fraught with energy, pressure, fear,
excitement, split second decision making, reading the play, past experiences.
Sitting in a broadcast booth, it’s easy to criticize or lionize, but in that
moment often times random is king.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">In the Alamodome on April 4<sup>th</sup>, it happened once
again. This time, the University of Arizona was playing Stanford for the
National Championship and again, Stanford was forced to relinquish the last possession.
With 6.1 seconds left and Stanford up 54-53, the Wildcats inbounded the ball to
their All American guard, 5-6 Aari McDonald. The inbounds play lobbed it into
McDonald’s outstretched hands at almost half court. She was the reigning PAC 12
Player of the Year and Stanford probably knew the ball was going into her
hands. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">She was quickly double teams as she snaked her way toward
the three point line and stepped in front of it but a wall of Stanford
defenders stood tall as a third Cardinal swept in to help. With 1.6 seconds
left, McDonald stepped back, turned around and let the shot fly over 6
outstretched arms as the arena stopped breathing.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The ball hit the back of the iron and fell away as the
buzzer sounded. Stanford survived not having the last possession once again,
this time with a National Championship. Aari lowered her head and began to cry.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vfiH0U9WUs"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vfiH0U9WUs</span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">All three of these shots, so important to so many, were
decided by millimeters, by the push of an arm to much or too little, by the
friction of a fingertip: those micro moments deciding the fate of players,
coaches and programs for years to come.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Embrace her or disregard her, be arrogant enough to think
you have control of her, but random owns us at times. And while the sports
world loves to blame and second guess, rarely do they speak of the randomness
of the game. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It’s important to note one more thing. In South Carolina’s
loss to Stanford, the first person to console Aliyah Boston was Assistant Coach
Fred Chmiel. The first one to console Aari McDonald was Wildcat head coach Adia
Barnes. And when Suggs hit his 3 pointer at the buzzer, Gonzaga coach Mark Few shook
his head in disbelief, walked calmly to shake hands and embrace a gutted UCLA
coach Mick Cronin and let his team have the spotlight for their performance.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Great Coaches and coaching staffs aren’t random. They are
caring, hard working, forward thinking men and women who find the grace in the
random. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It’s a lesson for us all.</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-82012899392574827862020-12-25T08:52:00.000-08:002020-12-25T08:52:30.168-08:00"...More Powerful, More Cruel."<span style="font-family: helvetica;">Some years back, a High School coach was overheard talking to her team about the upcoming match. One of her players, a smaller underclassman who did not see much playing time through most of the season but continued to be positive throughout, listened intently as the Coach finalized the game plan. At the end of the pre game chat, the Coach looked at this younger player and told her she would be going in to serve for one of the middles. The player was so excited. Her Parents and friends in the stands would finally get to see her play! <br /><br />The game started but when it was time for her to serve, the middle walked behind the service line and fired one into the net. <br /><br />The player was perplexed and looked at the Coach who was deep in thought about the match. <br /><br />Moments later, the middle went back to serve again. This time, thinking the Coach had just forgotten, stood up as if to sub into the match. <br /><br />The Coach didn’t notice. <br /><br />Finally with the game in the balance, the middle went back to serve again. Summoning up her courage, she asked the Coach if she wanted her to go in? The Coach looked down at the bench and motioned for the younger player to sit back down. <br /><br />What doesn’t matter is who won or lost that game or the ones that came after. This player was crushed. The Coach had unwittingly or not, eviscerated this players confidence in both herself AND her Coach with one thoughtless gesture.</span><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2lGZreVF3bNfOa813DKxvXPZKHD_yf9XYDHJORR6g5oALqD8s17SO_gc0YAl1MMcS7ABwa6rZRnz4Vx2m-meVH24OgdSwYqdPozpkX-otBacTSc-1vztu_bQNiA8GzPLUCjSuaflL01lJ/s450/gorlovkv200400062.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2lGZreVF3bNfOa813DKxvXPZKHD_yf9XYDHJORR6g5oALqD8s17SO_gc0YAl1MMcS7ABwa6rZRnz4Vx2m-meVH24OgdSwYqdPozpkX-otBacTSc-1vztu_bQNiA8GzPLUCjSuaflL01lJ/w370-h246/gorlovkv200400062.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /><span style="font-family: helvetica;">If the Coach was asked about her reversal of this young player’s fortune, she might deflect to “the player didn’t understand what I meant,” or maybe, “I just forgot,” or even still, “The match was too close to take a chance.” <br /><br />Zeynap Tufekci is a Turkish born Sociologist and writer who works with the University of North Carolina. Her writings and observations on the early days of the Corona Virus eliminating the politics, non science and public hysteria led the New York Times to publish an article entitled, <a href="https://www.blogger.com/#">“How Zeynep Tufekci Keeps Getting the Big Things Right!” </a>Her <a href="https://www.blogger.com/#">weekly blog</a> is widely read and covers many different topics. <br /><br />In one of her blogs from early December, she talked about her early life in Turkey. <i>“I grew up in the aftermath of the coup in Turkey, the one in 1980, following a generation that had a lot of grim experience with some of the worst conditions of repression—jails, detention, torture. They were not just older but often seemed impossibly distant from those of us who had not lived through any of the horrors they would sometimes hint at but rarely discuss openly but not really talk about. Their words often sounded like puzzles we could not make sense of, and their advice was cryptic.”</i> <br /><br /><i>“I remember a discussion about how one should never hope, but one also should never lose hope. I later learned that one of their defining experiences of the preceding generation was the detention period in the police headquarters. It was the worst phase—where the torture happened, and where people tried to endure and survive until they got transferred to the courts. They didn’t get justice in the courts, but they got relief from the worst. They’d see a judge and be sent to prison, which was certainly not a holiday but at least offered the relative safety of a ward with fellow prisoners.” </i><br /><br />Then Tufekci talked about the loss of hope. <i>“Apparently, one of the ways the torturers would try to break people during detention was to plant false hope—tomorrow you’ll be transferred, they’d promise—which, of course, didn’t happen, crushing people’s endurance in ways the horrific physical torture did not. The mind-games were more powerful, more cruel.” </i><br /><br />It may seem like a tectonic stretch to compare the horrors of a political struggle with not being able to serve in a volleyball match, but the false hope argument is a way, intentional or not, of crushing people’s endurance. <br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6Ve7aJZ0tiMI0agyOc_u_a_EdcAe_Ck3FQgyCWOm9v6GOsgiUyIdhWGWObSgqP0L-OjYq-Tw3UuSCitOeuuC3Vp7yJyA7VhOqo6UCCrTnriPj09NuzftXnw7Km3AMeTyPGmNdspmWA45m/s1024/volleyball-team-problem-sports-1024x487.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6Ve7aJZ0tiMI0agyOc_u_a_EdcAe_Ck3FQgyCWOm9v6GOsgiUyIdhWGWObSgqP0L-OjYq-Tw3UuSCitOeuuC3Vp7yJyA7VhOqo6UCCrTnriPj09NuzftXnw7Km3AMeTyPGmNdspmWA45m/w449-h213/volleyball-team-problem-sports-1024x487.jpg" /></a><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /><br />For this player, it could be the difference between playing on in a sport she loves or quitting, being part of a positive culture or pulling away from the team, being a player who would do anything for this coach or the player who distrusts and dismisses everything they say going forward.<br /><br />It's easy to get lost in the minutiae of a match and as coaches, we have all had this happen to us. But giving a player hope only to yank it away is cruelty. <br /><br />Maybe this happened to you in your youth sport or school career? Imagine you are given your dream job coaching at a high level D1 job only to have the AD call you the next day and rescind the offer. How crushed would you feel.<br /><br />What a Coach says to their players may be just lip service for the coach, but it can be monumental for the players. What is said must be clear, concise and most of all, UNDERSTOOD!<br /><br />We can all do better at this in our everyday encounters with people, but our athletes, who we pledge to take care of, treat well and respectfully and most of all train to flourish as players AND people deserve even more of our attention to detail. </span></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-30616205539659409062020-10-09T09:48:00.001-07:002020-10-09T09:48:26.087-07:00The Stopover...<span style="font-family: helvetica;">The 2020 (now 2021) Olympic mantra has been, “Path to the Podium.” Olympic hopefuls from all over the U.S. and from different sports have used this to show their journeys through promotional videos and interviews. <br /><br />There is a question that begs to be answered though. Knowing where these Olympic athletes are now, would it have helped if they had known what was needed beforehand to book their trip to Tokyo years later? <br /><br />The U.S. Women’s National Team coach and volley legend in his own right, Karch Kiraly recently answered an e mail query about what the exceptional athletes in his U.S.A. gym have in common. And it’s a good jumping off point for asking if we as Coaches and Parents are really doing what is best for our athletes? </span><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQjjUx7sUkci4DUuhfaL-0taMXbAtT_4GeBf4RqdE1qKz-DBB1Wtxvo4bsCeZaw0uixjU2T4W3suClggOkAG2wu_as2tnCLVyOc1Vis4eXta4K2nyQQziNAURootPTzbBPiDqRJzVWSkFp/s1024/gettyimages-545755718.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="1024" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQjjUx7sUkci4DUuhfaL-0taMXbAtT_4GeBf4RqdE1qKz-DBB1Wtxvo4bsCeZaw0uixjU2T4W3suClggOkAG2wu_as2tnCLVyOc1Vis4eXta4K2nyQQziNAURootPTzbBPiDqRJzVWSkFp/w400-h225/gettyimages-545755718.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br />Karch, who has been at the helm of the women’s National Team since 2013 and was an assistant the quad before, has self admittedly grown into the position and commands the respect of his athletes with his non negotiable pillar of a growth mindset. It’s not uncommon for him to approach guests in his Anaheim training facility after a practice and ask them for suggestions of what he can do better. <br /><br />This idea of this unique perpetual learning space has trickled down to his team and they embrace this philosophy with both hands. In the question that prompted this post, Karch was asked NOT to mention a growth mindset because it has become synonymous with his program- from the top down. No need to mention the obvious. <br /><br /><i><b>“Every Women’s National Teamer is unique, each brings her own set of special skills and traits to our program - so it’s not necessarily easy or fair to generalize,”</b></i> he began in his answer. This in itself telling of a coach that understands the idea of “needs based” coaching- not the one-size-fits-all so prevalent still in teaching but tailoring the training for the individual to get the best out of them while keeping the entire group engaged and moving forward. <br /><br />Karch goes into his first of three characteristics he recognizes in the athletes that are exceptional enough to garner an invite into his gym. <br /><br /><i><b>“A common trait to be found among this special group is toughness and grit. You don’t earn your way into our gym, joining and battling the best players in the country and a number of the best in the world, without facing down some serious failures, losses and ‘crashes’ along the way. That path includes USA Select, Youth National Teams, Junior National Teams, High School, juniors, College, Professional, and our Women’s National Team itself.” </b></i><br /><br />Failures, losses and crashes as a precursor to volleyball excellence? Many Olympic athletes in all sports have had hiccups in their ascent to the top of their sport. Injuries, bad coaches, lack of facilities or funding are all part of an Olympians journey. But looking back from this we have to ask… <br /><br />As a parent, do you allow your athlete to go through the “failures, losses and crashes along the way” or do you deflect these from your child? Do we give them a bumper car life to keep them safe and never let them know how acrid the taste of defeat can be? <br /><br />Coaches, do we allow our kids to make mistakes or just pull them from matches when they “don’t seem to have it today?” When will your ‘worst server’ get a game-like chance to get better? When do we stop looking at mistakes as the wrong numbers on a scoreboard and realize they are vital learning opportunities and the essence of learning? </span><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKq55treVhx6xDccqACHCChDUOU8NaRwTjn8dfMzxxEAzJFrlII5QEL3yqnCjtFX0vk08DnBgl0YGLJpR0-Jdb8x0aZGbiRbnUtI_fS6sAGQnb6Ir35Am-DWQy01CJn-wzvxeABleb_we3/s1200/obf6fk-b88769218z.120160804214053000groi2d01.10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="1200" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKq55treVhx6xDccqACHCChDUOU8NaRwTjn8dfMzxxEAzJFrlII5QEL3yqnCjtFX0vk08DnBgl0YGLJpR0-Jdb8x0aZGbiRbnUtI_fS6sAGQnb6Ir35Am-DWQy01CJn-wzvxeABleb_we3/w400-h296/obf6fk-b88769218z.120160804214053000groi2d01.10.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: helvetica;">National Team players have made peace with failure. They are not necessarily happy or comfortable with it, but they understand it is part of the process. Karch’s gold medal sights were upset in the semi finals of the 2016 Rio Olympics by Serbia, 13-15th in the fifth set. The players and coaches were distraught. But they overcame their disappointment and went on to win the mentally hardest sets in the Olympic volleyball competition, the bronze medal match 3-1 v. the Netherlands. <br /><br />As parents and coaches, what can we do for our teams, programs and institutions, to understand this key component to excellence? Can we stop playing the short game and understand losing is a part of sport and is not to be sequestered with blame, anger and disappointment? <br /><br /><i style="font-weight: bold;">“Another common trait is of course execution.” </i>Karch says of his second characteristic.<i style="font-weight: bold;"> “If someone can’t execute the skills that her position demands at a consistent and elite level, or can’t learn to do so in the early years of her post-college volleyball career, it’s going to be very difficult for that person to keep earning a place within the program.” </i><br /><br />Coaches, pull out and look at your practice plan for tonight. Are your athletes going to get game-like reps in a way that promotes the transfer and retention of those skills over the long haul, or are we just putting together a playlist of simple, one dimensional, unrealistic activities to keep the kids busy for 90 minutes? Will your training start with your 15 minute diatribe about working hard in practice to be followed up with going-through-the-motion drills that stymie their creativity and put a noose around their ability to self discover? <br /><br />Coaches, this falls on us. Science tells us how to train optimally. The attention span of our athletes tells us if what we are doing is working and engaging. The improvements over weeks and months are an indicator of successful methods. Is your path one that you would be comfortable with your son or daughter taking? </span><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNsj-3kTBA8bHVFAsGa6xIcCpQIwLmI0cgDX5LwCni1cKwb_EjJDvSsP16n5Up4AtUc82CRFjjb9kfEfy_OZkR0mPDXYkpgNO_9pprlvNzR0h_GLXVOq5E2-Kdan27WnmiD0mff2KZXObt/s594/karch-kiraly-new-coach-usa-womens-team.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="396" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNsj-3kTBA8bHVFAsGa6xIcCpQIwLmI0cgDX5LwCni1cKwb_EjJDvSsP16n5Up4AtUc82CRFjjb9kfEfy_OZkR0mPDXYkpgNO_9pprlvNzR0h_GLXVOq5E2-Kdan27WnmiD0mff2KZXObt/w266-h400/karch-kiraly-new-coach-usa-womens-team.jpg" width="266" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><b><i>“A third common trait would be the ability to make the people around oneself better.” </i></b>Karch says of a quality he shined at in his playing career. <i><b>“Our former Men’s National Team coach Bill Neville would call this, ‘Elevating the play of those around you.’ Teammate-ship, communication, leadership, poise under stress and reading ability are just a few things to come to mind when contemplating the myriad of ways of elevating people around us.” </b></i><br /><br />Pick a team sport and this quality is monumental; the nucleus of the team atom. In the years the U.S.A. National teams have done poorly or underachieved, a lack of leadership and/or chemistry was often the poison pill. <br /><br />As Parents, how can we help raise strong leaders and communicators? It’s certainly not by hiding them from rough waters and potential shipwrecks. You hear successful teams refer to their “glue guys,” the ones that keep everyone on the same path, the ones that will grab the strays and bring them back to the herd, the ones that lead by example on and off the court and yet are still able to put the team ahead of their own interests and ego. <br /><br />In this age of I, it’s harder than ever. Social media dictates that the ‘me’ is more important than the ‘we’ and our every post is critiqued by the whimsy of likes and follows. This flimsy veil of confidence cannot stand up to the tensile strength rigors of leading a team into battle. Add to this the lack of opportunities facing adversity and you have a recipe for poor or vacant leadership. <br /><br />Can we change? Of course: our training, our feedback, our points of emphasis, our focuses can all be manipulated toward the kind of athletes Karch wants in his National Team gym. Is it easy? No; change never is. But these three qualities: toughness and grit, execution and the ability to make those around them better are also traits that are defined in a valued and relevant life. </span><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0WigUwRUxKg0xVNPGjFJFHCnRYBeTxqvF7BDlQDj765hPB_XQjTRYyCRblWpUsAJiOTX-1xRRC8NHU2qKAN6J9z8SmwpQ_74lOWmdupWKuhre47jX0Y1iBpgDnW85rkswNQXsKKMSq4x7/s920/GetImage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="920" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0WigUwRUxKg0xVNPGjFJFHCnRYBeTxqvF7BDlQDj765hPB_XQjTRYyCRblWpUsAJiOTX-1xRRC8NHU2qKAN6J9z8SmwpQ_74lOWmdupWKuhre47jX0Y1iBpgDnW85rkswNQXsKKMSq4x7/w400-h266/GetImage.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Karch Kiraly’s generous insight has given us a look at the Path to the Podium with a stopover in his National Team gym and a map of how to get there. It’s up to us to use his wisdom and insights here to better prepare our athletes for what might be their journey, the same path that we too, as coaches and parents, must be better at paving. </span><br /> </div></div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-28114912410284375062020-09-28T09:17:00.002-07:002020-09-28T09:18:50.671-07:00...As Slow as Possible....<span style="font-family: helvetica;"><b><i>“Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.”</i></b> – Aristotle <br /><br />On September 5, 2020 at the St. Burchardi Church in Halberstadt, Germany, a throng of musical enthusiasts and fans of things “off the beaten path” assembled in the basement to hear a piece of music. <br /><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=13&v=_3BBgQPuPI0&feature=emb_title">A tiny piece in the grand scale of time.</a> (See and hear it here)<br /><br />American composer and avante garde’ artist John Cage, toward the end of his long and distinguished life, set in motion a piece of music called “ORGAN/ASLSP” which uncoded is, “Organ As Slow As Possible.”</span><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm4245X4yCZM-MMS2efHlY04FhG591dAklMiEBGro8DDPKCHi9Tve86IOANw-qcZeiatoOkSSpkO1D_QlsOf1Opivh3QOcU7mTBmwt9VDGtRryFfflEla7MYtQp0o2NB78KH67USaGFh2k/s1067/800px-HalberstadtBurchardiChurchOrganForOrgan2ASLSP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm4245X4yCZM-MMS2efHlY04FhG591dAklMiEBGro8DDPKCHi9Tve86IOANw-qcZeiatoOkSSpkO1D_QlsOf1Opivh3QOcU7mTBmwt9VDGtRryFfflEla7MYtQp0o2NB78KH67USaGFh2k/s320/800px-HalberstadtBurchardiChurchOrganForOrgan2ASLSP.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br />Cage and his cohorts used the church basement to construct an organ that is perpetually emitting music using an energy generating compressor and sand bags. On September 5, 2001, Cage’s 89th birthday, the opus began…with a 17 month pause of silence followed by the first chord which lasted another 29 months. <br /><br />You see, Cage has fashioned this 8-page musical art show to last 639 years. (That is not a typo!) And so, just a few weeks ago, many of Cage’s musical fandom paid close attention as the first chord change in six years and eleven months took place among the masked and curious in the right transept of the hallowed grounds as two organ pipes were added and will play G♯3, E4 the next 17 months until the next chord change in February of 2022. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1JYh68UypCpa_w83aSKSQyxOZ8drwBTcrEtcdNfoWBghYgz1djoqD1sCtwU3pzLrtX8xVn8kscUhddEuYNLPKLZr2by0nIxdLNGEHPboTac0vaBkrPbya_FSgvC6bbC0J6xvBMSrcpT9x/s2048/200907084239-03-john-cage-organ-art-project-chord-change-restricted.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1JYh68UypCpa_w83aSKSQyxOZ8drwBTcrEtcdNfoWBghYgz1djoqD1sCtwU3pzLrtX8xVn8kscUhddEuYNLPKLZr2by0nIxdLNGEHPboTac0vaBkrPbya_FSgvC6bbC0J6xvBMSrcpT9x/s320/200907084239-03-john-cage-organ-art-project-chord-change-restricted.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Board chairman of Halberstadt’s John Cage Organ Foundation, Rainer Neugebauer, says the performance is composed to make us slow down the frenzy of our modern lives. “Everything does not need to happen so fast. If something needs a bit longer then it can give us an inner calm that is rare in normal life.” <br /><br />Society, as we all know, has become instant. Your phone can give you directions, answers, human screen contact and most any and all modern conveniences in seconds. We get annoyed when the internet on a plane runs a bit slow even though you are travelling 600 mph at 37,000 feet above the planet. Those complexities don't enter into our mind- we want things NOW! <br /><br />Sadly, coaching is trending this way as well. Coaches who have rough starts to the season are suddenly on the chopping block. Players who struggle to assimilate with new teams and new teammates are chastised for not being ready to play. And young athletes that have yet to grow into their physical potential as pre-teens are cut and run off from sports they may one day excel in because they are not good enough in this moment! <br /><br />Patience has almost become an antithesis of sports performance. As a youth sports culture, we have been driven to the idea that winning is above learning, that learning must show dividends in THIS DRILL and starting your sport at 6 or 7 years old and being fixed on just one position will put the patience science says it takes to develop an elite performer, at bay. <br /><br />Ask someone who has been called an overnight sensation and ask them how real that statement is? Ask someone who comes off the bench in the upcoming NBA finals and has a stellar game if this new found fame just happened? <br /><br />Like a $100 bill from our pocket, we have lost our patience as fans, as parents and as coaches. <br /><br />One coach was overheard last week after a practice saying, “They look better!” If we are coaching to look better at a practice, we are missing the ideas of transfer and retention. An athlete can look amazing at the end of practice on Tuesday, but what about next Tuesday? Have they retained and transferred to their game what you taught them? Have they learned? <br /><br />Some athletes maybe, some others maybe not. Welcome to coaching. But if a new coach thinks change comes at an instant; they are being fooled as much as the click bait below their daily horoscope or Starbucks coupon. Learning takes patience, change takes patience. And as coaches, we need to show players that patience. <br /><br />John Cage set out to give humanity something to ponder; music that will outlast all of us (probably) and our next 10 generations. On September 5, 2640, maybe one of your descendants might happen upon a small church basement in Halberstadt, Germany, if it is still standing, and marvel about what life must have been like in the olden days of 2020 as the final note sounds, finishing the work. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijgisb-lGAt9LuW1_ad2H0yQyD6919ueXN_KYUzJ8QurmeOUluhLLpA8rUZePhFSnP1VmdQaIKp7ikZZxvkiy57802w5XHmRzq7HzWMXWZxJgtJiDVdeOkTLpJfBSRKo76e_IcMGq-mBN-/s660/187471.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="443" data-original-width="660" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijgisb-lGAt9LuW1_ad2H0yQyD6919ueXN_KYUzJ8QurmeOUluhLLpA8rUZePhFSnP1VmdQaIKp7ikZZxvkiy57802w5XHmRzq7HzWMXWZxJgtJiDVdeOkTLpJfBSRKo76e_IcMGq-mBN-/s320/187471.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Auguste Rodin once said, <i><b>“Patience is also a form of action.”</b></i> For Coaches today, our work is never finished. There is always more to teach, lessons to be learned, new research to explore and implement. But this all takes time and patience. <br /><br />Your athletes deserve your patience just like the patience you want your children’s school and teachers to show them. <br /><br />Perhaps, Maya Angelou sums it up best. <b><i>“All great achievements require time.”</i></b> </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Who is your next great achievement?</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-63879610612029896022020-07-10T10:20:00.000-07:002020-07-10T10:26:35.424-07:00...Paramount to Malpractice...<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In<a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17408989.2020.1734555?journalCode=cpes20"> a study of coaching in Australian Football League competition</a> in November of last year, a large swath of coach/player interactions were tracked and the following was recorded in over 1,000 interactions: Negative accounted for 20% of the feedback v. 13% positive. Controlling feedback accounted for 58% of the interactions while only 8% were autonomous, or allowing the athlete to make the decision. Finally, task related feedback accounted for 60% of the interactions while process related information was just 37%. <br /><br />What does this tell us? First, that traditional uses of feedback were evident in these professional and elite competitive sports settings. Negative, coach controlled and movement specific dominated the coaching scenery. However, the study also gives these findings: More positive feedback was provided in winning quarters than in losing quarters and more controlling feedback was prevalent in losing quarters than in winning ones. <br /><br />Wait…what? <br /><br /><a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/1612197X.2011.614848?journalCode=rijs20">Another study done in 2011</a> had 40 novice and 40 experienced basketball players shooting free throws. In the study, “Both groups responded faster to neutral and positive words than negative words.” It concluded by reporting, “It was concluded that directing attention towards positive emotion may have benefited sports performance by diverting attention away from execution of the primary task (shooting free throws), promoting automatic skill execution by experienced basketballers.” </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />Hmmm…. <br /><br />Let’s step back from the court and the pitch for a second. <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01443410.2020.1711872?journalCode=cedp20">A 2020 study of the effects of teachers’ praise to reprimand ratios</a> on elementary school students concluded the following: “A positive linear relationship was evident, showing that the higher the teachers praise-to-reprimand, the higher the students on-task behavior percentage.” In other words, the more praise students got, the more improvement they showed. <br /><br />Let’s flip the script. <br /><br />In some therapies in working with addiction treatment, often times confrontation therapy has been used and touted as a successful pathway to overcoming these toxic habits. <a href="http://www.williamwhitepapers.com/pr/2007ConfrontationinAddictionTreatment.pdf">But a 2009 study</a> put that idea back in the drawer with leeches and bloodletting. “It is time to accept that the harsh confrontational practices of the past are generally ineffective, potentially harmful, and professionally inappropriate.” <br /><br />And yet in so many sports, so many teams, coaches continue to berate, embarrass, ridicule and demean their athletes as an idea of motivation and “getting the best out of them.” Some coaches think certain athletes respond better to this kind of treatment. And even some parents, who maybe experienced this kind of coaching feel it did a world of good for them and thus, needs to be inflicted upon their child. <br /><br />Take this kind of behavior and put it anywhere EXCEPT the sports arena. Your 10-year-old 4th grader misses a math problem and is forced to do pushups and gets a verbal tirade about how she isn’t trying and isn’t as good as the rest of the class. Your 13-year-old son is chastised by the waitress for spilling his soft drink on the restaurant table and is labeled a public klutz and not physically gifted enough to be brought out into public to eat. Your 16-year-old is going for her driver’s license and makes a small mistake on a left-hand turn in traffic. The instructor tells her to pull over, turn off the engine, get out of the car and proceeds to chide her in a loud voice just how ill equipped she is for driving and how her inattention to detail is going to cost someone their life someday. <br /><br />Mom? Dad? You okay with these examples? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />Then why is sport different? Coaches, the evidence is OVERWHELMING. Negativity, yelling and screaming, detrimental language and actions- they are game changers but in the wrong direction. <br /><br />Some coaches are open to change. Some aren’t. That’s the paradox of every profession in the world. Sometimes a profession doesn’t require much change and in some, technology and science has driven a new path forward. And as these professionals’ option, they can take the new path or stay on the dirt road. It is their decision or in come cases, the decision of their superiors or even the public at large. How many coaches have lost their careers because a cell phone records a post game meltdown or a regrettable phrase falling on the ears of bystanders. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not only is it just wrong and outdated, it can be a career killer!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As a parent, understand this generation IS different than yours. While you might not have had any options in your youth sport career because of opportunities or proximity to things, this generation has a plethora to choose from. Be selective when choosing a coach and a program. Negativity breeds negativity- understand that.No one can sustain their best being in fear all the time. Positive feedback, positive interactions, enhanced expectancies are all part of bringing the best out of athletes. <br /><br />As coaches, we have to change. We have to realize that communication- the language we use and how we give it is the core to athlete development. Losing our cool, chirping the same things we did 5 or 10 years ago is paramount to malpractice. Take some time to be intentional with your thoughts and what you are saying to your athletes. <br /><br />The science is telling us so.</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-74494450139127796592020-07-06T13:12:00.002-07:002020-07-06T13:12:50.503-07:00...Thief of Joy...<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A few seasons back, an innocuous chat with a Parent about their 14 year olds hair color, fashion sense and current interests and hobbies, all that was at the time considered perhaps a bit “out of the mainstream” was concluded with the Parent saying, “We’re proud that she’s finding herself and she’s her own person!” <br /><br />A few minutes later, in the same discussion with the same parent, she expressed concern that her daughter “…wasn’t hitting the ball like Sarah. What’s wrong with her?” <br /><br />We are comfortable when our children “go their own way” during social and educational situations, sometimes even proud. Some kids are put into AP classes while for others it might be necessary to take some remedial courses to shore up skills. Some students are held back a grade for emotional and education reasons. This isn’t frowned upon, it’s part of figuring out what is best for your child, helping them become a well adjusted and contributing member of society; something most every Parent subscribes to. <br /><br />But when we throw athletics into the arena, those sentiments vanish quickly. Why isn’t my child as fast as hers? Why can’t my Son run like his? Why isn’t her jump shot consistent like her teammates? <br /><br />The answer is the same one for every other aspect of their lives. Kids are different! They grow, mature and learn and process at different speeds and their engagement levels vary wildly. <br /><br />A prime thought comes from T.J. Buchanan, the Director of Sport Development for USA Lacrosse and his ideas which are succinct and may cause some Parental arrhythmia. “There is no such thing as an elite 8-year-old lacrosse player. There are no high-performance 10-year-old lacrosse players. Some coaches may tell you different. Parents may tell you different. But what they are commonly mistaking for ‘elite’ or ‘high-performance’ is really just a young athlete who is simply more physically gifted at that given point in time, compared to their peers.” </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />Some Coaches may also see their athletes at all the same level and muse, “I taught this to everyone but Jenny was the only one that didn’t get it!” Our first assumption is that either Jenny wasn’t listening, doesn’t like us as a coach or just doesn’t care when in fact, probably none of those are true. <br /><br />Those 11’s and 12’s coaches see this learning variance more than 16’s and 18’s coaches, but it’s prevalent throughout sports- little league to the Majors. While it might be those kids haven’t gotten to the point of learning a skill or more importantly being able to execute that skill, a couple of other factors could be weighing in as well. <br /><br />Perhaps the coach’s teaching technique leaves a lot to be desired. Volleyball is a game of speed, power, movement and most of all decision making. If your coach incorporates none of these into a practice plan, chances are those athletes will be behind other athletes of the same age. <br /><br />Sometimes a child is asked to play ‘up’ on a higher age team because of their size or abilities. But just because they are playing on an older team, they are still thousands of volleyball touches behind. They are thousands of opportunities to read the ball coming over the net behind. They are still thousands of plays, on the other side of the net, behind where they would be learning and moving and anticipating. These thousands of touches aren’t ‘made up’ in a season, that player will have to learn faster in less touches, opportunities and plays. That alone can be overwhelming and a burden on athletes we are trying to train into relaxing and finding their ‘zones’ at the higher levels of our sport. <br /><br />This need to compare is built into our social fabric daily. Social media has us chasing the famous and fit, comparing ourselves to their looks and lifestyles. We compare our lot in life with others of similar economic status and wonder why we can’t afford what our neighbors have. We compare our kids to their kids, our jobs to their jobs, our teams to their teams, etc. It’s built into our minds and on the positive end, it can help inspire us to do things maybe we didn’t think possible before. On the negative end, it can cause depression and a toxic self worth. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />Most child psychologists agree that it’s less than ideal and can be downright harmful for Parents to compare their own children but again, athletics makes these comparisons seem routine. “Your sister was able to serve over the net at 11 years old, why can’t you?” <br /><br />Parents may be a root cause of this comparison conundrum. Yale Psychologist Marc Brackett, the director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence (EI) and the author of “Permission to Feel” researched college students on their EI and found in his data that college students reported feeling “stressed and anxious” as well as tired, bored and lonely. But when he unpacked the underlying emotions, one stood above all and was the root cause of the others: Envy. Envy of other students, grades and social status. <br /><br />So how as Parents and Coaches can we get out of this compare and contrast mindset? National Team player Madi Kingdon, in an interview on the wonderful new podcast, <a href="https://ithinkweregoodhere.podbean.com/">“I Think We’re Good Here”</a> had this to say about comparing herself to others. <br /><br />“For me, I’m training with the best people in the world. If I start comparing myself to the person on my left or my right, I think that’s a recipe for disaster.” Kingdon says. “When I first got to the (USA) gym, I was like okay, that’s Jordan Larson…she’s pretty good, ya know? It’s like a snowball. So I think over time, it’s gotten to a point where I’m competing against myself.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />“If I’m not making a roster, okay, look at the other outside hitters that are in front of me on this roster- they’re phenomenal. I mean, stats don’t lie- they have good stats, mine could be better and I’m fully aware of that and just realizing I have so much room to grow.” Madi adds, “People ask me ‘do you want to play volleyball anymore’ and I’m like yea, I have so much room to get better! I have so much work I want to do and I’m not near the player I want to be. So I realize that there’s room for potential and it’s more competing against myself than competing against other people who are in the gym because I think that would probably make you go crazy. It’s not easy!” <br /><br />The phrase is overused a lot but in this instance, not used enough: Be the best version of yourself. That’s all that can be asked of you. <br /><br />As an athlete, don’t worry about Coaches and Parents comparing you to other athletes; it’s ill conceived and a distraction. <br /><br />As a Coach, instead of comparing, start coaching better. Understand that every athlete on your team has strengths and weaknesses and finding those strengths for the betterment of both player and team is a full time job in itself. There is no time to compare. <br /><br />And Parents, let’s stop limiting your athlete’s growth and potential by corralling them into your ill fitting idea of what they should be and who you have compared them to and celebrate who they are, what they bring to the team and how they can best challenge themselves to improve. <br /><br />Theodore Roosevelt’s wisdom and pith come across in his fitting mic drop; <br /><br />“Comparison is the thief of joy.” </span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-52466498107200358892020-06-05T09:27:00.003-07:002020-06-05T09:29:04.236-07:00Where are we?<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>“Sports do not build character. They reveal it.”</i> – Heywood Broun. <br /><br />If sports are revealing character, we might be in trouble. <br /><br />The Houston Astros spent their 2017 World Series Championship season cheating. They stole pitching signs and got the information to their hitters which gave them a distinct advantage over teams ‘playing by the rules.’ But they won. Their end justified their means. “If you ain’t cheating, you ain’t trying.” Is a quote credited to many coaches and athletes, but in this case, and many others like it, is winning the only thing that matters? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lance Armstrong. Deflate-gate. The 1919 Black Sox scandal. Triple Crown winning thoroughbred Justify. Steroid use in baseball, football, basketball. Olympic doping across the spectrum of sports. College athletics rife with recruiting violations. Judges and officials bought off and bribed. Point shaving, sexual abuse by coaches and staff, emotional abuse by same. Daily…DAILY, sports pages are littered with those that chose the crooked road for the glory and probably, the profit, of the win. <br /><br />New York Times author David Waldstein wrote about the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/15/sports/chess-cheating.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage">rampant cheating going on in the chess world</a> recently. <br /><br /><i>“In chess, players at live tournaments are now required to leave their phones behind and pass through metal detectors before entering the playing area. Some have even been asked to remove clothing and been searched. And some tournaments now put players behind one-way mirrors to limit visual communication.” </i><br /><br />Chess? <br /><br />Just a few weeks ago, <a href="https://www.carscoops.com/2020/05/daniel-abt-caught-cheating-in-esports-event-gets-promptly-suspended-by-audi/">Formula E driver Daniel Abt was fired from his racing team </a>for having a “ringer” drive for him in a video game contest. <br /><br />A VIDEO GAME???<br /><br />Where are we? <br /><br />The first thing to come to grips with is that while most professional and college sports may be woven into our daily lives, it is entertainment. During this lockdown, no one has died because the NBA or the NHL have suspended their seasons. No one is suffering except those that make money off of these enterprises including, of course, the athletes themselves. <br /><br />The Olympics have been delayed a year but most of the athletes now are professionals and can make money at other events and tournaments. The days of amateurism in sports are in the rear view mirror. <br /><br />Even the worldwide leader in sports, ESPN, has resorted to pre-packaged documentaries on Michael Jordan and Lance Armstrong to go along with Korean baseball, axe throwing, stone skipping and sign spinning to keep the lights on. <br /><br />But there is something lost in all of this. <br /><br />Somewhere in Houston, there are young little leaguers who look up to their beloved Astros. Maybe they don’t understand the idea that their heroes cheated to win. <br /><br />Or sadly, maybe they do. <br /><br />Where are we? <br /><br />At youth soccer games, line ups are checked against birth certificates to ensure no one is older than they are supposed to be. Even in our Arizona Region tournaments, teams are required to turn in birth certificates which are matched against rosters which are presented at the beginning of each tournament to ensure everyone is playing by the rules. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Parents will hold their kids back a year in middle school to give them a year advantage in growth and strength when playing their sport in high school. Some parents will lie about their residence so their child can go to a different school with a better sports program. Some still are given "incentives" to come to a private or charter school as super teams are built to roll over their public school competition. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Arizona Interscholastic Association, the NCAA, the NAIA- they face daily complaints about teams bending the rules, circumventing policy and violating standards, all for the chance to hold the golden trophy.<br /><br />We are now required to think the least of people because the will to win is so glacial. <br /><br />We hand out sportsmanship awards and call people out for their integrity because, sadly, there is so little to go around. My grandson recently got an award from his principal because he owned up to talking in class when another boy was blamed. While we were all very proud of him, the question arose; shouldn’t this just be the normal? <br /><br />We have lost the honor of competing in sports. Out of one side or our mouths, we talk about how much we can learn from adversity and how losing teaches us so much and out the other side, we blame everyone when we lose, accusing the other team of cheating or the officials for being biased. We make every game or match the end all, life or death moment. We give up on our teams that don’t perform the way we need them to for the quick social media prompts of our city's Professional supremacy! An NBA team that starts 1-7 is likely a disaster requiring a coaching change, a trade, a new owner; some kind of reboot. It’s unacceptable. <br /><br />Maybe the first thing we need to tell our younger athletes is the truth; college, professional and yes, even a lot of high school sports are driven by $$! It’s not so much about integrity and doing and being your best, it’s about results. Even in youth sports, without the prize money at the end of the tournament, we are as a nation transfixed by the result. Parents, coaches and now, even the kids are conditioned to ask, “Where did we finish?” “What place did we come in?” “Did we do better than…?” <br /><br />Where are we? <br /><br />Coaches, this is a call to action. When you listen to the top coaches in any sport, much of their conversation is about character and culture. Is yours about winning first? Can we get back to developing wonderful human beings who can use youth sports as a vehicle toward growth, independence, integrity, self esteem, teamwork, empathy, honor and class? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And by the way, aren't these the qualities that help WIN in the long run anyway?<br /><br />Parents, this is a call to action. What are you emphasizing in your son or daughter’s athletic career? Is it the work and preparation they are putting in to give themselves the best chance to succeed? Is it the effort they put in on the court or field AND the effort they put in off it, to be the best teammate and coachable athlete they can be? Or is the first thing we ask, “Did you win?” <br /><br />Pick a profession and chances are very high there are cheaters in that profession. Not just sports, in all areas of life. Our young men and women will learn this in time; usually the hard way. They will be tricked or scammed or worse yet, let down by someone they looked up to as a mentor or role model. As coaches and parents, we should be helping them to understand it doesn’t have to be this way. <br /> <br />There are so many remarkable coaches, parents, club directors, youth sports officials, professional athletes, collegiate athletes and people associated with sports that can help us as a divining rod toward integrity and morals. But when they fall from grace, it’s just as important to have those conversations about why. <br /><br />It’s very unlikely this diatribe will cause many of us to think differently or act accordingly but let’s leave it with this thought. <br /><br />If you are coaching your son or daughter, would you be okay with them seeing you cheat? If you owned the Houston Astros and your 12 year old son saw the news that the coach and players you hired cheated to win, and tarnished one of the best moments of his young life, what do you now tell him? If you came home and your wife asked you why you were home early, could you look her in the eye and tell her you were caught cheating, giving one team an advantage over another as an official for an envelope of cash?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />The Houston Astros, despite admitting to cheating, firing many that were responsible and apologizing way after the fact, are STILL the 2017 World Series Champions. For them, their end sadly justified their means. How refreshing would it have been if the owner of the Astros had given the trophy, the money and the designation as champions BACK to Major League Baseball and said we don’t deserve this, we acted in a manner that is not representative of the behavior we aspire to be as professional baseball players? <br /><br />We can help take youth sports back or we can recede into the sediment of complacency, deniability and deflection. We can make youth sports a vehicle to once again reveal character when we see it shining, or extinguish that flame before it has a chance to light our way and warm our hearts. <br /><br />The question is, where are we? </span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6089763625431015150.post-72722519557814164792020-05-18T07:07:00.001-07:002020-05-18T07:10:19.410-07:00The Samurai, the Gamer and the Birthday Boy<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You can blame David Letterman perhaps. His Top Ten lists were a staple of his quirky comedy and lead to books, videos and oft imitated staples of our society. While some can be inane and self promoting, some can be useful in our lifelong endeavor to be better at our craft. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />To that end, please partake in these three distinctive lists drawn from three random sources, all offering up nuggets of wisdom for coaches winding their way through the path. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Musashi </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />A mere 660 miles southeast from the site of the (now) 2021 summer Olympics is a small deserted island that is only accessible by boat. It’s called Ganryujima and it is home to one of the most famous statues in the history of Japanese sword art, also more commonly referred to by its age of the culture, the Samurai. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The master was Miyamoto Musashi, (1584-1645). In this statue, he is battling his final duel, which he wins when he brings his wooden sword made from the oar of a boat down upon his foe just seconds before he was to be slashed. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Musashi finished his life with a perfect 61-0 record in duels and is widely considered the greatest Samurai of all time. At the end of his life, he wrote a book called the Five Rings where he diligently records his <a href="https://steemit.com/culture/@mastodonte/21-rules-of-life-miyamoto-musashi">21 Rules of Life.</a> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />In his disciplined world of life and death struggles, Musashi would never fall in love, never eat good food and never have possessions that weren’t useful. But some of these rules resonate with the ideas that we as coaches both need and should help disseminate toward our athletes. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /><i>1. Accept everything just the way it is. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />3. Do not, under any circumstances, depend on a partial feeling. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />4. Think lightly of yourself and deeply of the world. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />6. Do not regret what you have done. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />7. Never be jealous. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />9. Resentment and complaint are appropriate neither for oneself or others. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />21. Never stray from the way. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />While we are not in literal life and death struggles as we face off across the net from another team, Musashi’s rules do remind us that some principles are forever and can help us through our own days of obstacles and help guide our athletes through their life as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />Watch a player throw themselves into the stands for a loose ball and they are described as “gamers.” But in the 1970’s and 80’s this moniker hbegan to hold a different meaning. Pong turned into Galaga which morphed into the Brother's Mario into the next generation of home entertainment. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />James Paul Gee is considered the Godfather of “Game based learning.” In other words, he sees video games as great learning and teaching methods and recently came out with a list of the <a href="https://www.legendsoflearning.com/blog/james-paul-gee-game-based-learning/">16 principles of good game based learning</a>. While this list has an obvious bias toward video games, some of his principles could be plucked from Coaching handbooks and webinars quite easily. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /><i>1. Players build a sense of identity throughout the video game, either through direct input or an on-screen character they inherit. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />2. Communication occurs between the player and the game.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />4. Failing in a game holds few consequences in comparison to real life, empowering players to take risks. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />6. Players have control over the gaming environment. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />7. The gaming environment contains problems that naturally lead into one another, allowing a player's mastery to grow and evolve. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />8. Games offer a problem that challenges students assumed expertise. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />9. Players receive information as they need it, not before, which teaches them patience and perseverance and improves critical thinking abilities. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />11. The game should frustrate the student enough to challenge them but be easy enough that they believe and can overcome the problems faced. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />13. Games force players to expand their situational knowledge and consider courses of action other than linear ones. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />15. In multi player environments, players have different skills, forcing them to rely on each other- a needed soft skill for students. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />16. Competency occurs through taking action in the game, reversing the typical model in which students are required to learn before being allowed to act. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">According to the Entertainment Software Association, 3 out of 4 households have a gamer under their roof and 65% of American adults play video games. While the numbers for Youth Sports continue to disappoint, this faction of society is blooming. Perhaps Gee’s list can help us understand how to better coach this generation and help kids blend the on court with the online. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>A 68th Birthday </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />Kevin Kelley turned 68 last month. The founding executive editor of Wired magazine who adds author, photographer, conservationist and other wide ranging interests to his resume’, jotted down his <a href="https://kk.org/thetechnium/68-bits-of-unsolicited-advice/">68 Bits of Unsolicited Advice</a> as a birthday present to all of us. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As you will see, much of his advice would be considered chapter and verse for coaching our chosen sport. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /><i>· Learn how to learn from those you disagree with, or even offend you. See if you can find the truth in what they believe.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· Being enthusiastic is worth 25 IQ points. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· Being able to listen well is a superpower. While listening to someone you love keep asking them “is there more?” until there is no more. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· Gratitude will unlock all other virtues and is something you can get better at. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· Pros are just amateurs who know how to gracefully recover from their mistakes. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· Don’t be the smartest person in the room. Hangout with, and learn from, people smarter than yourself. Even better, find smart people who will disagree with you. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· The purpose of a habit is to remove that action from self negotiation. You no longer expend energy deciding whether to do it. You just do it. Good habits can range from telling the truth to flossing. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· Promptness is a sign of respect. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· The more you are interested in others, the more interesting they find you. To be interesting be interested. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· To make mistakes is human. To own your mistakes is divine. Nothing elevates a person higher than quickly admitting and taking personal responsibility for the mistakes you make and then fixing them fairly. If you mess up, fess up. It’s astounding how powerful this ownership is. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· You can obsess about serving your customers/audience/clients or you can obsess about beating the competition. Both work, but of the two, obsessing about your customers will take you further. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· Separate the processes of creation from improving. You can’t write and edit, or sculpt and polish, or make and analyze at the same time. If you do, the editor stops the creator. While you invent, don’t select. While you sketch, don’t inspect. While you write the first draft, don’t reflect. At the start, the creator mind must be unleashed from judgment.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· If you are not falling down occasionally, you are just coasting. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· There is no limit on better. Talent is distributed unfairly, but there is no limit on how much we can improve with what we start with. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· When crisis and disaster strike, don’t waste them. No problem, no progress. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· Acquiring things will rarely bring you deep satisfaction. But acquiring experiences will. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br />· How to apologize: Quickly, specifically, sincerely. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />As with any venture in life, there are clues and ideas that surround us, now more than ever. Sometimes they aren’t in places we would expect and we have to secure the miners helmet to find nuggets of wisdom, but they are out there. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />If you have some you would like to share, please e mail us at <a href="mailto:outreach@azregionvolleyball.org">outreach@azregionvolleyball.</a><br /> </span></div>
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