The sport is for and about the athletes, NOT the coach’s ego,
The coach’s job is to build up, NOT tear down athletes,
Mistakes & failures are how athletes learn….
Therefore you NEVER make athletes afraid of failing
By yelling at, demeaning or punishing them for messing up,
Instead you want to patiently teach your athletes
And help them learn what they need to do differently next time,
If you embarrass/humiliate and demean your players
They will burn out, lose their love for the game, struggle performance-wise and have NO RESPECT for you,
When you treat athletes with respect, they will GROW,
become peak performers and respect YOU,
Communication in GOOD coaching is always a 2 way street, You don’t just tell your athletes what to do or what they did wrong….
You also LISTEN CAREFULLY to them because
Your effectiveness AND success as a coach is always in direct proportion to how open you are to learning,
And your very best teachers are your players!
The coach-athlete relationship is THE key to SUCCESS, to building mental toughness and motivation
You build this relationship by caring about the athlete as a person,
NOT just as someone who performs FOR you,
Along these lines, EVERY player on the team is important,
EVERY player demands your caring, respect and attention,
Because EVERY player has potential and deserves to learn.
There is ALWAYS far more at stake than the x’s & o’s, good mechanics and winning,
Shaping, nurturing and developing tomorrow’s adults and leaders is always in your hands.
