At some point in all seasons, we will have made it to the point where the newness of the campaign has worn off, team roles have been established and we have settled in for the long haul. In a few short (or long depending on your “issues”) weeks, our coaches and kids will either be re-energized at the reality of the promise of post-season play or take solace in the light at the end of the tunnel. For now though, we have reached the “middle mile,” and this is the part of the season where most often we lose sight of why we started and where we are headed.
During this time, I think it is really important to make sure that we as coaches stay focused on our program’s purpose and our role as coaches in executing our mission. Hopefully, you have established a clear daily and weekly process that you can focus your athletes on the Positive Coaching Alliance’s ELM Tree of Mastery: Effort, Learning and Mistakes are okay.
Effort–Coach effort first. I think the trickiest part of this is to find ways for it to be evident for the athlete that their effort is 100% or not. Tom Herman at Texas grades film by “Hands/Chase/Loaf” where on film (both practice and game) players are graded on whether they get their hands on their assignment (or otherwise execute their assignment), are chasing their assignment (they didn’t quite get it done but are attempting) or a loaf (jogging and really not trying to execute their assignment). Are there ways to grade this for your athletes, especially in practice?
Learning–We are committed to promoting a “Growth Mindset” in our coaches and athletes. Who I am today is going to be a shadow of who I will be in five years. If athletes are only focused on results, they may never develop further skills to take their game to the next level.
Mistakes are okay–What if I were to tell you that I could guarantee you a way to never lose a contest? It’s simple–alway compete again teams/individuals who you are better than. The same goes for mistakes. If we never make mistakes, it means we aren’t stretching ourselves mentally and physically.
A final thought about the middle mile is that you may want to find a way to liven practice up or change things up. I am a big believer in the power of routine and trusting the process but, as Emerson said, “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds.” Know when to hit the brake and when to accelerate with your kids.