Some situations where I feel most comfortable are when I have to communicate with my student-athletes. I have no problem letting them know what I expect from them and I feel they are always on the same page when I am coaching. I am also in my sweet spot when I need to show a certain move or example of a skill that I am teaching. I do not second guess my skill set when I am instructing at all. I believe the athletes need to buy-in to my coaching (a term my college football coach always used) and confidence in their coach is key to that. An area that is not within my strengths is communicating well with parents on a regular basis. There is a parent meeting at the beginning of the year but after that there is nothing scheduled. On average it is around once every other week or more during off season before I talk to each parent. I need to work on that because since I coach minors, their parents are very important in the athletes' lives. I also am not good at communicating all the time with other coaches. Most of the time we are on the same page but there are times when there is misunderstanding. To be a successful program and to be good coaches we need to think alike and always know what each other is thinking. I can definitely work on constant communication outside of the practice room with parents and other coaches.
Hi Fred,
I share some of these situations as well. I also struggle with parents, especially when asking for help and managing parent involvement. Since I coach at the college level I have little interaction with parents. But, I feel that I still have to create relationships with parents and allow them to feel a part of the program. Also, a suggestion on keeping communication with coaches is to talk after practice to discuss what the athletes struggled with and what they need to work on. I have found this technique very helpful and it only takes an additional 5-15 minutes to complete. We do a lot more talking than this but, it has become a routine after practice to hold a coaches meeting.
Good luck!
Gianna
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Friedrich Duerr
Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology: Physical Education Associate of Arts Degree: Social Behavioral Sciences