Empathy as a coach, understanding young athletes
By Jon Isaacson
When kids arrive at practice for youth sports it is important to remember that they are ready to burst at the seams from being in a static institutional setting, some refer to it as educational, for the last six hours. While this should be a point of connection that unifies coach and athlete, it often is the greatest point of contention between the two parties. How many coaches do you know complain about the following:
- Do these kids have ears? No one will listen to my instructions!
- How much energy do they have? These kids are endless balls of chaos.
- Is anything getting through? I can’t keep these children on task.
As a volunteer coach, what have you been doing for the last eight hours (or more) before you arrived at practice? Aren’t you also ready to burn off some steam built up from your own frustrations of being held hostage in a static institutional setting — some call it the work environment? This should be a point of empathy rather than a cause for disconnect.Did you spend the bulk of your day being given instructions on where to sit, what to do and how best to accomplish the assignments that have been given to you? School and work have many frustrating similarities that should enable you to find connection and empathy for your subjects. So, the next time your young athletes arrive at practice all wound up, rather than responding to their pent up energy with negative energy, empathize with their need to express themselves with a creative solution for constructive physical activity.
- Have a practice plan — whether you are a new coach or are a seasoned veteran, having a plan will assist you to be prepared for maximizing your time and having a flow for the daily activities. Without a plan you will set yourself up to be eaten alive by young cannibals who can sense fear and/or a lack of preparation.
- Start practice out with a fun activity — we often start our practice with scrimmage so that we are immediately and consistently immersing athletes in the game. We like to have our coaches on the field scrimmaging with the students so that we can challenge individuals, discuss concepts while we are playing and make corrections in game pace scenarios.
- Set the tone — with your plan in place and starting the day with a healthy game pace you will set a tone that the sport you all are learning together is going to be challenging and fun.
John Wooden, whom many regard as the best coach in college basketball history and whom brought the UCLA Bruins into the conversation as a perennial NCAA championship caliber team, was a proponent of creating a practice plan as a key factor for success as a coach. “Daily practice plans are very important. I learn from these plans; as a coach, I must change and grow if I expect my players to improve. I can improve with the help of these plans.” If coach Wooden placed such a high premium on the habit of creating a detailed practice plan that it may prove useful to those who are coaching as a youth sports volunteer.Coaching, like many things in life, can be fun or frustrating. Much of your experience has to do with your perspective and how you approach the challenge. Start by setting aside some time to prepare yourself for the onslaught of juvenile energy that will be arriving at your practice, have a plan, have fun and roll with the punches.
About the author: Jon Isaacson is a freelance writer assisting organizations to translate their mission and vision into story. In addition to working full time, raising a family and volunteering as a youth coach, Jon writes, speaks and serves as director of local facilities networking group LFMC.
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Originally published at imacoachnow.weebly.com.
