Being a Great Teammate

One of the most enjoyable experiences as a player and a coach is getting to be around great teammates. I have had the opportunity to experience being around great teammates in Football, Basketball, and Baseball at the high school and college level. Here are 10 common traits of these great teammates...1.They care about doing their best for the team. 2.They love to compete and they want to win- even if it is just a pick-up game or playing in the side yard. 3.They are honest with themselves and the group. 4.They do not care who gets the credit or the ink in the newspaper. 5.They are people that you like to be around off the field. 6.Family is important to them. 7.Taking care of their Academics is a priority. 8.They are coachable, and try to do what the coach is asking them to do. 9.They play hard all the time-in practices and in games. 10.They have a great attitude! Many of my teammates from Hanover College have gone on to be High School, College, and even NBA coaches. There is a reason these teammates have been successful- it is because they understand the importance of BEING A GREAT TEAMMATE!

New Perspective

This past weekend was jam packed with activity and work. On Friday night I witnessed a high school football game like none other that I have ever seen. Franklin Central defeated Decatur Central 58-50. 108 Points! Wow! Neither team could stop the other team, and the Flashes were fortunate enough to make the last score. While at the game I experienced a new perspective of football. I was working with 5 other guys doing the stats for the game. I did not realize how difficult that it is to identify the ball carrier, the tackler, the assist man, the intended receiver, the gain or loss on the play all in real time. I learned that this takes special concentration, and that you cannot get caught up in the game or your going to miss an important stat. The analogy here is that we all can learn new perspective on things by looking at something from a different angle or view. This is valuable when we are trying improve and learn new ways of doing things.

Saturday evening I also gained a new perspective in my back yard. We had a huge Black Locust tree in our backyard that had been dead for over a year and half taken down. This was about a 4 hour process. As I sit on my back porch and look to the back there is now a huge empty space. Definitely a new perspective! It is going to take a while for me to adjust to the change in scenery. However, now I will have a peace of mind that the tree is not going to smash my house or the neighbors fence in the next storm! Many times in life new perspective brings change- we must adapt to change whether we like it or not...I think a great approach is to try to find the positive in the changes that have occurred!

Lastly, on Sunday I got to take a rest from coaching...and enjoyed the perspective of being a parent. Watching Kole play fall baseball has been a great joy! I hope that each of you has a great week and that you are able take on the challenges of the week...when a change brings on a challenging new perspective- I hope that you are able to keep yourself moving full speed ahead with positive thoughts and no looking back!

Taking Ownership in Time Management

I get very annoyed with students that don't do their work, and I get equally annoyed with players that miss practice.  In most cases I believe this is a time management issue!  Student-Athletes must make a commitment to doing their best!  We all have 86,400 seconds each day to use.  Here are some thoughts for success if you want to compete in those big events in your life.....

1- plan your day each morning.. may mean making a to do list...2- get an adequate amount of sleep each night(at least 7 hours a night)...3- work in a space that has little to no distraction a..4- prioritize your work...what needs to be done first..5- if you are behind schedule, then limit social media..6- ask for help if you do not understand...7- enjoy what you are doing everyday!  What are you going to do with your 86,400 seconds each day this week? Have a great Monday!

Expect Excellence

One of the things that I love about teaching and coaching is seeing student athletes accomplish things that they have never done before. The process of teaching players to believe in their teammates. Talking to students about doing their best! Helping students maximize their potential. Each year in football we have players that do not make it through the first week because mentally they have never expected excellence of themselves. If you are going to be successful, then you must expect excellence. You must have a vision! I can remember as a Senior varsity basketball player our team had visions of winning a Sectional Championship. Prior to the tournament we went to each of the Senior players house and practiced cutting down the nets in the driveway. This helped us to focus on our goal. That year when we won the Sectional it was not a surprise to us. As I was climbing the ladder in the gym after the game it felt like I had already experienced the moment.

Expecting Excellence means that you have the confidence to work hard and prepare everyday for the goal you have envisioned!

Exploring Concentration

This morning I randomly picked a chapter about Concentration out of the book- The Inner Game of Tennis by W. Timothy Gallwey. This is somewhat ironic due to the fact that I am a horrible tennis player and today is my first team meeting for coaching football. As I read my mind began to think about several things- What do I still need to do to get ready for school Monday? What do I still need to prepare for the Football meeting? Not only was my mind wandering, but my ears were listening to the TV show that my daughter was watching in the other room, and the sound of the fan from upstairs as my son was still asleep. All the while my sense of smell was focusing on the CinnCredible rolls that were on the counter making me hungry. Along with these little distractions to my reading, my legs were feeling sore from the workout that I did 3 days ago. Back to the reading...Concentration..according Gallwey it is the act of focusing one's attention-keeping the mind in the now and here. This brings to light how difficult it really is to focus for an extended period of time.

In this picture you can see a concentration by Kole as he is about to hit the ball, you can see a concentration by the catcher getting ready to catch the ball, and you can see a concentration by the Umpire getting ready to make a call. In this picture you can feel the focus and calmness of all three people. There is no doubt that concentration is complex, but it can be learned through practice. This makes it clear to me that when we allow our whole body, mind, and spirit to focus completely on the task at hand- that we can experience a calmness and a greater sense of accomplishment!

Preparation

These last few days we have been making preparations for going back to school. We are coming to the realization that summer vacation is about over. I have heard people ask my kids- "Are you ready to go back to school?" I am not sure that either one is ready for vacation to be over, but it is going to happen. They have to be ready because school starts on Wednesday! Because school starts on Wednesday we have been doing some preparation. We went and bought school supplies and clothes, rented a trumpet, checked the bus pick-up schedule, went to registration, practiced opening Ella's locker,

purchased a gym suit, Ella got some shots at the doctor,.... All of these things are little preparations for school. This is a great analogy for any event in our lives. The best way to feel ready for a situation is to PREPARE. One of my favorite quotes from Bobby Knight is "Failure to Prepare equals Preparation to Fail". When you prepare for something you feel more confident and relaxed. When you prepare to the best of your ability you have no regrets about the outcome. Preparation helps to eliminate the unknown. Every situation may have an element of the unknown, but the more that you can minimize the unknown the more ready you will be. It is ok to have a little nervousness about school starting, giving a presentation, or playing the big game. I know that Kole, Ella, Heather, and myself will all have some butterflies in our stomach's on Wednesday, but we will have a since of comfort knowing that we have prepared for the moment.

Developing Leadership

I think one of the toughest things to do in coaching is to help athletes develop leadership. This morning I have been brainstorming ways to develop leadership. As I have discussed in previous blogs leadership is influence. Every athlete on a team is going to influence others in some way. However, one of the things I have learned is that usually your best athletes and your most experienced athletes are going to have the most influence on the group. I believe one of the biggest components of developing leadership is time. If you display good leadership, then those people around you will grow from your leadership over time. Another component is experience-- put your team or group in a situation in which they have to work together to be successful. Make your practices more difficult than the games. This allows the players a chance to grow together, or apart, and to work through the adversity. When you put a group in an adverse situation you get to really see who your leaders are. Encourage and acknowledge good leadership decisions by those on the team. Talking to players in a 1 on 1 situation can be very valuable. Also utilize classroom time to discuss what characteristics make up a good leader. As the leader of a team I think it is important to identify the role of every member within the group. Not only identify the role, but make sure each person takes ownership in their role. This will promote leadership within the team. Lastly, as the top leader you need to allow the members of the team or group the opportunity to be creative with their leadership. Don't be so authoritative that they are solely dependent on your leadership. In conclusion, it is important to have patience- promote growth through experience- encourage and acknowledge positive decisions- promote ownership of roles- and allow creativity--every person in the group will not lead in the same way!