C Smyser

Being a Head Coach is HARD Work. I have talked to MANY coaches over my long career. Here are 9 Things Coaches Want Parents to Understand. 1: We CARE about your Child Even if your child doesn’t get much varsity playing time, we care about them. Nothing is ever personal. We love your child. Everyone has a Role. They are all different. But they are all important. Help us celebrate their role. 2: TIME There are only two people who understand the time commitment of a coach. The Coach and their Spouse. We are always “on,” constantly thinking about our team. We sacrifice our Family time to be with your child. We don’t need a pat on the back. Just respect this fact. 3: We LOVE this job. But it is a hard job. Please don’t steal our Joy. Our Passion. Our Commitment. We are losing too many coaches. Help Support us. 4: Coaches want to WIN more than you do. We are very competitive. We put our heart and soul into this job. We are not perfect. Either are you. No one is. Strategy or X’s and O’s matter much less than you think. We are at practice every day. Trust what we see and do. 5: Everything is EARNED. You get what you earn. Don’t blame the coach. Encourage your child to be committed. It is your child’s job to get in the weight room, shoot in the driveway, go to the gym or field, etc. Encourage them to do this. You get what you earn. 6: Trust the PROCESS Team Sports are the ultimate lab setting for life. There will be bumps in the road. It is guaranteed. It is part of the process. Accept this fact. Trust the Process. The life lessons learned will last a lifetime. 7: Winning is HARD Other teams want to win too. Other teams put time in too. Other teams compete too. The season is a grind, and the process is more important than the prize. Learning how to win…and how to lose…is an important part of this process. 8: Your child GETS it. Your child understands. They are at every practice. They know their strengths. They know their weaknesses. They know their role. Don’t feed their youthful insecurities by questioning the coach. This will hurt their experience and the team. 9: Finally, and Most Importantly, this is your child’s experience, not yours. This is important. Let them enjoy the experience with your support. Don’t judge them. Don’t be critical. Just be there. Tell them you LOVE watching them play. Be a fan of the TEAM. ----- Follow me @gregberge for Actionable Ideas on Coaching, Leadership, Culture, and Teams. Subscribe to my free weekly newsletter, Great Teams - Better Leaders 123. Link is in my profile.

Do You Love Analytics? I do, but they do not show it all. Here are 5 things that WINNING Teams do that do not show up in the box score. 1: HUSTLE PLAYS Loose Balls - Taking a Charge - Extra Effort - Diving on Ground. These Actions are all contagious! They have a HUGE impact on winning. Who makes these plays on your team? 2: COMMUNICATION WITH TEAMMATES Show me a quiet team, and I will show you a losing team! Winning teams are constantly talking, helping each other out on defense, and communicating on offense. Communication is critical- it is contagious! Who are the talkers on your team? 3: TOUCHES Fist Pumps, High 5’s, Pats on Back. Steve Nash led the NBA in “touches” during his MVP season -> 239 per game! Cal Berkeley did a study. What did it find? Winning NBA teams had more team touches. Encouragement is contagious. It wins. Who are your Encouragers? 4: ENERGY LEVEL You can feel the ENERGY on a winning team. You are either an Energy Giver or an Energy Vampire. Both will affect your team. Who are your Energy Givers? They help the team WIN. 5: LEADERSHIP Finally, LEADERSHIP does not show in the Box Score. But Player Leadership is critical to Winning Teams. Who are your team leaders? How do you develop your team leaders? Find a way to do this. It matters. Summary: Winning teams do similar things. Here are 5 things that winning teams have and do that do not show up in the box score: 1. Hustle Plays 2. Communication 3. Touches 4. Energy Level 5. Leadership ----- Follow me @gregberge for more Actionable Ideas on Coaching, Leadership, Culture, and Teams. Join thousands of others and subscribe to my free weekly newsletter. The subscription link is in my profile.