Teachings from a 1st Year Coach
/Coach? Me? High School girls? Ugh… I haven’t touched a ball in 10 years! … I need to call Michelle (my sister who has coaching experience) … Those were the thoughts going through my head after hanging up with Marcia, the Athletic Director, who just asked me to be their Varsity Volleyball Head Coach. After talking with my sister, my initial resistance dissipated, and my thoughts turned to ‘Could this work with my business? … I do have people that would help me … If I’ve learned anything from yoga, it’s to step into the unknown even if it scares the shit out of you’. So, I accepted the position and tried something I never thought I would do and really no idea how to do it. What could go wrong, lol.
Coming into the season, I felt like a chicken with its head cut off. Being asked 5 days before the season made things a bit stressful, but things smoothed out and my many years of volleyball experience started to come to the surface. Like any team, we had our ups and downs, but overall the ups outweighed our downs and the season was a success.
I did learn a few things along the way:
I missed volleyball!!! Being in the gym, the energy of competition, the sweat and hard work all brought back fond memories of my volleyball days. Being back in the sport, even as a coach, brought a spark back in me that I thought was gone.
High School girls (and parents) are emotional!!! LOL, I’m sure you all know this, but not being a parent personally made communicating a bit difficult. Saying, “get over yourself and play the game” is probably not the best approach to helping the girls level up. Adjusting my style of speech took time but in the end I developed an approach that got the point across but also included a teaching moment (yes, for the parents as well).
· I am not their friend – this was, and is, the hardest part for me. I know that sounds harsh, but as a coach I can’t worry if the girls are upset with me for any reason. As their coach, I am there to improve their skills – physically, mentally, and emotionally. Getting better at something isn’t always easy and fun and I have to be ok with getting eye rolls and attitude at times. After the fact, going back to communication, I would make a frustrating drill a teaching moment, do the drill again, and their performance usually improved.
Last words of wisdom?
Never let an opportunity pass just because it’s scary or you don’t think you’d be good at it! You will never know if you don’t try.
Communication is so important. You can say one thing and put someone instantly into fight and flight mode. Change the wording, ultimately saying the same thing, and that person will respond positively.
Your mind is not your friend. It likes what it knows, it likes routine, and when you want to change, your mind will do everything in its power to keep things status quo. You must treat the mind like an athlete. If its being stubborn, you must give yourself teaching moments or rationalizations to get the mind to see that this change is in its best interest.
OM SHANTI
Namaste
‘Coach’ Katie
