(English) Level 1

(English) Follow up

(English)

Have a colleague sit on your bench during a game and record how often you:
1. Make a negative comment or action (such as shaking your hand);
2. Make a positive comment or action;
3. Provide constructive correction (i.e. telling an athlete what to do, not what they did wrong);
4. Make a comment toward officials.

Are you surprised by the number of negative (a, b or d) comments that you make?

Reflect upon your last five games. What goals did you set for the team? How did you track their performance in relation to these goals? Could you be more effective?
Discuss with a coach from a team sport played on a larger field (e.g. football) how they provide feedback to players during the game? How does it compare to what you do?
Have someone film your timeouts. In watching the video, observe:
1. If you are using a whiteboard – is it facing you or the players;
2. Are the athlete’s concentrating on you for the whole timeout;
3. How many messages did you give during the timeout;
4. Is it clear from watching the video what you wanted to tell the players?
Have a coaching colleague watch one of your games and write down some key things about your team’s performance (either good or bad). Immediately after the game, discuss with them what you think the team did well or need to improve. Did you identify the same things that they did?