Andy Black
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Back when I was 19, I was on the first day of a course to become an Assistant Club Coach for Track and Field Athletics.
We were welcomed and our first instructor was introduced - some old chap ... who just happened to be one of the top freaking coaches in England!
Wow, one of the top coaches in the country turned up to teach us newbies? I was impressed, and dumb-struck.
He commented on this too, asking whether we thought the best coaches should coach the Olympic athletes, or coach the kids who've just turned up to their first training session.
We figured the best coaches should coach the best athletes, but he just smiled and shook his head.
He reasoned that the Olympic athletes can pretty much coach themselves. That they're so passionate about the sport they'd overcome whatever problems they had... even if it meant asking for help.
Whereas... the young child who's just started in athletics needs the best coach they can get. So they get started on the right foot. So they don't get injured. So they pick up the right skills in a way they understand. And most importantly, so they enjoy themselves and don't drop out of the sport, or even worse, drop out of sports altogether.
We were going to become assistant club coaches in grass roots clubs. We were going to be the first coaches the youngest kids would interact with. This guy's mission, in the two hours he had us, was to make us good enough coaches to keep those kids coming back.
To this day, I still remember that introduction, and I remember the story he then told us to make us better coaches.
That story had a profound affect on me and is on my mind constantly.
We were told to imagine a young lad in school who shows some talent at the triple jump.
The P.E. teacher tries hard to convince the boy to go along to the local athletics club for a try out. She's sure the lad will do well and, with a bit of training, he might be able to make it to county level at least.
The boy lacks confidence though.
Eventually, after a lot of persuading, he heads down to the local athletics stadium with an introduction from the P.E. teacher.
The athletics coach asks him to warm up and "show us what you can do".
After warming up and stretching, the lad measures out his steps on the runway, readies himself, then charges towards the sandpit.
Hop. Step. Jump.
He lands in the sandpit, scrambles out and shakes the sand off.
The coach says: "Your step's too short."
The lad is crest-fallen.
He packs up, goes home, and never returns.
Four words uttered, and that talent is never fulfilled.
Instead of saying: "Your step's too short.", the coach could have said "You've a great hop, and you've a great jump. If we could get your step as good as your hop and your jump, then you'd get an extra metre into the pit."
You've said the same thing, but in a different way.
It's only a small difference, but it can make the world of difference.
(Originally posted in this thread.)
We were welcomed and our first instructor was introduced - some old chap ... who just happened to be one of the top freaking coaches in England!
Wow, one of the top coaches in the country turned up to teach us newbies? I was impressed, and dumb-struck.
He commented on this too, asking whether we thought the best coaches should coach the Olympic athletes, or coach the kids who've just turned up to their first training session.
We figured the best coaches should coach the best athletes, but he just smiled and shook his head.
He reasoned that the Olympic athletes can pretty much coach themselves. That they're so passionate about the sport they'd overcome whatever problems they had... even if it meant asking for help.
Whereas... the young child who's just started in athletics needs the best coach they can get. So they get started on the right foot. So they don't get injured. So they pick up the right skills in a way they understand. And most importantly, so they enjoy themselves and don't drop out of the sport, or even worse, drop out of sports altogether.
We were going to become assistant club coaches in grass roots clubs. We were going to be the first coaches the youngest kids would interact with. This guy's mission, in the two hours he had us, was to make us good enough coaches to keep those kids coming back.
To this day, I still remember that introduction, and I remember the story he then told us to make us better coaches.
That story had a profound affect on me and is on my mind constantly.
We were told to imagine a young lad in school who shows some talent at the triple jump.
The P.E. teacher tries hard to convince the boy to go along to the local athletics club for a try out. She's sure the lad will do well and, with a bit of training, he might be able to make it to county level at least.
The boy lacks confidence though.
Eventually, after a lot of persuading, he heads down to the local athletics stadium with an introduction from the P.E. teacher.
The athletics coach asks him to warm up and "show us what you can do".
After warming up and stretching, the lad measures out his steps on the runway, readies himself, then charges towards the sandpit.
Hop. Step. Jump.
He lands in the sandpit, scrambles out and shakes the sand off.
The coach says: "Your step's too short."
The lad is crest-fallen.
He packs up, goes home, and never returns.
Four words uttered, and that talent is never fulfilled.
Instead of saying: "Your step's too short.", the coach could have said "You've a great hop, and you've a great jump. If we could get your step as good as your hop and your jump, then you'd get an extra metre into the pit."
You've said the same thing, but in a different way.
It's only a small difference, but it can make the world of difference.
(Originally posted in this thread.)
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