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Coach's Playbook

Practice Makes Perfect Sense

Posted on 9/23/2016 by Shaleek Blackburn


Players training

With more than 1,200 years of teaching, coaching and athletic administration experience among its staff, the MCAA program at Concordia University Irvine brings a wealth of wisdom to its students and athletic programs. “Our program’s aim is to transform the art and science of coaching,” says Jim Staunton, Research Methods professor of the MCAA program. For a coach, says Staunton, experience is absolutely vital. “You need to put in your time and your years to really understand who you are, how you coach and how you’re going to transmit that to your athletes.”

While the actual time you put in to become the best coach you can be is important, it is also critical what a coach does with his or her experience and how he or she reacts to a multitude of situations. “Coaches need to understand that whether an experience their team goes through is good or bad, it’s instilling in them the notion that they learn from it, that they take away what they can, that they examine what they’ve done and more appropriately, they make changes,” advises Staunton.

The lynchpin to experience is education. The quote from folk singer, Pete Seeger sums it up perfectly, says Staunton. “Education is when you read the fine print. Experience is what you get when you don’t.” The educational experience of the MCAA program can help coaches on their journey. Many students who enter the program, says Staunton, have an idea of how to coach, but don’t have a concrete thought of what that means on a broader scale. “As coaches, we don’t often get a chance to sit and think about what we do. “The MCAA program allows the coaches a chance to analyze themselves through the framework of great coaches and leaders throughout history,” notes Staunton. “They learn how to analyze and to learn from their experiences as they move into the future. And I think they pick up a much greater perspective of what’s important in terms of coaching,” adds Staunton. “For most of them, it’s how they shape young lives."


3 Tips On Experience And Coaching

Pluses and Minuses

Coaches should encourage their teams to analyze and intellectualize every experience, positive or negative.

Be Open

Be willing to try new things with regards to sports techniques; embrace new approaches to what you do.

Assist the Team

When changes need to be made, help your athletes make them; lead with your experience and your team will be better off.

Tags: Coaching, philosophy, development

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