Sharing out perspective on performance to the gymnastics and coaching community
Source: TechniqueTalk | Gymnastics Education & Consultancy | Blog
We all have our own values and philosophies of what ethical coaching should look like. Like me, I’m sure you have some specific things that bother you with regards to ‘bad coaching practice.’
When I first started coaching, I, like many, felt a position of power and authority over the young athletes I was working with. With power comes great responsibility, and a serious one too. We are responsible for the physical and emotional well being of our athletes.
Fortunately for me, I grew out of this power trip phase, and learnt the importance of an athlete-coach relationship. Personally, I believe in an athlete centered approach to coaching, but I respect that this isn’t for everyone.
As I’ve developed as a coach I have completely overhauled my priorities. The morale of the athletes I work with is more important to me that any medals they win.
The morale of the athletes I work with is more important to me than any medals they win
I can’t think of anything worse than coaching athletes with poor morale and emotional control each day. I spend more time in the gym than my own home, why would I engineer a hostile environment?
So in case you haven’t already noticed, I’m not a fan of the ‘yelling and telling’ approach to coaching.
If I need to shout at any athlete in order for them to work hard, then;
(1) I’ve done a pretty poor job in coaching them to this point, and
(2) I’d rather not coach them at all, even if they were an international medal hopeful.
Yelling doesn’t fit with my values, and those are more important to me than anything else. Motivating athletes with threats, punishments and consequences is all too common;
‘If you do that again then you have 5 more’
‘Next time you do that you’re climbing the rope’
‘If you don’t change your head position then I’m sending you home’
Do these work? Sure, lots! I’ve seen many an athlete magically become capable of fulfilling their coach’s wishes after being threatened with a consequence.
BUT, these are often the athletes that have poor emotional control whilst training. They are the athlete that will cry, without being provoked, after failing a skill several times, as they KNOW what is coming. A punishment, a consequence, a threat. Is that what you want?
For me, athletes should have the freedom to fail, without consequence.
Athletes should have the freedom to fail, without consequence.
If your athlete is giving you sub optimal effort when training then the likelihood is you’re polishing a rock not a diamond, and you need to coach their mindset as much as their technique.
You need to coach an athlete’s mindset as much as their technique
As coaches, we are the adults, and our role is to guide the athlete through triumph and adversity and therefore shouting purely shows the frustration of a lack of control over the athlete.
I’m not suggesting for a minute that a firm word every now and then might not be a great tool in your coaching repertoire to refocus your athlete or ensure their safety. But if you’re using this as your daily ‘default’ approach to motivate your athletes, then perhaps reflect on your approach and consider further creative ways to get the best from them.
