Of all my coaches that I have performed under, it is only the great coaches that I have remembered.
If you are looking to leave a legacy in someone's life as a coach.
If you are looking to transform lives through better coaching.
If you are looking to go from being a good coach to being a great coach, here are 17 ways that you can go about improving as a coach.
1 - Listen More
You have one mouth and two ears.
If you were supposed to talk more, don't you think you would have been given more mouths?
Listening is one of the greatest attributes of good coaches.
I have made the wrong decision as a coach too many times, when I assumed I understood my athletes and clients, and then told them what I thought I knew about them.
It has always improved my relationship, connection, trust, and ability to champion my athletes and clients, when I have taken the time to listen more.
2 - Observe More
We were also given two eyes.
Often times coaches get caught up in the program, or the x's and o's, and then miss the fundamental flaws that would have been easy to correct if they were watching their athletes.
As we make time to watch our athletes, it does two things:
First, it helps you improve your observation skills. It still fascinates me that a strength coach can watch their lifter squat, make an adjustment, and then add 40 pounds to the bar, because she saw a micro movement in the athlete's hands, feet, hips, or knees, and made a coaching cue that eliminated that issue.
Second, it shows that we care. There is nothing worse than watching a coach watch his phone or clipboard while their athlete is doing work. The athlete will notice this, and not observing will mean less trust, less connection, and less engagement.
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