The Four P's of Successful Coaching - Patience
My name is Ryan Masters, this is my first blog. I am attempting to share my love of coaching with everyone else. I have been a basketball coach for 9 years now. I have coached/assisted from 3rd grade to the Varsity Level. Being around many great coaches I am thrilled to share with you some tidbits I have picked up over the past few years. I hope you enjoy!
Through a series of 4 blogs I will take you through "The Four P's of Successful Coaching". This doesn't necessarily apply strictly to the High School level of Basketball. It is quite easy to apply these at every level of a basketball program. Building a successful program or team takes a tremendous amount of effort. It takes every coach and player believing in the same common goal. I believe that the equation to achieve successful program culture rests on 4 P's : Patience, Progressions, Precision, and Presence.
To begin, we will discuss Patience.
Essentially, the thought is: don’t put yourself through a whole season being irritated by the things you failed to explain. Do you lose your patience because your players performed the drill wrong or because you failed to properly explain the drill? It’s our job as coaches to teach with precision and to ensure we communicate exactly what we want at all times. But, be patient. Have persistence in your patience.
I am currently coaching the Freshmen Boys Basketball team at Leslie High School. Coaching at this level has taught me the utmost necessity for patience. I can't deny the fact that it can be quite difficult to show patience at times. At times, patience can wear thin, it can feel like what you are doing is not enough. In situations, like early in the season, it is important to have persistence in your patience. There are many times when I need to remind myself or need reminding from my wife ( I know, shocker!). Sometimes, its hard to remember what you are building for and who you are building up. Being patient with yourself, your team, and with the game itself is immensely difficult at times. While patience is always a key factor it is important to remember that when your expectations are high for a season... Patience must be stressed!!! I have been in situations when I believed our team was going to come out swinging from the beginning of the season to the end. Not always the case, some kids are wired different and it takes you believing in them and showing patience with their development to get to the goals you and they have set for the year.
I find myself continuing to strive for patience. In Life, Coaching, Work and with my Family. Coaching is the toughest challenge I face daily. To ensure that I am providing the necessary skills to better my team both on and off the court. I believe that is one thing that can be lost with coaching. While we strive for excellence on the court... it is just as import that we (coaches) mold our athletes into great people. If we can show them how we utilize our patience everyday, it will undoubtedly be passed onto them. An athlete that has the ability to use patience, when challenged with adversity, can handle any situation that life throws at them.
Continue to strive for patience and continue to give your athletes time to develop. You have to believe in them as much as they believe in you.
"Before success comes patience.... when we add to our accomplishments the element of hard work over a long period of time, we'll place a far greater value on the outcome. When we are patient, we'll have a greater appreciation for our success." - John Wooden
How do you utilize patience at home, work, and play?
Through a series of 4 blogs I will take you through "The Four P's of Successful Coaching". This doesn't necessarily apply strictly to the High School level of Basketball. It is quite easy to apply these at every level of a basketball program. Building a successful program or team takes a tremendous amount of effort. It takes every coach and player believing in the same common goal. I believe that the equation to achieve successful program culture rests on 4 P's : Patience, Progressions, Precision, and Presence.
To begin, we will discuss Patience.
Essentially, the thought is: don’t put yourself through a whole season being irritated by the things you failed to explain. Do you lose your patience because your players performed the drill wrong or because you failed to properly explain the drill? It’s our job as coaches to teach with precision and to ensure we communicate exactly what we want at all times. But, be patient. Have persistence in your patience.
I am currently coaching the Freshmen Boys Basketball team at Leslie High School. Coaching at this level has taught me the utmost necessity for patience. I can't deny the fact that it can be quite difficult to show patience at times. At times, patience can wear thin, it can feel like what you are doing is not enough. In situations, like early in the season, it is important to have persistence in your patience. There are many times when I need to remind myself or need reminding from my wife ( I know, shocker!). Sometimes, its hard to remember what you are building for and who you are building up. Being patient with yourself, your team, and with the game itself is immensely difficult at times. While patience is always a key factor it is important to remember that when your expectations are high for a season... Patience must be stressed!!! I have been in situations when I believed our team was going to come out swinging from the beginning of the season to the end. Not always the case, some kids are wired different and it takes you believing in them and showing patience with their development to get to the goals you and they have set for the year.
I find myself continuing to strive for patience. In Life, Coaching, Work and with my Family. Coaching is the toughest challenge I face daily. To ensure that I am providing the necessary skills to better my team both on and off the court. I believe that is one thing that can be lost with coaching. While we strive for excellence on the court... it is just as import that we (coaches) mold our athletes into great people. If we can show them how we utilize our patience everyday, it will undoubtedly be passed onto them. An athlete that has the ability to use patience, when challenged with adversity, can handle any situation that life throws at them.
Continue to strive for patience and continue to give your athletes time to develop. You have to believe in them as much as they believe in you.
"Before success comes patience.... when we add to our accomplishments the element of hard work over a long period of time, we'll place a far greater value on the outcome. When we are patient, we'll have a greater appreciation for our success." - John Wooden
How do you utilize patience at home, work, and play?
Great thoughts. Patience is especially hard when you've played the game for years and yet are trying to get kids who've only played a short time to see and understand what years have taught you. It is to get them to stop in practice and see it then it can become a part of their game when they are playing. Plus you have to be patient with the guy you are coaching with, those bus rides can get pretty long at times. Keep sharing and writing.
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