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Don't Be A Master Of
The Obvious
Too many times I've seen
coaches shouting across the field immediately after a player has made an
obvious mistake. We've all heard parents and coaches yelling immediately
after the mistake "don't dive in," "don't play the ball in
front of your own goal," or "what are you doing?" Instead,
coaches must offer a positive suggestion or solution to help them get back
on track or save the comments for halftime or practice.
Instruct your players in
advance how to respond when a mistake is made. When a mistake is made,
every players is to immediately respond with efforts to make up for the
mistake. There should be no place on a successful team to finger point,
blame, give up, or any other destructive behavior during the game. Players
can make mental notes about various situations that take place during a
game and offer suggestions on how to prevent from making the mistake in
the future.
Many situations can and
should be fixed during the game. Teach players how to give and take
constructive criticism from teammates. It’s important that if one
chooses to give constructive criticism, it comes only after having
immediately responding with efforts to make up for the mistake, and the
criticism comes with a suggestion on how to prevent from making the same
mistake. Most of the time players know they made a mistake and don’t
someone to point it out for them. So, in most cases saying nothing or even
laughing about it later, may be the best solution. Nobody appreciates a
master of the obvious! |
