A Coach's Strengths?

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Cannonball

Ex "Expert"
Feb 25, 2009
4,854
113
I thought that I would start a thread on coaching strengths. I made this post in another thread:

... I have stated on this site many times and I have been here since this site was created, that I am past my prime for coaching. For whatever reason, I keep going back. I am absolutely positive that sometime this year, as with every other year, I'll be second-guessed. Some may judge me as a control freak. I believe that I am someone who outworks all others, keeps up with the latest information and knows how to win. To each their own.
i think that it is necessary for all coaches to assess their weaknesses and strengths. I know mine. I would suspect that many of you would not want your dd to play for me. I am seriously intense. I am a yeller but not a yeller at players. I have a lot to do and not enough time to get it done. I intend for my intensity to rub off on my players. We did not do well last night. In going through the lineup with players and asking them about their at-bats, one young lady started crying. I asked her why she was crying. She said that she didn't want to let me down. She didn't. I think that this is how I know that the players understand the madness. We practice hard. What we do in practice is one of my strengths. Note, I am now a voluntary coach and not the HC since I retired. Still, we get after it.

In assessing my strengths, I keep up with the latest information about all facets of the game. I believe that I am an exceptional hitting coach, a really good defensive coach and I do alright with pitching. The pitching stuff I use is what I learned for Pauly and Boardmember back in the day. My dd went to a legend in our area for pitching and I paid attention to all that he coached.

When a coach assesses their strengths, their weaknesses should become apparent. Recently, I have seen so many practices where players stand in lines or are not properly supervised in drill work. Human nature shows up for many players and they go through the motions as they do drill work. Many coaches, use drills without the ability to explain why the player needs to do the drill. For some, they depend upon each player getting private lessons and so, are actually just supervisors in practice.

My weakness is that I am terrible at the team bonding aspect of coaching. I have never cared if my players liked each other. I needed them to play together as a team on the field. The team I help coach now will do a team bonding scavenger hunt tomorrow. I do see the benefits of those types of activities but I am not good at them.
 
Last edited:
Oct 4, 2018
4,611
113
To me, the best coaches let the girls know why they are making certain decisions. We had a really bad coach once who moved my DD who was killing the ball from 3 to 8 in the lineup, and didn't tell her why. So of course she thinks she's done something wrong, and gets in her head about it.

So mom and I tell her to go politely ask why it happened, and he said "Oh, we needed to give Sally and Jessie a boost of confidence so we moved them up the lineup. You're hitting so well we knew you wouldn't mind."

Uh...

Our great coach (different one, obviously) once needed to pull in a new pitcher and did not choose my daughter. He quickly explained to her why he made the decision and it was by no means because he didn't think my DD could handle it. That quick explanation kept my DD's spirits high and helped her learn some strategery.

Honestly, a quick 60 second chat can make the world of difference. So many of these girls just want to do well and make coach happy. Coaches need to know how not saying things can be as harmful as saying things.
 
Jan 22, 2011
1,610
113
@coach james posted this on FaceBook this morning:

TIPS FOR NEW TEAMS AND COACHES.
Here's a simple list based on my experience as a coach over the past 19 years. I've learned through trial and error, and most importantly... hindsight!

1. Remember, this is all about, and for the kids.... Not you. Having them leave each practice or game a little bit better than they arrived is ALWAYS the goal.
These kids are learning and developing.... Let's make sure we're developing good people, and not just good athletes.
2. Coach them ALL, not just the best 9
3. Reward effort and attitude. (Not just results)
4. Publicly praise her
5. Privately discipline her
6. Have meetings with parents and players often, explain expectations of all (including yourself) Be transparent about team expenses.
7. Admit mistakes, learn, and adjust quickly.
8. Try this approach... When they win, it's because THEY played awesome... When they LOSE, it's because YOU should have coached better. (This will keep their spirits high as they trust that you won't make them feel worse than they already do for losing a game)
9. Never stop learning, always be a student of the game at ALL levels.
10. Remember rule #1, and keep things in perspective. They're kids.... Build them up, or don't bother
11. Being voted by the team as the best teammate, is more valuable than being voted MVP.

**STAY HUMBLE** This is about them, and ultimately your time with them. Make some good memories.
 
Aug 1, 2019
962
93
MN
A skill for coaches to develop is putting together a practice plan. Winging it by saying we'll warm up, do some BP, some I/O, and scrimmage if there's time does not cut it. I've seen too many practices structured along those lines. Lots of time wasted, very little taught.
 
Jun 20, 2015
848
93
i make a written out-line for every one of our 4 hour indoor practices all winter. And one for outdoor also, when we are able in early fall. Winging-it for practice time is usually a good way to waste time and get nothing done. usually reserved for lower echelon teams.

Does everything on the outline go smooth? Nope. Done complete? No. BUT it give us coaches a frame of reference, enables notes to be taken on what was missed, what needs more work, and what skill is good and can be shortened for time.

Mental notes at all games make their way into my practice plans. Be that reviewing of relays, Defensive alignments, run down rotations, talking about baserunning blunders, etc etc.

Usually, we share outline with girls quickly at beginning of practice so all have an idea. And we tend to include fun drills that emphasize our practice points. Drills tend to build on skills and lead to more advance drills, and before they know it....they are profecient at a high level.

Currently on year 6 with 18u girls and the amount of improvement from fall thru the winter into spring astounds me every year. And even with being very selective and competitive at tryouts, always amazes me the amount of basic and fundamental items that players need, that they never received instruction in previously.
 
Aug 10, 2016
686
63
Georgia
DD had a coach who never seemed to care about the players who weren't the stars of the team. And I really wanted to add this to the locker room for him.
"It's not your job to make every player happy 100% of the time. But it is your job to be supportive of every single one."
Someone who feels appreciated will always do more/try harder.
 
May 13, 2021
643
93
1- Having a well organized practice, if every kid didn't get at least 100 touches it was not a well ran practice.
2- Be the coach. You are not there to be their best friend, you are there to be their coach.
 

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