Motivation

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Feb 10, 2013
23
0
As I mentioned in a previous thread. i coach a 14u Travel team that practices year round. My question/problem is this..The girls are very talented and very committed to the team,,love practice,, tournaments etc...They actually get angry when i cancel an event due to weather etc.. Then why is it on certain days of tournaments they arrive flat , no energy, no motivation hustle etc.. Parents say they are going to bed early and eating proper diets.. I confused...When they "want" to exert the effort the product is outstanding, when they DONT want to its pretty obvious...any opinions welcome....Thanks
 
Sounds like you need a leader, we as coaches can preach, bark, or whatever enthusiasm huslte all we want, but I have learned it is best to have a player who is respected by her teammates take the lead on that. I always look for someone who will be able to pick the girls up when we are flat or not performing well, it can be nagging from us, but when they hear it from a teammate, someone who is respected as a leader it is a diffrent story. Find that leader that spark plug, get an understanidng with her, let her know what you expect, and watch it happen.
 
Mar 20, 2014
918
28
Northwest
They are teen-aged girls. Moody and hormonal and all of that. And some days that is going to show. At the end of the day, you have done everything that you can to prepare them. But they have to want it - you can't want it for them. Hopefully you have a couple of leaders on the team that will step up to drag the team up from their doldrums on those days - seems like they take it better from one of their "sisters" on those days. Probably not much help but that is all I've got. :eek:
 
Jun 27, 2011
5,089
0
North Carolina
If they have no motivation, it is because they believe that nothing that is going to happen that day really matters.

That can happen when ...

-Teams play in tournaments that are too easy.
-Teams play in tournaments that are too hard.
-Teams play in tournaments where the totem pole is very clearly defined, and you know who you'll beat, and you know who'll beat you, and there aren't many tight games where every at-bat, every pitch, matters, where you might go 5-1, or 1-5 depending on how you play on that given day.

Or when ...

-Players know they're going to play the same position and bat in the same place the next week, when they don't feel they have to fight for their spots.

It also can happen when players get older and just don't care that much whether they win or lose. Sometimes they get competitive burnout and question what difference it makes. That's not necessarily a problem if every player is on that same page, but often it divides a team.
 
Jun 18, 2012
3,183
48
Utah
As I mentioned in a previous thread. i coach a 14u Travel team that practices year round. My question/problem is this..The girls are very talented and very committed to the team,,love practice,, tournaments etc...They actually get angry when i cancel an event due to weather etc.. Then why is it on certain days of tournaments they arrive flat , no energy, no motivation hustle etc.. Parents say they are going to bed early and eating proper diets.. I confused...When they "want" to exert the effort the product is outstanding, when they DONT want to its pretty obvious...any opinions welcome....Thanks

Practices year-round? Take a month off.
 
Jul 16, 2013
4,659
113
Pennsylvania
Practices year-round? Take a month off.

Agreed. Or take one practice off and have some fun. We do our winter practices in a basketball gym. One day when the team showed up, the other coach and I changed our plans. We picked teams and played basketball instead. The players enjoyed it, and so did I.
 
Jun 18, 2012
3,183
48
Utah
Twelve months of softball seems to be overboard in my opinion. Now eleven months......... Nothing wrong with that. LOL!
 
Feb 17, 2014
7,152
113
Orlando, FL
Dantay your post is sexist and unnecessary vilification of teenage girls. Some of the moodiest folks at the games are the grown parents of both genders and the male coaches, because the majority are men. What you exhibit and what is expected of the kids, if low expectations or stereotypes, is just what you might get.

The issue is when the coach thinks it is WANT; it is nothing to do with WANT. The kids do want it. That sets up a confrontation on intent, and as a coach you won't get much out of that. In fact, intentions are overrated. It is results that you can see that matter, and in fact, you can see whether a kid is being a good teammate, leading or exhibiting sportsmanship. At some level, I don't care whether they intend to do that or want to, just that they do.

Other things that are posted here are right on. It has a lot to do with proper adrenaline level, preparation, giving the players a plan for the game, and confidence. Adrenaline level can take a lot out of you, as does the grind of playing year round. I personally don't tolerate lack of hustle no matter the level of play or match ups, but I have a bench ready to replace them, and a newspaper reporter ready to write down who excelled that day.

The other part of it is tournament ball. There are a lot of games with no real consequence. So the coach is going to have to come up with motivational methods, could be captains giving pre-game speech, or the awarding of game balls, etc.

I know you live in an alternate reality, but the bottom line is that females are often moody and hormonal. Deal with it. Then again in your world you coach boys and girls exactly the same.
 
Feb 10, 2013
23
0
I have appointed a captain and it does seem to make a differece..Some can be hormonal according to our female asst assessment..But some girls are first year Travel Ball Players.. maybe Burnout?? But like i mentioned they get mad when practice cancelled or i mention some time off..We do enough to keep them moving and mix it up...we do crossfit twice a week and had some team trips to parks etc..they are very close knit and seem if one gets down the rest follow suit! It seems like the day..one day they are there playing clean , energetic ball and the next day the attention span aint there...Who knows
 

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