Four things I have learnt in 2019

I have learnt lots in 2019, but here are some of the key things. Some of them I should have known before, but have drifted away from or been blown off course.

Thanks to all the members of Excelsior Athletic Development Club for helping me improve my coaching this year and inspiring me to try harder.  Thanks also to everyone at GAIN for helping me clarify my thoughts and sharing their experiences.

I hope to navigate 2020 better than 2019, avoiding rocky shores, dealing with the changing winds and enjoying the journey.

Lesson 1: Have faith in the children

Our end of term gymnastics display showed how adaptable and creative young people are, if given the opportunity. Despite illnesses, and parents forgetting the display was on, the children pulled together, stepped in to help each other and got on with it.

Our club members come from different backgrounds have different experiences and have vastly different personalities. Yet, they still manage to work together, express themselves and have fun. It is an absolute delight watching them put it all together.

It shows what a community of people can do, when working together, and no one is trying to ‘WIN’.

Lesson 2: The Mark #1 Eyeball is the best technological coaching device

I have spent more time watching and observing this year. People might be thinking that I am sleeping on my feet, but my brain is taking in all that people do. How people move, what they like doing in warm ups, who they congregate with, where they get stuck.

You can wander (and wonder) around various conferences, or social media, looking for answers or ideas, but I have found that many are right in front of me if I look carefully.

The coaching process is sometimes specified as

• PLAN 
• DO
• REVIEW

I am now thinking that

• OBSERVE
• DO
• REVIEW
• PLAN

Is more of what I believe. Where the DO is experimentation within safe parameters, and then build the plan from there.

This links in to what John Pryor and Eddie Jones said at GAIN about the Plan evolving from your Philosophy.

Lesson 3: Avoid the major catastrophes but allow the minor mistakes

I got asked to describe my leadership style by a minor bureaucrat last week. I couldn’t think of an answer immediately. An HR person implied that ‘command and control’ is bad and to mention the GROW  model.

Yes, but if you see someone about to collide with another person, shouting ‘STOP’ is definitely a command. So is, ‘Please evacuate out of the rear exit as we have a fire in the building.’

On reflection, I thought that I don’t have a leadership style, nor do I want one. It might be out of fashion next season.

Instead, we have to adapt to the situation and the person in front of us. By allowing them to make minor mistakes, but stopping major catastrophes, we give the person the opportunity to learn for themselves. If they keep making the minor mistake, we can guide them or show them a different way.

I have learnt that perfectionism gets in the way of progress. It is easy to waste time on things that don’t matter in pursuit of the overall goal.

Lesson 4: Joy is the fuel that drives our engines

Life can get heavy. We can get sucked into a vortex of ‘Performance Pathways’ or learning about ‘frontal adverbials’ and forget about the joy of movement or reading for pleasure.

But, if we just do that, we squeeze the joy out of WHY we are learning and moving and playing. We become lifeless automatons, doomed to an existence of spreadsheets.

An aimless life filled with Hedonistic pleasure would also be dull.

Having a purpose, pursuing that dream, and enjoying the journey with others are what matters.

I hope you all have a happy and healthy 2020.