What is a coaching philosophy?
A coaching philosophy is based on your experience, beliefs, values and opinions. This is a philosophy in itself but you can make it a lot more specific to the group you coach or what you want to get from a group of athletes/players. This raises the question; what kind of coach do you want to be? This can be done by looking back at coaches who have coached you in the past, was it good/successful coaching? And when I say 'successful coaching' I am not relating this to win percentage but development, did the coach develop you or the team well? All coaches have their own style and way of coaching and this is evident watching football managers, some are calm and tactical on the other hand some demonstrate a lot more energy and hands on approach.
My old athletics coach, Arthur Almond is arguably one of the best endurance coaches the sport has had in the UK by developing many athletes over a vast period of time. Taking athletes from just introducing them to the sport in the first instance to challenging the worlds best at world championships and commonwealth games. Unfortunately he past away in December 2012, I was lucky enough to be coached by this great man and I have tried to adopt his coaching style and philosophy. His style is very laid back and allowed the athletes to develop at their own speed. Nowadays you see coaches telling players/athletes what they need to do all the time whereas Arthur took a step back and didn't suffocate the athletes. He did a lot behind the scenes in terms of planning sessions and preparing the athletes for competitions, he also was available for one to one chats and when he felt it was necessary he would initiate the one to ones. Arthur provided the athletes with the tools to be successful and never forced anything upon the athlete, he gave the athlete the opportunity to make their own choices.This style helped the athlete develop and understand their training but also gave them a choice and this was dependant on how the athlete felt in terms of fatigue and motivation wise. Arthur was clever with his sessions as the choices were both relevant in preparing the athlete in relation to competition schedule. His philosophy was based on 'its all about the athlete' there is no point doing a session that will do more harm than good physiologically and psychologically. Through experience he knew what the athletes needed and also what they wanted which I feel is key to efficient and effective coaching.
My philosophy is very much based on the above but I work with much younger athletes ranging from 8-12 years of age and at this stage it is all about fun. I want to put on sessions that will keep the athletes interested in the sport and keep them turning up every week. With the older of athletes from 10 onwards I start to ask a lot of questions to test their understanding. These questions try to encourage reflection, I want the athletes to tell me why the javelin went so far or in some cases why did it not go as far? The reaction and process I want is the athlete looking back at their technique and working out what happened. There is an element of guided discovery within my sessions as I have accepted that the athletes will make mistakes as they learn new techniques and at times unnatural techniques they are not used to. My coaching is not competition orientated as I like to prepare the athlete with the tools to develop their performance further if they wish. I focus on the fundamentals and the ABC's, by developing these the athlete can play most other sports as they have a strong starting skill base. Nearly 4 years coaching at Blackburn Harriers I have never attended any of the athlete's competitions only if I am performing myself at the venue. Main reason is due to work commitments but also some of the attitudes and priorities of parents from other clubs infuriates me. There is too much emphasis on winning which should not be the main focus at that age, for some of the athletes it's their first experience of sport and competition and the pressure is ridiculous. I found out a few months ago that my boys team won the team competition in Lancashire sports hall series and the girls came 3rd. I was very pleased for my athletes, myself and the other coaches as it shows that the sessions are working in terms of allowing the athletes to challenge in competitions, but also numbers have rapidly increased in the last 4 years from 40 athletes to 80 athletes with a waiting list of 30.
Just to summarise, a coaching philosophy is an important aspect a coach should consider and this needs to be based on your experience, beliefs, values and opinions. Write it down and refer back to it, also it could change along the way as you develop as a coach. I recommend that you watch other coaches and talk to other coaches, as this is an opportunity to share ideas and thoughts. Any comments would be much appreciated.
No comments:
Post a Comment