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Attributes In A Coach ???

Discussion in 'Softball Forum' started by Softball Guru, Oct 15, 2007.

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  1. Oct 15, 2007 at 2:45 PM #1
    Softball Guru

    Softball Guru Banned From TBR

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    What in your opinion makes a great coach ?? IE..Good instructor,Patience,ETC....:detective:
     
  2. Oct 15, 2007 at 3:49 PM #2
    F-PITCH

    F-PITCH Full Access Member

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    Coach

    To me a coach is someone that thinks of teaching every part of the game. What I mean by teaching is being patient, tell them what they did wrong without making them feel like a idiot. I get just as much out of my pitchers and players when I use to coach by not intimidating them. Screaming and yelling just makes them play under too much pressure and it takes the fun out of the game. Yes you discipline but not to the point that you look like a butt on the field and embarrass the girls. Be careful and not kill the LOVE FOR THE GAME when that happens they are gone.
     
  3. Oct 15, 2007 at 3:50 PM #3
    SarcA

    SarcA Member

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    ??

    John Wooden said it best. Recruit, Recruit, Recruit
     
  4. Oct 15, 2007 at 7:05 PM #4
    throwindown23

    throwindown23 Junior Member

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    I've had all kinds....the good...the BAD....and the REALLY BAD....

    But the absolute BEST coach I ever had was when I was 5 years old....I'll never forget this....
    I couldn't hit a ball even if it would save my own life....and everyone in practice was getting SO mad cause I stood up there for like, 30 minutes, and swung and missed....every ball....you know how it is.....a kid getting up there and everybody in the field....kicking dirt and chasing butterfly's....yeah, I was the kid trying to hit....

    But my coach didn't give up on me....he had his wife run to the store and buy a bag of pinto beans and he sat there after practice and tossed those beans at me while I tried to hit them.....he sat there for what seemed like HOURS.....*a little side note....my dad also did this with me at home in the yard, and he didn't pick the beans up and my mom was SO mad cause we had beans growing up everywhere! lol)
    After that, I hit everything coming and going......he was my optimist coach....

    Sad thing is, 2 years after that, he died of a massive heart attack and I never got to tell him how much he helped me, as (not bragging) I have hit several homers this year alone....

    But, it takes a coach with patience. A love for the game. A love AND understanding for the girls....a coach that gets excited and happy when you make that good play or catch that ball that was practically noncatchable.....like me, a bigger, not as fast as some, girl, jumping on my "horse" and catching a WAY foul ball in left field.....and the coach getting fired up and yelling "that's the way we play ball" and doing the whole Rick Flair yell "whooooo"....a coach that understands when you strike out and says "that's ok, we'll get it next time".....BUT a coach who is there to play ball and expects the girls to play like they know how.....and is there to WIN and not play around....a coach who is there to take home 1st place.....
     
  5. Oct 15, 2007 at 7:22 PM #5
    cheeze105

    cheeze105 Moderator Staff Member

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    good topic for discussion Guru, should be interesting. I've been around for about 12 years here coaching fastpitch. i've learned what to do and definately what not to do. now i might step on some toes. but in a few different posts, this is how i see it and how my dd sees it also as we are discussing it now.

    A great coach is one who is willing to sacrifice. and by sacrifice, i mean the following:

    sacrifice your first impulse to shake your head and give that "look" when the girls just dont get it.

    sacrifice the human urge to laugh at someone when they make a mistake.

    sacrifice the total attention your daughter would normally have because everyone else needs you too.

    sacrifice your home time because its spent on the field

    sacrifice your own money because someone doesnt have hotel or food money

    sacrifice you social life because you CANT drink or smoke in front of the kids because YOU are setting a perfect example.

    sacrifice your sanity because you're doing this for the love of the game and the love and respect of the players you're teaching. remember, this is a life experience you're teaching them, they look at your actions and will follow them accordingly, be the bigger man when you want to tell that ump @$@# of% and remember they will do the same in the future, either way.


    just some random thoughts by cheeze and little mo - more later.
     
  6. Oct 15, 2007 at 10:06 PM #6
    softball4ever1987

    softball4ever1987 Proud Mama

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    Well now here is a pot that will get lots of stirring....

    I personally think that a great coach leaves you with this feeling!
    Coach, friend, leader, biggest fan, You are by their side through
    thick and thin, whether it's a hug to congratulate,
    or to wipe away their tears. You bring them strength when they are weak,
    you give them courage when they feel meek. Always pushing them to do their best, to never give up til they have beaten the rest. You teach them how to be part of a team and to strive for their goals, no matter how impossible they seem. You push, yell at, preach too, but the more that this happens, the more they grow. They will carry you with them for the rest of their life, hearing your voice encouraging them to overcome any strife. They will be thankful they had you as that friend, they called Coach!

    Now, I have a coach like this from my past! My DD has that coach for her!
    IMO, too many coaches these days, get lost in the, win at all cost sydrome. They buy into the, it is okay to hurt one to make another happy, I am here to win games, not to make you happy, there is no I in team, while they are extremely busy making themselves happy! There is always the old, that kid stinks, no one can help her!
    Every coach should think about why they are coaching!
    Are you doing it for the players?
    Are you doing it for your kid?
    Are you doing it for the pay/recognition/power?
    If you are not doing it because you have the knowledge and the desire to share your knowledge with every young person and make a difference in someone's life, then you should not coach!
    Because that is the real reason to coach!

    The people who do it for the right reasons, are few and far between!
     
  7. Oct 15, 2007 at 10:17 PM #7
    Abbey fan

    Abbey fan Full Access Member

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    OK

    Amen, do it for the girls and everything else works out.
     
  8. Oct 16, 2007 at 4:51 AM #8
    cheeze105

    cheeze105 Moderator Staff Member

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    good post girl, hits it on the nail. i have a friend in california, known since the early years in the navy. his daughter is same age as mine. now, california is 3-5 years ahead of us in softball, playing year around helps. they went through the "daddy ball" era, then went to the "super team" era and now its going back to the small "keep them together from age 10-18 era". most of the problems started when the coaches started getting paid really large salaries like the 10-15K range. the love of the game disappeared and the focus became on making money. this particular parent and others like him have focused on the coach who's doing it for the love of the game/players and not the one's who are solely making their income off of softball. seems to him that when you make your living off of the game, you lose that personal coaching ability and focus purely on where the next dollar is coming from. just his personal opinion.

    one thing that i might add and we went through this on a personal note. a good coach doesnt bad mouth a player when they choose to go to another team. we had a former coach who labeled some of the players who left a "cancer" to any softball team, yet these kids went on to play for other teams not causing any problems. I've even heard of an incident where a former coach called a college coach and labeled a former player "lazy" and it cost the player a position in that college. a good coach should know that girls are going to leave for a varity of reasons, and sometimes, they leave for no reason at all. you have to let that go and "getting even" should never be on your mind at all. part of the game it is. thats just my opinion
     
  9. Oct 16, 2007 at 8:31 AM #9
    Abbey fan

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    The Man

    Cheese, a couple very good and well worded posts. Basically love the game, do it for the girls, and try to keep it fun. Coach at all times so U can help the girls improve but also remember these girls are some one's daughter and are human beings as well.
     
  10. Oct 16, 2007 at 11:30 AM #10
    softball4ever1987

    softball4ever1987 Proud Mama

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    Thanks for the response to my post!
    Here is a statement, that I hope everyone on the planet, that ever intends to coach, reads! Actually reads and comprehends! Because this is the absolute worst thing, a person who considers themself a coach, can do! Either bad mouth mouthing or saying negative or untrue things, about a player, to others after a player leaves. Other coaches, parents or players! It is ALWAYS WRONG period!
    I have said it before and I will say it again, Not everyone I meet I'm going to like and Not everyone that meets me is going to like me.
    If you want to make an ENEMY just say negative or untrue things about a person's kid! You will most certainly have an ENEMY from that day forward!
     
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