Saturday, September 10, 2011

ANSON DORRANCE: FOCUS ON LEARNING HOW

We got the following from Coach Don Meyer's Leadership Conference...he said it was one of the best things he's ever read:

"After awhile, your coaching development ceases to be about finding newer ways to organize practice. In other words, you soon stop collecting drills. Your development as a coach shifts to observing how great coaches teach, motivate, lead, and drive players to performances at higher and higher levels. I think what happens to great coaches who are not effective at the end of their career is they lose their willingness to take the required stress and emotional confrontation that they did when they were younger. Some leaders no longer have the energy or willingness to make the emotional commitment to motivate people to attain the standard required of them to compete successfully at the highest level. Coaches sometimes are not willing to make that commitment because it is so exhausting. They are not willing to confront players when they are not exerting maximum effort and achieving maximum performance because it’s a stressful, uncomfortable situation. To constantly motivate players, you have to be a driving force and make personal investments for which you can pay dearly. There are times when it might not be an easy or popular environment for you to challenge them, but there are times when they are just going to have to suck it up and deal with it. And, trust me, the standards most players set for themselves will usually be in a comfort zone that is well below their potential.”

-Anson Dorrance