Coaching with Kaizen

One of the great luxuries I enjoy most in the morning is sipping a cup of coffee on my back deck.  My house backs onto a large ravine and beyond that is our local High School.  In the summer when school is out it is often quiet but on weekends the practice field is filled with soccer teams.

Today there were two teams of 12 - 14 year old girls playing a match. The usual sounds of children playing were overshadowed by one man screaming at the top of his lungs directing the players on what to do.  As I watched closer I realized that the person screaming was the coach.  Running up and down the sidelines he shouted directions at the players.  I noticed that some of the parents of the same team also shouting directions, but not nearly as loud as the coach.

On the other team, the coach remained calm even passive, pacing slightly but never saying a word.
His team appeared organized, stayed in their positions and most importantly were having fun.
The team seemed disorganized, constantly out of position and the more the coach yelled the more frustrated they became.  The play was always in the noisy teams zone and inevitably they scored a goal and within minutes scored another, sending the coach into an obscenity filled rage.

The obvious point is that this man is not a good coach and should not be allowed to act this way around young girls.  But what is interesting is that the other coach had properly prepared his team, they each knew their responsibilities and positioning and were coached on what to do.  This allowed the team to dominate the play with very little direction.  They were productive, organized and produced good results while enjoying what they were doing.

Teach your players exactly what they need to do to win, give them the tools to get the job done, allow them to perform their assigned tasks, watch and observe and re-direct when needed.  This simple formula will empower your team and give them the confidence they need to succeed.