Motivation, Encouragement, and Expectation.Simply Youth Basketball knows we, as coaches, all love the talented ones. Oh the feeling we get when we see a six foot, 12 year old walk through the gym door on sign-up day. Or the fourth grader we see on a regular basis at the Rec. Park; you know - the one who can crossover between his legs without missing a beat. We all dream of having a couple of these kids. And every once in a while we may get one or two.But is it always enough? Not without some motivation, encouragement, and expectations. These three take over when all else fails. They make good kids great! Your players will never know what they can truly be, or strive to be their best without you to motivate them. Push them to their limit. I promise it will not kill them! Make sure they know that nothing in this hard world is handed to them. They must work for it! Your team will never make sufficient progress, if you fail to encourage them. When they mess up. Build them up! When it seems like everything is falling apart, and nothing is going right; let them know that you believe in them, and that they MUST believe in themselves too! Nothing kills talent and heart like lacking confidence. Lastly, never let them off easy. Kids these days are made of a whole lot tougher stuff than they or we give them credit for. If you do not have expectations of them they will not achieve the goals set before them. Make it clear what you expect of them, each and everyone. If you do this fairly, and they see that you really care about them as people, and you gain their respect and trust...I promise you, there is nothing you ask of them that they will not try their best to do. Motivate! Encourage! And have high Expectations! Remember....talent and ability only go so far. Sometimes you need that little something more. Master these three coaching skills and every season will be a good one! Go get em' Coach! Back to SYB Home |
