The purpose of this post is not to say that you should run your Parent’s Meeting like this, but just to stimulate your thinking on how you can make your Parent’s Meeting as productive as possible.  It is more than a task to complete on the season checklist, it is an important opportunity to build positive rapport with your athlete’s parents!

The coach/parent relationship is extremely important, and as we all know, is one of the most difficult parts of coaching. I believe that holding a pre-season parent meeting will help to communicate with the parents in mass in a non-confrontational way. After our meeting, we open the practice to parents to watch.

The agenda that I have used for our parent meetings is outlined below

We start off with this quote from Lou Holtz:

I don’t think coaching is about making a million dollars a year. I don’t think coaching is about winning championships. I don’t think coaching is about going to a great school. I think coaching is about helping young people have a chance to succeed. There is no more awesome responsibility than that. I think one of the greatest honors a person can have is to be called ‘Coach.’ ”
—Lou Holtz

WE ALREADY ARE AT A GREAT SCHOOL!

1. Thank you for your attendance and for dealing with our practice times throughout the year—there are seven different practice times and game schedules being played right now.
2. Coaching Staff and attendance for information purpose.
3. Goal #1 for coaches: Establish a life—long relationship with each participant that cannot be broken.
Goal #2 for coaches: Assist in the development of all aspects of the life of the participants. Goal #1 for participants: Have the most rewarding season of his/her career to this point in our sport.
4. Cost to parents

5. Relationship of coach and parents
A. I look forward to a friendly, professional, and productive relationship with every parent.
B. Roles—Play, coach, officiate, support (Each of us should stick to one of those roles ONLY)
C. Please be supportive—“Listen to your coaches about (volleyball, soccer, football, baseball, whatever the sport is)” is the best advice to give. I have an entire program to consider. Over 100 students in grades 5-12.
D. Notebook—please look at your son/daughter’s team notebook that we provide him/her.  It will helps you understand our philosophy
E. Playing time—Coach’s decision and is not negotiable
F. Role in program or program level (varsity, JV, Freshman)—Coach’s decision and not negotiable
G. Strategy—Coach’s decision and not negotiable
H. I will not discuss other players with parents
I. I will talk to you about any other area that can help your son
J. Please support our priorities—again, please see your player’s notebooks.  We put their personal spirituality, family, health, citizenship, and academics as higher priorities than basketball.  I would rather have him miss practice for a Dr. appointment than to miss a class.  Of course, I would prefer he not miss class or practice, but if a choice has to be made, he would be excused from practice as long as I know ahead of time so that I am not surprised.  I hope it doesn’t happen, but I realize there are emergencies where communication with a coach is not a priority.
K. We ask that you follow the chain of command on all concerns. If your son has a concern that he shares with you, please ask him if he has spoken to the coach about it. We would appreciate your son extending us the courtesy of seeing the coach he has a concern with first. I am not perfect, but I am the coach and it is my job to deal with any problem that affects the program. I would appreciate hearing concerns directly from your son.  I do my best to be someone who is worthy of their trust and respect to be able to approach when there is an issue.
L. Parents may attend practice. However, it is the opinion of our coaching staff that it is not in the best interest of your son to do so.  We feel it puts undo pressure on him, but each child is different in that regard.

6. Administrative Items Web Site Waiver, Prospect Sheet, Code of Conduct
7. Web Site, E-mails
8. Question and answer
9. Food for away games
Varsity and Junior Varsity (Need volunteers)
Freshman Games (Need volunteers)
Other ideas–signs, buttons, pictures, having the team over to your home Please follow our priorities if the players are at your home
10. Locker room tour for parents and watch practice if you are able.

This article provided by Coaches Network

For high school coaches today, one key to success is learning to work well with athletes’ parents. A recent survey found that nearly two-thirds of coaches polled said they had either quit or considered quitting because of parents. How do veteran coaches tackle the challenge? Here are some suggestions:

Keep calm in the storm
It’s easy for parents to become emotional about their children, so it’s critical that the coach does the opposite and remains calm. Even if a parent is totally out of line, the coach must take the high road. One coach surveyed wrote that he regretted raising his voice with a parent.

“I should have swallowed my tongue and turned the other cheek,” he wrote. “I raised my voice in the exchange and only allowed a greater divide to exist. It hindered my relationship with that player for the rest of his career, which I regret.”

Another coach relayed how he was able to maintain composure during a baseball game. “A parent came to me in the dugout … and began yelling loud enough for everyone on and off the field to hear. I told her that was not the appropriate time to discuss an issue and if she wanted to talk we could do so after the game.”

Help your athletes navigate
Nearly two-thirds of coaches said players had complained about their own parents’ conduct. So there may come a time when you need to take action on behalf of your player. And sometimes other parents can be your ally.

“I had a player who wanted my help with her father’s behavior,” wrote one coach. “I was able to recruit some help from other parents and to get the problem under control.”

In other cases, empowering your player to talk to their parent themselves can have a positive outcome. When doing that, it’s still important to be a support system for the athlete:

“[I] allowed the player to speak with their parent at halftime per their request; I assured the player it was OK and not to worry about their parents’ action. I tried to take all the pressure off the kid … and I explained that my relationship with [them] had nothing to do with their parents,” wrote one coach.

Be open to change
While nearly 80 percent of coaches said that they had not changed their coaching style in response to parental complaints, some admitted that they had made some minor adjustments:

“It was not so much a change in coaching style as it was point of view,” one coach wrote. “Discussions with parents are part of growing as a coach. You must always apply lessons learned if you intend to progress.”

Sometimes, a parent will go to extreme measures, such as threatening to transfer their child to another school. One coach who faced such a situation realized that they needed to redirect the conversation.

“After a parent conference, I suggested we put our differences aside and focus on the student-athlete,” he wrote.

This article was written and contributed by Scott Rosberg

Today’s post comes from a comment I have heard various coaches make through the years – “I just don’t read.” As an English teacher for 18 years, reading was obviously a very big part of my job, and it was a huge part of what I was trying to get my students to do. As teachers, we expect our students to read the various assignments that we give them. No matter the subject, reading is extremely important to the success of our students.

Reading is also extremely important to my success as a teacher. Of course, I need to know what I am teaching, but I also should know a variety of material that would support or be in the realm of what I am teaching, too. It also helps to have a general knowledge of various elements in the world. Obviously, the more I know, the better prepared I can be. Reading is one of the best ways for me to prepare to be my best.

This same concept is important in athletics, as well, especially when it comes to coaches. There are a variety of ways for coaches to improve themselves. Live coaching clinics & workshops, DVD’s, online video clinics, meetings with mentor coaches, online magazines, blogs, podcasts, YouTube videos, downloadable PDF’s, newsletters, print magazines, books, eBooks, and booklets are all ways to learn more about one’s sport, coaching & athletics in general, or any other self-improvement topic that could help one become a better coach. Looking at that list, there is a wide variety of media that a coach can turn to learn more about his/her craft.

Each of those methods of learning has value, merit, and worth. I always suggest to coaches that they open themselves up to as many methods as possible to improve at their craft. Reading is one of those methods, and I would argue that it is quite possibly the most important of those methods because there are more chances to read than any other medium out there.

However, when talking with coaches about various written materials that I think they should read, I sometimes hear from them, “You know, I just don’t read all that much.” While I don’t say it, some of my first thoughts are usually, “Seriously?! Why not? Do you want to be the best you can be? What if your players said to you, ‘I just don’t ________.’ about something that you tell them they need to do to help be the best they can be?”

I realize that coaches come in all varieties, and some just aren’t as into developing themselves as much as others. Some are just helping out a team in a rec league to offer the head coach a little help, so they are not necessarily focused on getting too much information on coaching. However, I would submit that these people are prime candidates to learn a bit more on the topic of coaching and coaching their sport, so they can maximize their chances for helping the kids have a great experience.

Other coaches fall into the realm of “long-time veteran” coach. They sometimes feel they have all the knowledge they need, so there is no need for them to read more on coaching or on their sport. Well, I fall into that category of “long-time veteran” coach, and I have always read as much as I could on coaching and on my sports. There is always more to learn, and it is also enjoyable reading about something for which I have a passion.

In between the novice and the long-time veteran are the majority of coaches – coaches who have been coaching for a few years, but who still have a lot to learn. These are the coaches that are the most disappointing when I hear any of them say they “just don’t read,” as their reason for not reading certain books that could help them become better coaches. They have the most to gain and to give, so increasing their knowledge is critical to their success and their ability to help their players and teams develop.

Now, it could be that they just don’t read anything, not just coaching materials. Some people have struggled to read their whole lives or they just were never into reading, and so they just didn’t do it much. For some people, reading may be difficult, so they choose not to do it. Or they may feel they are too busy to read. However, for anyone who struggles with these situations, there are other ways to “read” materials to help them.

Audiobooks are a great way to “read” a book. You get the same information, you often get it in the writer’s voice, and you can do it while doing something else, so you don’t have to set aside extra time for it. Podcasts are another great medium to get a lot of information to help you improve. While podcasts are not exactly like audiobooks, many podcasts are basically blog posts or some other form of the written word conveyed through audio. But even for those that aren’t, there is often a lot of great information for listeners to consume that will help them improve in whatever they desire. I have been listening to podcasts for two years, and many have really helped me in my coaching and other areas of my life.

Webinars and online courses are also great formats to learn a lot of information packed into a fairly short amount of time. So are online videos. While there is not much in the way of reading in the video format, you can get a lot of information, and you can see it put into action. Video is a great way for coaches who don’t read much to still pick up a lot of great information.

No matter what method you use to “read,” make sure you do so. While I prefer actually reading a book, booklet, article, post (like this one!), etc. over most other formats, any method of consuming helpful information will give you new ideas and strategies to help you improve your coaching. Please don’t use the excuse that “I just don’t read” to limit yourself from becoming a better coach. Find some way that works for you, carve out the time necessary to do it, and then get ready for new levels of growth and development.

Then again, if you have read this far in this article, you are probably already doing those things. I guess it’s time for me to do a podcast and a video of this post for all those people that “just don’t read”!

I would love to hear your thoughts on these ideas in the Comments section below or on the Coach with Character Facebook page. My next post will focus on some different books, blogs, podcasts, etc. for you to consider “reading” this summer.

About the Author of this Article

Scott Rosberg has been a coach (basketball, soccer, & football) at the high school level for 30 years, an English teacher for 18 years, and an athletic director for 12 years. He has published seven booklets on coaching and youth/school athletics, two books of inspirational messages and quotes for graduates, and a newsletter for athletic directors and coaches. He also speaks to schools, teams, and businesses on a variety of team-building, leadership, and coaching topics. Scott has a blog and a variety of other materials about coaching and athletic topics on his website – www.coachwithcharacter.com. He can be reached by email at [email protected].

Scott is also a member of the Proactive Coaching speaking team. Proactive Coaching is dedicated to helping organizations create character and education-based team cultures, while providing a blueprint for team leadership. They help develop confident, tough-minded, fearless competitors and train coaches and leaders for excellence and significance. Proactive Coaching can be found on the web at www.proactivecoaching.info. Also, you can join the 200,000+ people who have “Liked” Proactive Coaching’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/proactivecoach. Scott can also be reached through Proactive Coaching at [email protected]

This article was written and contributed by Scott Rosberg

At Wal-Marts, Targets, JC Penneys, and just about every other department store out there, the signs are plastered all over the place – BACK TO SCHOOL! While those three words conjure up all kinds of feelings for just about everybody who reads them, one thing they always indicate is that summer is coming to an end. The hope and promise of summer that we all had as Memorial Day hit (which seems like about three weeks ago!) faded quickly, as within no time we were watching the parades and fireworks on the 4th of July. And now the “Back to School” signs are telling us that it’s over. The never-ending sunshine, warm days, barbecuing, sleeping in (for students and many of you), the feeling that nothing is as urgent as it is during the school year, and overall feeling of freedom and laziness are about to be gone for another 9 months.

Don’t Wait For the Future – Create It

And yet, along with those signs are some other signs – signs of anxiousness, excitement, possibility, and hope. While the end of summer is just that – an end – it is also a beginning, the start of something new. Many people wonder, “What will this school year bring?” Well, here’s a thought for you – don’t focus on what the year might bring to you.

Go get whatever you want from the school year.

The concept that something or someone is going to bring me something is very passive. It means that I am waiting for whatever is going to happen to happen. While there is nothing wrong with hoping for certain things to come our way, it is much better to go after the things that we seek in life. This is an active mentality, a mentality that says, “I am going to create my future, not wait for my future to come to me.”

For coaches & advisors (as well as your athletes, and activities participants), it is imperative that you work to create your future. If you sit around and wait and see what happens, the success you seek will never come. In fact, many of you don’t take the summer off the way that others do. The best coaches, advisors, teachers, athletes, musicians, actors, etc. put in a lot of time and effort throughout the summer to work on their crafts. Many worked on their skills, read books, watched videos, strengthened their bodies, went to camps, and played in tournaments trying to improve themselves. They understood that the off-season is a great chance to impact their future by doing something in the present.

To those of you that put in the time to your professional development and your team’s skill development, strength training, and team-building, “Thank you.” You have demonstrated a commitment that is necessary for any team to develop to its potential.  The more of you and your team members who did so, the better the chances are that your teams will have the kind of success you are all seeking.

Commit to Be Your Best to Help Your Kids Be Their Best

For those of you who weren’t able to work as much as you would have liked to on your or your team’s development, now is the time to rev it up and kick things into high gear. While you can’t go back into the past and re-do your summer, you can do all that you are capable of now.  It’s not too late to get “caught up” on your own professional development, so that you are ready to move your teams forward in the direction you want to go, and to develop yourself and your teams to your potential.

The start of school is a great time to commit to your & your team’s future. Don’t wait for your future to come to you. Decide what you want your future to be and go get it. Determine what culture you want to create for and with your teams, and then do all you can to develop that culture. Attack this new school year with a sense of purpose, desire, and focus, and don’t let anyone or anything knock you off track. Create great habits that will help you focus and allow you to reap the benefits of your efforts and help you overcome the inevitable dips in motivation and excitement that will hit after the first few weeks back. Anything is possible this year if you focus your effort and attention, and you then act on that focus.

Before you know it, we will be in full swing with our fall sports and activities practices and competitions, and school will be back in session. Enjoy the last bit of summer that you have left, but make sure that while you are doing that, you are also preparing yourself for your seasons by taking care of last-minute duties and responsibilities. That way when it all starts up for you, you will be ready to go full-speed ahead.  Have a great end of your summer and a fantastic start to your new school year!

For those of you who receive my AD Newsletter and Coaches’ Newsletter to send to your coaches and parents, you saw this post a couple weeks ago in your Coaches’ Newsletter. For those of you athletic directors out there who would like to receive those two newsletters to send out to your people, email me at [email protected] and let me know you are interested in those. Around the 15th of each month, I will email you the following month’s newsletters, so you can tweak them for your specific audiences and send them out with your school’s newsletter at the beginning of the month.

About the Author of this Article

Scott Rosberg has been a coach (basketball, soccer, & football) at the high school level for 30 years, an English teacher for 18 years, and an athletic director for 12 years. He has published seven booklets on coaching and youth/school athletics, two books of inspirational messages and quotes for graduates, and a newsletter for athletic directors and coaches. He also speaks to schools, teams, and businesses on a variety of team-building, leadership, and coaching topics. Scott has a blog and a variety of other materials about coaching and athletic topics on his website – www.coachwithcharacter.com. He can be reached by email at [email protected].

Scott is also a member of the Proactive Coaching speaking team. Proactive Coaching is dedicated to helping organizations create character and education-based team cultures, while providing a blueprint for team leadership. They help develop confident, tough-minded, fearless competitors and train coaches and leaders for excellence and significance. Proactive Coaching can be found on the web at www.proactivecoaching.info. Also, you can join the 200,000+ people who have “Liked” Proactive Coaching’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/proactivecoach. Scott can also be reached through Proactive Coaching at [email protected]

The article was provided by Coaches Network

By Bill Cole, MS, MA

What makes for an excellent coach? What personal qualities do top coaches possess that separate them from the good coach? Is it more the training or the inner qualities? Is it more coaching technique or the artistry? Is it more coaching knowledge or its application? Is it more natural talent for helping people or cultivated abilities? Is it insightful analysis of people or an abiding presence with them?

There probably is no one single attribute that all excellent coaches possess. Top-flight coaches can be comprised of many stripes and can come from many places, but they all connect with their charges, they know how to make changes with their players and they know how to get results. Bottom line, they get the work done.

This is my own personal list of what I like to see in coaches. Over my 15 years as a college educator I trained many, many future teachers and coaches. I was master teacher to many of them. I mentor many coaches on a private basis now. Probably the major qualities I saw that distinguished the great from the very good were these three:

• They cared deeply about people.

• They had incredibly high personal standards and ambitions.

• They had a high level of self-knowledge.

Those three are at least a wonderful starting point. Now on to the other 15 attributes of top-notch coaches. Top coaches possess many of these:

• Exquisite self awareness.

• High emotional intelligence.

• Broad vision with focus on important details.

• Nuanced, crisp, superb communication.

• Highest regard, caring and respect for clients.

• Creative, innovative learner and developer of custom coaching methodologies.

• Perceptive, intuitive, curious and inquiring.

• Quick study with capacity for deep and wide learning.

• Student of coaching and other disciplines that support helping others.

• Sincere interest in clients and desire to help.

• Continuous learner of themselves and their experiences.

• See coaching as a two way interchange of energies and learnings.

• Humble, open, nurturing and grateful to the world.

• View coaching as a calling, an art and a discipline.

• Walking the talk and modeling a good life for their clients.

Expert coaches work on themselves unceasingly. They are open to new ideas and philosophies. They study coaching seriously and take coaching seriously. They care about the person across from them.

That’s what it’s all about anyhow, isn’t it? Helping people?