3 Ways to Reach Your Athletes

Youth sports teams are full of personality - kids are eager to make friends, compete and enjoy activities outside of school and their neighborhoods. As a result, you’ll come across all kinds of individuals, from the boisterous and outgoing to the timid and shy. Navigating through these different personalities can be a challenge and effectively coaching them can be even harder.

Your job as a coach is to figure out how to reach each athlete individually and also address your team as a whole. It is a precarious balancing act that requires you to wear several different hats. Team sports websites are a great resource, but here are three tips to remember as you work to reach your kids:

1. Know when you raise your voice
Some kids won’t respond unless you really get on them. Sometimes, you need to show your authority by displaying your passion for the team and the game. But be careful - you don’t want to yell and scream for no reason and make a scene. Your team won’t respond to that and neither will their parents. But at times, with control, it’s good to let them know you mean business.

2. Know when to lower your voice
This is equally important - if not more so. While some athletes need an extra push, others require a quiet, steady presence that offers encouragement and lets them learn on their own. These kids might be shy and withdrawn, so if you push them too far they might just recede even more. It’s important to recognize the types so you can give the correct guidance.

3. Never lose your composure
Most of all, you need to gain your team’s trust. If you lose your cool, show that you don’t know what to do or give in to frustration, you’ll lose that hard-earned respect. The balance between player and coach is a delicate one so you need to be  the rock.

Knowing your team takes time and effort. You have to proactive - reach out and engage your athletes. Get to know them well enough to understand what motivates them and how to get the best effort out of them. Consider using the team sport website to reach out to each individual, tell them a little bit about yourself and learn what you can about them.