Ethics of Coaching

I've written about how lucky I am to have had great coaches and teachers in my life. From my track coaches in high school to mentors in the workplace, I've been taught well by great coaches ahead of me. 

Like many others, I had my fair share of bad coaches too. Unfortunately we've all had them. 

As both a health and wellness and track and field coach, I aspire to leave others with the desire to take what we learn in our sessions and spread it in the world. In fact, it's the mission of my career for my clients and athletes to help get younger people hooked on living healthier lifestyles. 

With that mission comes a lot of responsibility.

In today's blog I'm writing from the perspective of a high school track coach. While the concepts are the same for any population, I will write with that lens.

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Fortunately and unfortunately, a coach has a great deal of influence on their peers. Good coaches leave us inspired and wanting to learn more, ineffective coaches can turn us off from a lifetime of healthy habits. Sadly, coaches can go weeks, seasons, careers without ever realizing the influence they can have on their athletes.

Again, I've been lucky enough to have great coaches set me on the right path, but I've also been highly influenced by one BOOK.

The USATF Level 1 Coach Education Manual.

This book is a technical manual for coaching every track and field event from the pole vault to the race walk. Technically speaking, it a great resource for learning the fundamentals to coach students through events. USA Track & Field (USATF) hired many professionals to produce detailed explanations for coaches. However, where this book really shines begins before any technical explanations- the very first chapter.

Chapter 1 - Positive Coaching

This chapter written by Dr. Rick McGuire is the most valuable chapter of coaching material I have read. It's all about the importance of everything outside of the sport itself. The headings in the chapter speak to the thoughtfulness and weight of importance of psychology in sport and working with young athletes.

Stage 1- Discover the Calling
Stage 2- Build the Foundation
Stage 3- Cultivate Positive and Caring Relationships
Stage 4- Empower Growth Mindsets
Stage 5- Inspire Passionate Hearts 
Stage 6- Produce and Achieve Optimal Performance

I love that in this chapter performance is the last thing! The calling, foundations, care, relationships, growth, and passionate hearts all precede any wins or performances. 

Within this chapter is the single more important sentence I've read as a coach:

"Because coaches are the ultimate model for their athletes, they should model and develop positive character relentlessly."

With emphasis!

"Because coaches are the ULTIMATE model for their athletes, they should model and develop positive character RELENTLESSLY"

Coaches have such an important role to their athletes. A very unique role in fact. 

Let me tell a story.

One day I was working with a woman whom I had gotten to know over a couple of years of coaching. She has a big heart for teenagers. Particularly teenagers that have had issues in the past that led them to be in juvenile detention or foster care. She lobbies for the teens rights and treatment everyday. You see how involved she is in helping them from the moment you meet her. 

She explained to me how important my role is as a coach can be to the right person. She explained to me how sports are often one of the few things that may keep the students coming to school. Athletics have an ability to remove the student from a bad home situation for a couple of extra hours each afternoon. For some students, sports may be the only arena in which they receive recognition or praise. She taught me how influential and important that role is. There is a big responsibility to show up for the athletes because they may be counting on it in ways we don’t understand. 

She further explained how relationships with a coach may be one of the few positive adult relationships teenagers can have. A good coach understands psychology and encourages the athlete to be the best person possible (just as Dr. McGuire wrote about). Being in a place where the student wants to be, they are so much more receptive to learn than in a setting they are forced into. 

She went deeper to explain how coaches also have a strict responsibility to know and understand body language. A simple act of raising a hand for a high five or a pat on the back may be very different experiences for a teenager on the field than at home. Again, the coach must understand the use of supportive actions and body language with their athletes.

Lastly, she taught me how we cannot stereotype which teenagers are having these problems. They are all equally susceptible regardless of neighborhood, race, household makeup, etc. . . Moreover, they are all equally deserving of a relentlessly supportive coach. 

I always knew how important a coaches role was in helping with skill acquisition, team dynamics, and even individual growth. I had great coaches that did this. The conversation I had with my client expanded that beyond what I had ever considered. 

I would wrong to not mention how many lessons I learned from my athletes. These are many and varied. Lessons came daily. Coaching high school athletes is never dull. I'll have to write another blog totally committed to only the lesson I've learned from them. 

I am constantly working to better myself as a coach for both my high school athletes and adults. The goal remains the same- get more young people interested in living healthier lives. Books, videos, mentors, etc . . . The education continues because I am “the ultimate model for athletes” and I will “model and develop positive character relentlessly.”

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More positive quotes from the USATF Manual:

The Seven Cs of Success:
Confidence- The athlete’s self-belief.
Concentration- The athlete’s control of focus.
Courage- Desire and confidence are treated than fear. Courage is learned.
Commitment- The athlete makes the final decision before meeting the challenge. 
Control- The athlete takes it.
Choice- The athlete makes it.

“The coach, by the very nature of the position, is a role model for athletes and a representative of an entire profession and sport.”

“The coach’s respect for the athlete develops athlete-coach trust.”

”A coach’s primary goal is to help athletes develop self-trust.”

The first three chapters of this book, Positive Coaching, Ethics and Risk Management, and Sport Psychology are gold for coaches of any sport, team, group, or person.