“Together vs alone…”
Shared by Breanne Smedley
I’m a part of a Facebook group called, “Volleyball Coaches and Trainers.”
It’s a free forum of over 18,000 volleyball coaches from around the world who can discuss our profession openly and honestly with the goal to grow the game together.
People post all sorts of questions in this group.
From advice on specific situations, skills/systems/drills, coaching philosophies, to “where’s the best place to purchase a new net system?”
Over the years of being in this group, I’ve picked up some really great tips and insights that I’ve used with my teams and programs.
Just from reading posts, I’ve been challenged in my thinking, my assumptions, and unintended biases.
All helping me become a better coach and mentor to my athletes.
This, combined with experience, trial and error, deeply examining my coaching “why” and emulating other successful coaches encapsulates how I coach and lead the River volleyball program.
I am convinced that the best coaches, teachers, and leaders operate this way.
They seek out other successful programs and coaches and ask them questions.
They engage in conversations with other coaches, they share, they try things, and report back.
They don’t “go it alone” and try to figure it all out by themselves.
I’ve met coaches like that, and I used to be one when I first started out.
They are the coaches who rarely share ideas.
Like they are keeping a special secret from everyone else as to why their team experienced success.
As if they’ve figured it out on their own, so now whatever philosophy, training method, or system is theirs to keep.
And if they dare share it, now everyone will know and be able to beat them!
This mentality is rooted in insecurity.
Fear of not appearing like you know what you’re doing.
Fear of failing because if you share “that thing” that has revamped your team’s culture, other people might “steal” it.
I’ve come to find that there’s no such thing as stealing when it comes to helping young women thrive in sports.
We are all in it to provide an opportunity for our players to develop as exceptional, hard-working, confident young women.
The overall goal is for us all to improve the business of developing relationships, and give our players the skills they need to navigate the world for long after they leave our programs.
Therefore, all coaches are inherently in this “business” together.
So, I share as much as I can. Not because I know it all (FAR from that).
But, because I hope that something that has worked for me, can work for someone else.
And I know that everything I have tried has been learned and adapted from other coaches.
The successful ones (ie. Diane Flick) don’t hoard what makes their team successful.
Going alone sucks, and leads nowhere.
If we want our players, our teams, and our communities to be as best as they can, we have to shift our mindset to believe that we’re in this together.
#IntegrallyRelational
#MindfullyEvolving
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