Communication and Coaching

Communication and Coaching

The five areas are… 

1. PERSONALITY: How do they need to be coached

2. AMBITION: What’s their big dream

3. REAL LIFE: What are they interested in outside of athletics

4. ARCHIVE: Their history (athletic, injury, and personal)

5. FEARS: What their biggest concerns are in the weight room

Let’s break each of those down and dive deep into why they are important.

Personality:

Every athlete is unique and responds to coaching in different ways. Some athletes you can coach hard and give direct feedback to while some athletes would shut down with that style of coaching. I have found that in many cases putting your arm around an athlete and giving them feedback in a more private setting can be much more effective. The key is that as a coach you have to find out what style of coaching the athlete responds best to. Figuring out an athlete’s personality type will allow you to reach each athlete in a way that works for them, not just what works for you.

Ambition:

Part of the process of coaching is getting a better understanding of what drives an athlete to play the sport. Of course, they play because of the love it, however, there is always a deeper goal. Some athletes just want to crack the starting lineup while some have the goal to play at the highest level. As a coach, you have to know what their big dreams are and use that as a tool to both motivate them and to bolster the conversations you have with them.

Real Life:

What does the athlete do when they are not practicing, lifting, or being with their team? Do they like video games or do they have other hobbies? What is their home situation like? The role of a coach should cross over into every facet of their life and once it does you have much more ammo to use when trying to create a bond. Once you know what their ‘real-life’ is like that can be part of your daily conversations with the athlete. This helps break down walls and allows the athlete to open up more which will eventually lead to more trust in you and your program.

Archive:

Do you know your athlete's history? Knowing their injury history is important but you need to dig much deeper than that. Everyone has a story and that story tells you a lot about who they are as a person. Personally, I have had an athlete who I never knew was homeless at one point in his life. He had a wall up about it and it caused him to be quiet and reserved. Once we had a conversation about his ‘archive’ our entire relationship (and ultimately his buy-in) changed as well. Knowing the archive is about asking the right questions at the right time. Start with less invasive questions and over time get to the big ones.

Fears:

What in the weight room makes the athlete nervous? Many young athletes are intimidated by this setting and need some reassurance as they get more comfortable. In addition, some athletes have movements that make them nervous like a heavy back squat or their first few lifts returning from injury. Make sure to know these fears and read the athlete’s body language as they go through the session. Address the fears as they come up and always provide positive reinforcement to help them overcome them. Once you understand the fears of the athlete you can speak with them before the lift about what is coming up and how you will handle it. Saying something like “hey man, we have front squats today and I know your Osgood Slaughter has been light you up. If you feel any pain let me know and I’ll get you a variation” can go a very long way in building that athletes trust in you and overcoming their fears.

Putting it together:

Now, once you have an understanding of the athlete from the perspective of each of the five areas listed above, your coaching communication will become more effective and efficient. This allows you to give short, precise, and digestible coach communication in a short amount of time. But, more importantly, your coaching will be more impactful because the athlete will buy into you as a coach.

Once the athlete buys into you and knows you are invested in them, then it’s easy from there.

We are going to dive deeper into this topic on our podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hansenathletics-radio/id1301840785

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