I'm going on my 5th year as the head wrestling coach at my high school. I've had my doubts over the last couple of years as to whether or not I should continue, but I've hit a second wind recently. I just wanted to share a few thoughts about what it is like to be a coach.
Last year there was one week I spent over 100 hours between teaching and coaching for my school. I run regular practice as well as 2 morning practices each week. Meets get me home between 9 and 10 at night. Tournaments take up my whole Friday and Saturday. My wife affectionatly refers to herself as a "wrestling widow". Ironically, it is her that keeps nudging me to coach.
Lessons I've learned over the years...
Lesson #1: Surround yourself with good help. I've had the priviledge of coaching with one of the finest people a head coach could ask for. He has been around the program for over 15 years. He knows how to get things done. The kids love him (and fear him). I have never heard a negative word come from this man. I think I coach more to not let this man down than anything else somedays. If you surround yourself with success, you will be successful. Success doesn't equate to wealth, but it does equate with happiness. Let those that are there to help, help you. I've had to face a few deamons the las few years, and putting trust in others is one of them, bt he has not let me down. I've also picked up a few others along the way that are constantly proding and looking for ways to improve. I initially took the job because, well, lets be honest, I wouldn't have got my teaching job without it, but now it is part of me, and these coaches are also a part of it.
Lesson #2: Never miss an oppurtunity to teach. I did a short reasearch paper with a friend of mine who I am attending UVU with to get a Masters Degree. The topic was, "Why coaches make the best teachers!". Sounds quite oxymoronic, but believe it or not, we do (or at least have the potential to). The problem with teaching is that we often don't create an authentic environment in which to test and guide our students. As a coach, it doesn't get more authentic. You teach a skill, and then that wrestler uses that skill, then he comes back, you work on it again, then he uses it again, then you work on it again and add to it, then he uses it again. Coaches know how to teach. I work with 40-50 young men and women every year and I am constantly talking to them. Asking them how their schoolwork is going, what their plans after high school are, whats going on at home, what their interests are, etc. There are so many oppurtunities to listen, encourage, guide, and motivate. Never miss that oppurtunity whether a parent, a mentor, a peer, a coach, or a friend.
Lesson #3: Follow Through!!! If you say you are going to do something, do it, regardless of how long it takes or how far outside of your comfort zone it takes you. You can earn or lose the respect of your fellow coaches and your athletes the moment they know you're not a Go-To guy. I've tried my hardest to not make promises I can't keep as a coach, but the few times I have have backed me in a corner. Walk the Talk.
and finally...
Lesson #4: Have fun. There are a lot of good kids in this world who need to see that being an adult isn't scary, but rather it can be enjoyable. I hear adults a lot trying to scare kids into being adults. Sorry, but not a good tactic. Regardless of what we think or do or say, they will grow up, but how they approach it is up to us. As a coach, I've had days when I'm worn out or frustrated. They respond to that. Laugh, make a joke, be human for a few minutes. Its okay to get down or frustrated, but kids see how we respond to that, and if they look up to you, will often try to navigate through their lives and problems the way they see us do it. So if they see that you can still enjoy responsibility, perhaps they won't shy away from it so much.
These are just a few lessons I have learned over my short tenure of going on 5 years. There are more I have learned and many more I hope to learn. Whatever it is you're involved in, I hope these lessons apply to you.
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