Monday, February 15, 2010

DON MEYER'S THINGS I WISHED I HAD BEEN TAUGHT

If you don't already, you need to make sure you check Coach Don Meyer's website from time to time for the wealth of information on it. The following comes from "Things I Wish An Older, More Experienced Coach Would've Told Me When I Was Younger."

BE WHAT YOU IS BECAUSE IF YOU BE WHAT YOU AIN'T, YOU AIN'T WHAT YOU IS
Kids can spot a phony or con man a mile away. Try to adapt the good ideas of coaches you study rather than adopting the whole ball of wax.

GET ALL THE GOOD IDEAS BUT YOU CAN NOT USE ALL THE GOOD IDEAS
Your personality, your personnel, your league, your school, your geographic region, resources available and many other things will impact just what you can use in your program.

PROMISE LESS AND DELIVER MORE
Never promise wins and always provide attitude and effort.

SEE THE PICTURE, SELL THE PICTURE, PAINT THE PICTURE
Dick Bennett authored this one. You must be visionary, sell the vision to your people, and then everyone paints the picture.

ALL THE GREATS KNOW HOW TO KEEP IT SIMPLE (Jack Whitaker)

THERE ARE TWO KINDS OF PAIN; THE PAIN OF DISCIPLINE AND THE PAIN OF REGRET
The pain of regret is experienced in March for most teams and at the end of careers for most coaches.

MOST PARENTS WOULD RATHER SEE THEIR CHILD MAKE ALL-STATE RATHER THAN THE TEAM WIN THE STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

BUILD YOUR OWN ARMY.
Keep a low profile when you do this. Don't be obvious. Give something without expecting something in return.A hamburger feast, Wolfdog Festival, or some other event to show appreciation to those who support the program and kids.Daily acts of kindness and doing the right thing are the key to building a loyal army.

I NEVER ALLOWED MYSELF, MY STAFF, OR OUR PLAYERS TO GET SATISFIED (John Wooden)
There is always something that can be done better.

THE LEAST USED RESOURCE IN THE UNITED STATES IS TEAMWORK

DON'T WRESTLE WITH A PIG BECAUSE YOU BOTH GET MUDDY AND THE PIG LIKES IT

My uncle on administrators

USE ONE MINUTE ASSESSMENTS
One thing YOU did well and why.
One thing WE can do better and how.

TEACH, TEACH, TEACH
You better have good practices.(Al McGuire)

The complete list has a total of 50 things (all outstanding). To get your complete copy go to: http://www.coachmeyer.com/. Scroll down to "Newsletters for Coaches (New)" and click. Then click on "Wish I Had Been Taught" newsletter. You'll see a lot of other great coaching newsletters there as well.