If you’re one of those sports coaches who really wants to know how to help participants be their best, then here are 3 mistakes – with solutions – you need to know.
Mistake #1: Effort Does Not Always Equal Improvement
Ignore this advice at your peril: it’s a myth to believe that the amount of effort we put in equals the amount of results we get back..
The most important thing to get with making this mistake is that you’ll miss all the gains your participants could be making in other ways.
Steering clear of this is key for everyone because if you don’t you’ll be pushing your participants towards injury rather than results.
For best results here you should watch for the physical signs of emotional and physical stress that their bodies are already under, before pushing your participants hard. This way, you can ensure that you’re dosing their effort to suit the level they can manage with a massively reduced risk of injury.
Mistake #2: The Biggest Gains Are Not Out There!
This mistake is all about thinking that external situations like coaching plans, equipment and environment create the biggest gains. They don’t.
If you focus on the external stuff, you’ll just be ignoring the best ways to deliver better results.
Everyone needs to understand this is key because if you only focus on the external stuff, any performance improvements you gain this way will only be small and/or temporary.
Now the thing for you to do is to save looking at external options when ALL other avenues have been explored. Most barriers to performance are INTERNAL to your participants, including old forgotten injuries and emotional stress so if you’re not dealing with these first then it doesn’t matter how much fancy equipment your participants buy, the improvement will only be small.
Mistake #3: Repetition Just Makes Things Worse!
Listen closely on this mistake: it’s a common misconception that exact repetition of a skill is the fastest way to learn, but actually it isn’t.
This is important to you because it means if you make this mistake you’ll spend ages on boring drills in the hope that your participants will improve.
This spells the difference between success and failure for everyone because if you keep focused on repetition, you’ll waste the chance to use the quickest form of human development… making mistakes.
Bottom line to avoid this mistake? You should help your participants to explore different ways of performing the skill you want them to learn, that aren’t technically “correct” – in fact, they’re totally wrong. This way, the brain can have the experience of performing in the most inefficient ways and correct itself naturally. This is a much faster way to improve skill than only ever sticking to the “correct” way and constantly correcting people.
This represents just a summary of the potential mistakes sports coaches make when it comes to improving sports performance. With the consequences of ignoring this advice ranging from weeks of wasted effort to throwing tons of money out the window. Take the time to educate yourself on the most effective methods to help participants be their best.
Oh, one more thing, if you really want to help your participants be at the top of their game – and stay there, my amazing Amazon bestselling book “The Coaches Guide to Long-Term Injury Prevention Success” makes it super easy for you! Check it out here mostmotion.com/book