Five More Quotes...

There is a big, bright world around us and as coaches, we have to pull our noses out of our rotation wheels and line up sheets every once in a while to listen to some smart people from other walks of life. Being the best coach you can be requires us to be 'lifelong learners,' exploring ideas from smart evidence based folks around us. Here is another installment of five quotes.

From his 2010 autobiography, 'Life,' Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards talked about his thirst for musical knowledge when a young teenager. 

"We had nobody to impress except us. And we weren't looking to impress ourselves. I was learning to with Mick (Jagger) and me in the beginning. We'd get, say, a new Jimmy Reed record. And I'd learn the moves on the guitar. And he would learn the lyrics and get it down. And we would just dissect it as much as two people can. They go like that?  Yeah, it does! As a matter of fact, we had fun doing it. I think we both knew we were in the process of learning. And it was something that you wanted to learn. And it was 10 times better than school!"

Richard's love for music and learning new songs comes through loud and clear in this quote. As a side note, the night before this blog was published, 80 year old lifelong learners Keith Richards and 80 year old Mick Jagger began...BEGAN their latest tour for their new album, 'Hackney Diamonds' in Houston. 

"The notion that there are simple solutions to complex problems is so hardwired, so crucial to today's perception of 'health and wellness,' that I'm debuting it as the quick-fix fallacy: that is, our tendency to look more favorable upon claims, advice or propositions that seemingly eliminate time and/or effort in the pursuit of an outcome. Attempts to exploit the fallacy are all around us: in clickbait online adverts and memes ("one weird trick to bust belly fat") and in the sale of fad diets, supplements, detoxes and newfangled exercise programs that claim to revolutionize fitness."

Dr. Nick Tiller has been preaching to all that will listen about the dangers of myths and misdirection in the health and wellness field. He has written blogs, books and been on dozens of podcasts. His idea of the 'quick-fix fallacy' absolutely permeates youth sports. Good coaches need to see through the claims and understand the realities for the betterment of their athletes. 

University of Connecticut Head Basketball Coach Dan Hurley won his second of back to back National NCAA Championships in early April. In this discussion with former NBA player J.J. Redick on his podcast, 'Old Man and the Three,' Hurley told Redick what he is looking for in championship level players.

"You're looking for all the Winning stuff, man. In recruiting, bringing in the 19th ranked player in the country that comes into your program and organization and he's like delusional, selfish. He's got crazy parents. He's got, you know, grassroots coaches that just are ticking off the days until, you know, he enters the draft. And you're like just trying to avoid bringing people like that into the organization. So I study the hell out of the people. I watch them when I'm at AAU games, like I'm not playing on my phone. I'm watching the kid. You know, obviously looking for the traits that you could build on but you're looking to see, you know, do his teammates like him? I'm like waiting when he makes a bucket and he goes to the ground. Does anyone come to pick them up? Or are they just leaving his ass over there because he's brutal to play with. When he's subbing out is he dapping everybody up and down through the bench? Or is he stopped at the front of the bench, shaking his head, not making eye contact with his coach? Are his parents bugging out in the crowd? They can yell at the ref if they want because I'm all in on that like myself.  Are they the type of people that could infect the organization? You know, what Coach Riley said a long time ago, that 'disease of me.'"

A lot of what Hurley is talking about in his recruiting vision are things that we, in the juniors and club world, can help with. A good player can be a blessing or a curse. But when great players are interviewed, almost always they will talk about 'that coach' that helped them get to where they are. Be that coach!

With nearly 30 years of coaching experience, most of those seasons at Kansas State, now Arkansas assistant coach Susie Fritz recently fired this quote up at a coaching clinic in Fayetteville.

"Coach less, better."

In her vast experience, Fritz has seen coaches give too much information and feedback, over prescribe and over coach their athletes. Her simple message for coaches is less is more but be better, more concise with instruction and feedback. Give the athletes the opportunities to learn themselves. 

Finally, pulled fresh from this morning's headlines, Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker elaborated on his team's loss and playoff sweep to the Minnesota Timberwolves last night.

"These are the times the details matter and it's something that we kind of passed by and didn't think was a big deal but came back and bit us in the ass."

From Hugh McCutcheon on down, coaches will preach, "There are no little things." And Booker's quote is accurate, "details matter." At practice tonight, or tomorrow, or next season, focus on those details that matter most to your team(s). 

Learn from our Mythstakes...

 Drinking 8 glasses of water a day.         “Learning styles.”         The Lizard brain.  

             Multitasking.                     

Albert Einstein failed math.       Ice baths promote quick healing.           

Diamonds are made from coal.

Sugar makes kids hyperactive.               Learning is linear.               10,000 hours rule.               

Muscles have memories.        We only use 10% of our brain.

Benefits of Kinesio tape.               Sports drinks are better than water at rehydrating.          

A cleanse will detox your body.               Stretching before practice reduces injury.           

Bats are blind.

Speed ladders improve agility.               Humans have only five senses.               

George Washington had wooden teeth.              Humans can’t grow new brain cells.

10,000 steps a day.               Organic food is better for you.               

 

Like it or not, we live in a society where myths abound. (See above) Health, politics, social norms and societal events are a breeding ground for lies, myths, misconceptions and inaccuracies.

How we get here is an amalgam of human behavior. Often myths are the shortest circuit between two observations. In his book “How Minds Change,” author David McRaney points out that ‘for a very long time most people believed that geese grew on trees. People believed that rotting meat gave birth to flies, that piles of dirty rags could transform into mice, and that burning logs created salamanders.’

 

Take a second and a reasonable person can see why these myths were born. Other myths are born out of financial gain and profit. An illustrious example being the ‘magic bracelets‘ that  for many seasons were a staple at AVP events. Advertiser claims on its website heralded that the use of the Power Balance Bracelet improved balance, strength and agility. And at a cost of $30-70, consumers figured it must be true and the “placebo effect” was invoked. The placebo effect is when a person's physical or mental health appears to improve after taking a placebo or 'dummy' treatment. Millions were sold but when a few consumers saw no benefits, they sued the company.

A few months after the backlash, the owners released the following statement: “In our advertising we stated that Power Balance wristbands improved your strength, balance and flexibility. We admit that there is no credible scientific evidence that supports our claims and therefore we engaged in misleading conduct in breach of s52 of the Trade Practices Act 1974. If you feel you have been misled by our promotions, we wish to unreservedly apologize and offer a full refund.”

 

The company was hit with a $57 million dollar judgement from which it never recovered.

 

Perhaps you think myths don’t affect you, but take a look at education in the United States. Education is STILL instructing the myth of “learning styles” in teacher education. The myth of “Whole Language” reading v. the “Phonics” way of teaching reading has possibly cost a generation of students reading comprehension gains. The “Whole Language” idea was sprung from a charismatic New Zealander and perpetuated by a few teachers from the U.S.  

One of them has admitted the idea was flawed and lacked any sort of science to back the programming but these advocates and the book companies printing their misinformation reaped huge financial gain. In the meantime, student reading scores plummeted. What’s even worse is several school districts are STILL using this program currently.

 

Pick up a newspaper and scan story after story about a political faction of our country that goes all in on the idea that since their candidate lost, the election must have been rigged. (We can only hope this idea doesn’t permeate sports although in some small instances, it already has!)

 

As stated earlier, myths are often created in the minds of people looking for the shortest distance between what they want and where they are at. People bought “Real Water” because it told them they would be healthier if they drank it despite its pseudo-science explanations of why it was so good for you. It was, of course, water from Lake Mead packaged and sold as a cure all for what ails you. This myth cost the owner a $228.5 in damages when his water caused liver damage in some of his customers.

 

How about this one, currently popular on social media channels around the country.

If you see the wrong thing, you are depressed. Simple as that. Except this is of course just silliness. Depression is not defined or diagnosed by whether you see an apple or a butterfly. Again, this is the shortest distance between someone who thinks they might be depressed and how quickly and easily can this be determined. Another myth is born.

 

Why is a volleyball blog talking about myths?

 

The world of youth sports is rife with them. Buy this product and see your athlete’s (fill in the skill or stat here) will improve by 60%! Come to this camp and watch your team contend for a State Championship next season. Run this offense and your team will blow out their opponents’ week after week. As a Parent or a Coach that wants what is best for your athlete(s), it’s easy to get caught up in these claims.

 

The 10,000-hour paradigm, stretching before practice, wrist snap, muscle memory, speed ladders, Kinesio tape etc. These myths STILL permeate our sport in daily trainings.

 

Coaches glom onto ideas and myths without much evidence because they think this drill “looks cool” or they follow a coach they like on social media. Coaching has become infected with drills and training ideas that are counter to the science of skill acquisition because maybe a) there is a profit to be made, b) clicks and likes or perhaps c) the coach watching is comfortable with the content because this is what they did as an athlete.

 

Also consider the constraints of a coach’s life. Most coaches in our sport are part time employees with another job (or two) to help pay bills. They are paid what the market bears but the amount of time, mental taxation and emotional currency spent dealing with a dozen or so young athletes and their parents can be overwhelming. When asked to learn more, they often will take the easiest road and so drills highlighted on social media, with its unlimited and easy access, become a haven for a coach in need of a new drill. The easiest path is followed.

 

We all need to be better consumers of information despite the galactic avalanche of ‘noise’ surrounding youth sports cures, equipment and promises. As a coach or a parent, don’t take the easy road as it’s probably not going to take you where you want your athlete to go. Simple messages of how to build team culture or strong confident coaches don’t take into account that relationships are hard. Human beings are different and complicated. Sports are an environment that is difficult to predict. Understand that youth sports is full of myths trying to sell you, recruit you or change what you are doing.

Find your center as a coach and parent. Put your faith in science, in models with historical success. Short cuts are full of landmines and mineshafts, the kind that can chase a young athlete from a sport they love. Be that consumer that looks for the genuine hits and not the myths.

Five Quotes

From a week scouring podcasts, here are five noteworthy and mind mulching thoughts and ideas to chop up with your Coaching friends...

“And the unique aspect, I think, certainly from a field sports standpoint for rugby is there is no real stoppage right? So, you know as well as anybody else in soccer, it's difficult. It's difficult for them to even hear you during the game. I ask my players all time how much can you hear me? Not at all right? Not at all. So, all it is really is just animation at that point because I haven't done my job in practice of allowing them to troubleshoot themselves and I'm constantly orchestrating that. They don't have practice in it. So therefore, how are they going to do it? Inside the game?”

Becky Carlson, 3X National Rugby Champion Coach talking about making sure her athletes learn to solve problems IN practice FOR the game because they can’t hear her anyway.

“I’ll hear my athletes consistently presenting things and saying, ‘I feel like.’ There is a very staunch neutrality about that. And it’s not making statements, it is giving opinions and therefore when you remain neutral, there never has to be any action items. So that carryover from their social interactions goes out on the field when they go, ‘I feel like we might not be getting to the rocks’ and my response is, are we? What is the action I'd have to follow. So now we're at a place where we are attempting in a very delicate manner, slowly but surely, to eradicate that from our language so we can be more productive and it's less about satiating my desire for the team to speak differently, but more of us to be productive and to garner results that are aligned with our goals.”

Becky Carlson again, talking about eliminating the phrase “I feel like” from her athletes and coaching staff in search of actionable language that will move the team forward.

"Just a quick statistic, we spend well over $150 billion a year pursuing health. Which includes how do we find the right diet program, the right exercise program, the right supplement. Maybe throw in some longevity hacks, you know, fly down to Costa Rica for some stem cells. And that's how we're going to live a long time. And that's common sense in America. But what's uncommon sense is this notion of instead of trying to change our behavior, we change our environment, and thereby engineer our unconscious decisions over the long run.”

Blue Zones explorer Dan Buettner talking about why it’s a struggle for people in America to make changes.

“I'm not that uncomfortable with the idea that every research study is questionable because kind of like that's the point. It's all gray and it's all hypothesis and nothing is certain. There's very few very distinct black and white findings or realities in our world. Everything's contextually finding blue and red but instead, it's smaller shades of purple, right? So, there's a spectrum of confidence that we can actually have around research. And some studies fly far over to the one side where we can say we have no confidence that that certain effect works and some studies are far over to the other side. We can say we got reasonable data, but there's no such thing as absolute confidence. Something like for instance, I don't know, sleep deprivation is bad for your health. Okay, I'm very confident sitting here that that's definitely true. Most studies have falsely claimed that. But then you move towards icing (ice baths) and caffeine and all sorts of other things and it gets a little bit more purple, and I'm okay with that. Honestly, I think that's what I would want people to take away from this is don't be definitive because even the science that you're relying on isn’t.”

Dr. Ross Tucker Ph.D., a Science and Research consultant talking about how research and the papers they produce should be questioned and not taken as gospel.

“So one of the things that was taking place is we were very clear that in the hallways, we were great about not talking about somebody that wasn't amongst us. And we would call on our discipline. If that person is not here, like just keep it moving if we don't need to say it to their face or to be able to confront them. And what ends up happening is that people start to feel really safe, because they're not worried about what's happening in that conversation over there. Like, is it about me? That's a very good standard.”

Dr. Michael Gervais, Performance Psychologist talking about creating safety within a team or workplace by not talking about someone who isn’t with that group.

They...

Asking coaching friends about their region tournaments this season, the answers are split: those that won and those that lost. 

The ones that lost this season have said things like, "They sh*t the bed!" "They aren't mentally tough." "They don't know how to win." "They can't stay focused." "They weren't ready to play today." "They just don't care." 

The winning coaches sound completely different, of course. But when put into the fabricated dark hole of losing, these comments persist.

This was St. John's head Men's basketball coach Rick Pitino after his team gave up a big lead and lost.

"This has been the most unenjoyable experience I've had since I've been coaching."

LSU Women's basketball coach Kim Mulkey had this to say about her team at halftime against the #1 team in the country.

"We come out, we take the lead and then we have turnovers."

After Kentucky Men's basketball coach John Calipari's team was upset in the first round of this year's NCAA tournament, he gave this interview.

"We had some guys not play to the level they can play."

Not that it matters in these moments, but Pitino has a base salary of $3.3 million a season, Mulkey at $3.26 million and John Calipari at $8.5 million per year.

It would be unfair to judge them as coaches and people based on these snippets at a difficult moment of their seasons. 

From the club coaches above to the three mega successful college basketball coaches shown here, there is something missing.

We...

Yes, Mulkey says it but then takes her team to task. Pitino calls out his individual players for their shortcomings and Calipari points out the areas where his team failed.

What you also might notice is in all of these quotes and interviews, there is no accountability placed on one position on the team.

The head coach!

If we coach leading with ego, we are going to get what we deserve. College level athletes may be able to handle coaches like this better, but if you are going to separate yourself from your team, what is the message you are sending out?

Maybe all the coaches in this blog don't understand the randomness of team sports. Maybe they don't know what to do to make their teams better in certain moments, or moving laterally or not giving up turnovers at key times. 

You are either a coach or you are not. If you are a coach, then you figure out ways to solve  problems, deal with adversity and do what you are capable of to make your team better. If everything is based on the win, loss column, then perhaps you will see Pitino's gripe about this being the worse coaching experience of his career as your situation as well.

Of course the one thing we forget in watching these videos and hearing these coaching comments is the players. How do you think what is being said makes them feel? Maybe that is of no interest to major NCAA basketball programs or maybe even to club volleyball programs, but it should be.

How would you feel if these things were said about you?

“Your potential, the absolute best you’re capable of—that’s the metric to measure yourself against. Your standards are. Winning is not enough. People can get lucky and win. People can be assholes and win. Anyone can win. But not everyone is the best possible version of themselves.”
― Ryan Holiday, Ego Is the Enemy

The hefty transition

This was sent by an angry Assistant Coach. She is a former College player who is in her second year as an assistant of an 18’s team.

“I had a conversation with the head coach of the team I'm coaching about doing more 6v6 and lost the battle. I was told, ‘We don't have the skills to do 6v6 so we have to specifically work on those skills.’ So let me get on a box and hit balls at girls just to have them work specifically on getting their body around the ball, but let's also take away left back and middle back, take away the block so that it's a perfect scenario.”

The last sentence, from the sarcasm file, points to an assistant coach wanting to help, have some input and feel valued.

John Kessel’s coaching mantra of “never be a child’s last coach” is a foundation of how we should be engaging and treating athletes. But what about our assistant coaches?

As a head coach, is your assistant a glorified ball tosser? Are they the fill in player when someone is sick? Are they the keeper of stats and the one to make sure the balls are retrieved at the end of tournaments?

If this is all you are utilizing them for, perhaps you need to reevaluate your mentorship.

Many assistant coaches are new to coaching, former players, fresh out of college or high school and entering a world that they only knew before as a player. Now there are club dynamics and egos, parents, logistics, caring about the 12 instead of the 1. It is a hefty transition.

How can you as a head coach help? Communication is the starting line. Have you had talks with your assistant coach(es)? Maybe you picked them, maybe not, but a collaborative session of your vision as a head coach is needed. From there, what input can your assistants give you? Are you agreeable to accept it? Some coaching egos automatically put everyone else in the backseat. Can you be the coach that allows for the possibility that you may not know everything?

What value and tools does this assistant coach bring to your team, your club and to you as a coach? Did she play at a high level. What did she learn from her coach? What are her principles compared to yours? If they align, no worries. If they are different, can you listen to each other while your cases are being made? Ultimately, the head coach makes the final decision. But can collaboration be the norm and not the exception?

 Sometimes it is someone who was out of the game and is coming back to the sport. Maybe it’s someone starting from scratch and never thought about coaching until now. When the season is over, is she anxious for her next season’s team or is she disillusioned and walks away?

Think for a second as to what makes you feel undervalued at your job? No one listens to you or your ideas? You are relegated to duties that any entry level employee could do? You are talked down to, your feedback and comments dismissed and your search for improvement and promotion is thwarted at every turn.

Sound familiar?

Your assistant coaches should learn from you. Teach them the how’s and more importantly the why’s of your season and practice plans. Ask for feedback. You don’t always have to take it, but it’s always valuable to hear other perspectives on problems and solutions. Can you give your assistant some part of practice to oversee with the thought that this is the steppingstone to being a head coach next year.

Can we treat these valuable members of the sport with the idea that echoes Kessel’s?

Never coach an Assistant Coaches last team!

Get out of the way!

The paper is entitled, "Decline in Independent Activity as a Cause of Decline in Children's Metal Wellbeing: Summary of the Evidence." From February, 2023 and compiled by PHD's  Peter Gray, David Lancy and David Bjorklund, the paper spells out two main areas of concern.

First, "Although most current discussions of the decline in youth mental health emphasize that which has occurred over the past ten to fifteen years, research indicates that the decline has been continuous over at least the last five or six decades."

And the cause of this decline? According to the authors, "Our thesis is that a primary cause of the rise in mental disorders is a decline over decades in opportunities for children and teens to play, roam and engage in other activities independent of direct oversight and control by adults."

Free play and autonomy...

The other paper to look at is entitled, "Starting and Specialisation Ages of Elite Athletes across Olympic Sports: An International Cross-sectional Study." by Veerle De Bosscher, Kari Descheemaeker, and Simon Shibli published in September of 2023.

In this research, the authors studied 2,838 world class athletes to assess when they began their sport journey and when they specialized in the sport they now excel in.

This chart shows the time when an athlete begins their sport (in the gray) and the time they choose that sport as the one they will specialize in, (In the black)

Sports that favor small frames and younger participants, like gymnastics and swimming are very short durations from beginning to  specialization. And sports that many folks pick up later in life or become second sports, like archery and bobsledding have much later specialization ages.

Volleyball is listed as 6 years in the making, from an 11 year old trying the game out to a 17 year old deciding they want to further their  career in college or professionally. This study highlights that there is a 6 year window between a beginning level and a level of expertise that would give an athlete the confidence to want to play on at the highest levels.

These two studies, within a 8 months of each other, go hand in hand.

What the latter study doesn't include is the athletes that quit the sport. The average age of volleyball players quitting the sport is 13!

THIRTEEN!

There is a level of focus, engagement, learning and performance that these young 11 year olds need to become world class in our sport. But sadly, most will never get that chance. They are discouraged from free play with their friends; just grabbing a beach volleyball and having fun with some school mates or neighborhood buddies.

As important as we think we, as coaches and parents, think we are, we need to check ourselves. If a young athlete can explore, solve problems and most of all have fun and stay engaged, they will learn oodles more than any private lesson or libero camp.

A wonderful coach once said, the best thing coaches and parents can do for their athletes is to just get out of the way!

Not every sport interaction for your child or player has to be organized, commoditized, specialized or privatized. We don't need camps, clinics, clubs, academies, privates, leagues and tournaments if the player is overcoached, over scheduled and overwhelmed.

How about just asking them? What do they want to do?

Once in a while, just let them play. 

Get out of the way.

Preparing Children for the Path...

On January 22nd of this year, the Phoenix Suns were playing the Chicago Bulls. With the game tied, the Suns Kevin Durant made this shot to with the game for the team:

But look a little closer...

First recorded in 1605, the Latin word was adaptāre: to fit or adjust. We know it today at adaptation.

Durant sees the defender out of the corner of his eye coming behind him to block the shot and a defender in front he has to shoot over. He adjusts the shot in midair, pulling it just a bit forward to avoid the block from behind and moving it to the left a bit to avoid the defender in front.

Adaptation.

Durant is a perennial NBA All-Star and has been in this situation before. It would be hard to imagine a coach one day in practice saying to him, "Let's move your shot around a bit while you are in the air shooting." Durant adapted, most probably because at some point in his career he was blocked from behind, or maybe knew the defenders and what they were capable of. Durant's experience lead him to adapting his shot to the moment and a win for the Suns.

How important is adaptation? To be succinct, if not adaptable, we as a human race wouldn't be here. All living things on the planet have had to adapt to their surroundings, predators, geography and environments. It is as much a part of life as your DNA and 

In your practice this week, did your athletes work on adaptation? Did you put them in situations that were uncomfortable for them to figure out. Did they resist so much that you relented and just went back to their comfort zones? 

Or did you force them into doing skills and movements that they were unaccustomed to? Did you make them adapt to situations in the middle of a point or a set? Did they have to adapt what they did based on their environment?

The greatest athletes in the world have faced challenges and obstacles that have forced them to adapt. As a coach, are your athletes getting the same opportunities to learn this dyer skill in your practices this season? 

Misty May Treanor was recruited as an outside hitter to Long Beach State but moved to setter where she won a National Championship and Player of the Year. Arizona's own Betsi Flint was an outside hitter in high school and club and became one of the best liberos in the West Coast Conference while at LMU then later transitioned into professional beach where she is one of the top players in the world. Another Arizona player, Sarah Sponcil was a club
setter that played outside hitter at LMU and then went back to setting her senior season at UCLA and after she finished playing collegiately, jumped into the beach game and earned a trip to the 2020 Olympics. Without the ability to adapt, none of these players would have found success or been the best version of themselves. 

Adapting is one of the traits we expect in athletes but often don't train. Adapt YOUR practice plans and coaching style. How can you learn to adapt better to things? How can you transfer that to your athletes?

"We must prepare children for the path, instead of the path for children.”- Tim Elmore