It has been a bit since my last blog post, and it is crazy to think of how fast time has been flying by. When sitting here pondering everything that has transpired lately, it made me realize the value and importance of living in the present and making the most of what you have. No matter where you are in your life, it is crucial to make the most out of the time you have. I am always telling my players we need to take each practice and work as if it is our last one. Each time you step out onto the ice, I tell them to leave everything from their day behind them and work to the fullest now. These words, in my opinion, are extremely useful to anyone. Life can pass you by and in this are teaching moments that should be capitalized upon. As a coach before I go on the ice, I always have my practice plan ready. However, I think what is more important then just going out on the ice and running drills are the moments where you pull a player aside and help them with various skills sets when the opportunity presents itself within the practice. Each day I try to pull a different player aside and work on their individual skills or maybe something they did in the locker room that was not the smartest that we could improve upon and use as a learning tool. No matter what,I try to help and guide each player in getting the most out of their life everyday. Some coaches today forget to take the small moments in the day and use them as a tool and opportunity to teach a player something. If we all just ran our practices and left the players would not be fully learning the sport and growing as individuals. I hope as coaches go through the season they continue to reach out and make the most out of their practices and teaching their athletes to be better players and individuals. The best way to capitalize on these opportunities as they develop are to learn to live in and appreciate the moment.

Recently, I have been thinking about how leadership effects a team.  Working at a boarding school I am privileged to see many kids who earn leadership roles throughout the campus.  We have the president of the school, the president of each dorm, captains on a team, etc.  The campus is full of leaders.  As a coach and administrator,  I believe that leadership roles are crucial to the development of young athletes both as an individual and a team. When I look at my team specifically, we commonly will have two captains in traditional leadership positions, but sometimes I think we forget about the others on the team who are leaders as well.

Thinking back on my ice hockey team last year, I had three captains who wore “C”’s on their jersey. Reflecting upon the discussions in the locker room and plays on the ice, however, I can’t help but think that we had way more then three leaders on our team.

A team is truly successful when they have a variety of leaders who take charge in different ways.  A silent leader can be an individual who goes on the ice and demonstrates their leadership through skills and mannerisms on the ice.  Similarly, I had leaders on the bench who did not get a ton of ice time, but would provide vocal motivation at each game with the same passion and intensity as if they were on the ice the whole time.  This involvement of leadership in multiple facets of the game is what makes a difference in a team.  A team that has several leaders of varying styles that can come together as one unit will be the successful team in the longrun.

You know it is getting close to the end of summer and approaching the beginning of fall when you see college football and the US Open on TV. A few weeks ago Andy Roddick retired at the US Open. In his television interview he discussed not wanting to go through the motions and instead end his career on a good note. This statement got me thinking about mediocrity and coaching.

When is it time to call it quits? I know as a player your body can only go so long before you start to feel the muscle aches and the skills start to slowly diminish. Now, what about coaching? Should there be a certain age when a coach should stop and retire from their vocation? Regarding this question, a few things come to mind. The first thought, is about Joe Paterno, who was still coaching until the Penn State scandals came into the forefront of public knowledge. Was he too old to coach? Many people have numerous conflicting opinions about the topic. Another factor that crosses my mind is what happens when the coach is not able to keep up with the craziness of the in-season schedule that takes place when games and practices start. The last factor I think about is what about the coach has lost all passion for the sport and is going through the motions? This is perhaps the worst of all scenarios, the blind acceptance of mediocrity.

I believe all these are factors which could happen in the real world. From my personal experience, I know a coach can only last so long. I think there comes a time, when one might get too old, where the repetitive nature gets to be too much. Maybe the passion is still there for the game but an individual can only take to such an extent the daily grind and monotony. More importantly, when a person loses the drive to coach then it is definitely time for them to get out and allow someone with more drive to fill their role. Many of my friends are coaches, but many more have quit because the schedule became too much for them to handle. They started to just go through the motions and not enjoy or even remember why they got excited about coaching in the first place. Coaching should be rewarding and everyday you should be excited to work with a player and help them. If this is not how you feel each day, then you might want to consider another career choice, for both your own benefit and more importantly for the athletes.

The summer is flying by and for a person who has off in the summer, it can get depressing when you know the mid way point is approaching. Although this summer has moved quickly, it has been one full of new adventures and growth as both a person and a coach.

It is nice to have the summer to review what you have learned and grow, however not everyone has this option. Whether you are a full time professional coach or a hobby volunteer, I believe it is important for both to take time and grow in both coaching and personal aspects. This summer I took time out for myself to recharge my batteries and challenge myself in ways I never have before. In pushing myself to different limits I was able to think about my upcoming season and how there will be new challenges this year to evaluate and tackle. Taking the time to grow personally will ultimately help me as a coach to be in better mental shape for my athletes. In the past, I have filled my summers with a lot of other things and never took the time to just enjoy my time and do something I want to do for a day, weekend or week.

I talk to a lot of other coaches who run themselves into the ground and by the time the season takes off they feel like they might be going through the motions. It is very easy to allow your passion become a chore when you do not allow yourself to take a step back and recover even when you love what you do. Don’t let yourself get to this point. I hope we all as adults make the conscious decision to do something for ourselves, which in the end will only end up benefiting your team in the long run.