State of the Program

Professionally - you MAY consider a job change. It sounds like the program needs a "CHECK UP FROM THE NECK UP"!!!!!

A TOUGH & demanding off-season program is PART of the answer. BY ALL MEANS weed out the "bad apples" that do NOT commit to the work in the off-season in order to get better - even if you have to play with lesser athletes. Sometimes you have to tear down a rotton structure & rebuild from scratch!

It is IMPERATIVE that you STRESS the TEAM CONCEPT ("BIG TEAM" - "little me"). A player who skips practice, comes late, breaks training, screws off at practice, etc.) is telling you in no uncertain terms that he is a SELF-CENTERED individual that doesn't care a damn for anyone but himself. He is a CANCER to the team, & I don't care how GOOD he is - if you can't change his attitude - send him packing!!!!!!! Don't cave in on your principles - be tough & demanding - be firm but fair! Have RULES, and ENFORCE THEM!

“TWO LAWS”


“THE LAW OF THE JUNGLE” (BY KIPLING)

“Now this is the law of the jungle,
as old and as true as the sky.
And the wolf that keeps it shall prosper,
but the wolf that breaks it must die.
As the vine that girdles the tree trunk,
the law runneth forward and back.
The strength of the pack is the wolf,
and the strength of the wolf is the pack!”


“THE LAW OF ATHLETICS”

“And this is the law of athletics,
as true as the flight of the ball.
And the player that keeps it will win,
but the player that breaks it must fall.
As the ball and the parts it is made of,
are bound and held fast by the seam,
the strength of the team is the player,
and the strength of the player the team!”



A T T I T U D E

“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company . . . a church . . . a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past . . . we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude . . . I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you . . . we are in charge of our attitudes.”



N O E X C U S E S

Any excuse for non-performance, however valid, softens the character. It is a sedative against one’s own conscience. When a man uses an excuse, he attempts to convince both himself and others that unsatisfactory performance is somehow acceptable. He is - perhaps unconsciously - attempting to divert attention from performance; the only thing that counts is his own want for sympathy. The user is dishonest with himself as well as with others. No matter how good or how valid, the excuse never changes performance.
The world measures success in terms of performance alone. No man is remembered in history for what he would have accomplished. History never asks how hard it was to do the job, nor considers the obstacles that had to be overcome. It never measures the handicaps. It counts only one thing - performance. No man ever performed a worthwhile task without consciously ignoring many a plausible excuse.
To use an excuse is a habit. We cannot have both the performance habit and the excuse habit. We all have a supply of excuses. The more we use them the lower become our standards, the poorer our performance. The better we perform, the less plausible our excuses become.
Next time you want to defend your sub-par performance, say instead (at least to yourself):

No Excuses!

Notice the startling effect this will have on your own self-respect. You will have recognized your failure. You will have been honest with yourself. You will be one step closer to the performance habit. You will be a better man for it. We will be a better team!

Thanks for the advice thus far.

On a side note our three best players as well as people are currently juniors, so we should have some solid leadership for next season which should in turn keep players in line from a player-player standpoint. I have yet to discuss with the HC plans for the offseason - Strength and Conditioning matters, but I plan on doing that this week.

So maybe I painted a picture that was a little more bleak than the current situation, but based an a myriad of factors this could either be a great of a very horrible offseason. Only time will tell.

If the head job does come open I will certainly apply. I have a plan of action for a resurrection, but for now we will see what happens.

Thanks Jerry

AZ, LOU

I know both of you are young coaches and was glad to hear that you appreciate what I was trying to covey
in my post. I know I speak for Bill, as well as, myself when I say it is encouraging to hear young coaches accept what us old war horses have to say on a given topic. It is more self-satisfying to see you actually put the suggestions in practice and to see your programs flourish, as ours did along the way. There is an old adage that says: The more things change, the more they seem to stay the same. Correct values, principles, and living the golden rule will always be the way to go in my book. Give it a try as you progress in your careers, I truly believe you will be well pleased with the results.

Coach Easton

GC,

That was good to hear that you worked your way through it and it is turning out right for you! I believe in change, new methods, etc. and never want to become a Willie Loman type who cannot adapt to current state of the game methods. But, some things will never change and what is being discussed here is a prime example of that, in my opinion. Good job, coach.

Coach Esaton

AZ,

Atta boy, don't look at the pile, just keep choppin'. Sounds like to me that your a very dedicated young coach and not afraid of hard work! I try to live my life by two principles: 1. OUTWORK EVERYONE WHO WANTS THE SAME THINGS YOU WANT. 2. TREAT EVERYONE THE WAY YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE TREATED.

It has always worked for me.

Coach Easton

Always a great thread when you get both oneback and tigerone on the prowl!! Though I'm not the one who asked the question, thanks for the great advice! Lou, read about your success on another thread--congratulations!!