Coaching Philosophy and Concept Map 1

Coaching Philosophy and Concept Map

Jonathan E. Small

Michigan State University

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Introduction

According to renowned sports psychologist Robin Vealy, a coaching philosophy is

based on your personal values about your role as a coach in relation to the lives of your

athletes (Vealy, 2005). A coaching philosophy is therefore deeper than just strategy and varies

from coach to coach as it pertains specifically to the demographic of athlete with whom you are

working.

Coaching at its very core is cooperation among a collective team for a specific purpose

and the role of the coach is to lead that collective group. Thus, the coach needs a strong

foundation from which to draw motivation, explanation, and wisdom as her team seeks to meet

its purpose. The coaching philosophy provides this cornerstone allowing the coach to center

himself on the reasons for why he does what he does and the principles on which he makes the

decisions that accompany his role..

This paper elucidates my coaching philosophy as it relates to my role as a performance

and development coach (school sport) for adolescent boys in the sport of soccer.

Explanation

My overarching coaching philosophy given my context centers on the power of sport for

character education, specifically with regard to teaching the cardinal virtue of courage. My most

pressing concern is to use my platform as a coach to communicate the existential reality that, in

life, you cannot always win but that you can always strive to win and be grateful for the journey.

Therefore, I measure success as consistently improving ones play so as to put oneself in a better

position for the glory of victory, not solely victory itself.

The first tenet of my coaching philosophy is the importance of and focus on fun. As a

coach, I believe it is my job to help cultivate that joy by creating experiences that create fond
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memories. As a coach of adolescents with little experience in the sport of soccer at a young age I

have seen that having fun while learning the game makes for better investment in all aspects of

the experience of sport for the athlete. Having fun builds love of the sport thus leading the

players to better appreciate what the late Frosty Westerling meant when he stated, losing meant

you had the privilege of playing (Culpepper, 2013).

The second tenet of my coaching philosophy is the idea of understanding of the sport.

Having coached players for years who have scare experience growing up with the game of

soccer, want to fill in the gaps in their soccer IQ with solid tactical, technical, and general

knowledge of the game of soccer. I believe this is best done through free play (acquiring the gist

of the game through unstructured competition), deliberate practice (technical instruction on how

to improve skill), and exposure to high-level examples of the game of soccer. Enhancing my

players baseline understanding of the game will help them to strive to win with some skill to

heed the wisdom of famous NC State coach Jimmy Valvano, never give up, dont ever give up

(Valvano, 1993) in valiant style instead of futility.

The third and final tenet of my coaching philosophy is relationship. Cutting edge sports

psychology experts state the following: regular practice of friendship, loyalty and cooperation

sets the stage for collaboration and the opportunity to learn from others (Gilbert, et al 2010).

Since the players with whom I built rapport through communication and mutual respect thereby

creating a relationship always work the hardest for me, I believe this is true. Therefore,

relationship the tie that binds together the tenets of fun and understanding thereby better enabling

my players to learn the game of soccer and the life lessons I wish to teach through it with the

final outcome being the mindset legendary John Wooden espoused in saying success is never

final; failure is never fatal. Its courage that counts (Williams, 2014).
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Concept Map

*This map was created using the Cmaptools App on an iPad.

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References

Culpepper, C. (2013). Frosty Westering's unusual style deserves memorials. Retrieved

September 09, 2016, from http://www.sportsonearth.com/article/44702352/

Gilbert, W., Nader, S., Siwik, M., & Gallimore, R.(2010). The pyramid of teaching success in

sport: Lessons from applied science and effective coaches. Journal of Sport Psychology

in Action 1, 86 94.

Valvano, J. (2008, September 28) Jimmys 1993 ESPY Speech. Retrieved from

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HuoVM9nm42E

Williams, David K. (2014). 3 lessons every entrepreneur needs to know to achieve lasting

success. Retrieved September 09, 2016, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/davidkwilliams/2014/08/14/3-

lessons-every-entrepreneur-needs-to-know-to-achieve-lasting-success/#1d8396101c4b