I don’t know if you know this but communication is the most important element to succeed in coaching high school soccer. Coaching is an art of communication. This has the effect of expressing yourself to people with a view to perform them things in precisely the same manner.
When it comes to soccer coaching, I’ve observed that most of the coaches often are the ex-players. Still, there are several problems that they have to find solutions to. These issues come up due to the inability to communicate properly. You must recognize that there are certain issues related to communication that need special attention if your job is to be made easier.
Let me explain them to you one at a time.
Emotions of the coaches take over their minds while they are watching their kids play on field. Instead of acting as analytical observers, they become more of spectators. They tend to overlook some chief points that could help the team improve on certain fronts. They therefore lose the opportunity to have an objective conversation aimed at winning the game.
Though the coaches today are complete professionals fully acquainted with the game, they lack communication training. For instance; most coaches don’t use videos or flip charts in soccer coaching because they don’t know about them. The coach may be technically talented but if he not able to communicate properly, regular practice sessions get really boring for the kids.
This occupies greater importance in coaching high school soccer as the players are young but also know the various facets of the game. They have been doing these soccer drills for some time but at different levels. You can do away with the monotony of repetitive messages by frequently changing the layout of training.
It’s a fact that sometimes the coaches completely forget that it is people who perform in the practice sessions. They get so absorbed in the training and coaching as a process that they lose their ground. For instance; the communication is incomplete when an instruction is given to a player but without his/ her name thus making it difficult for any of them to apply it.
In football coaching, there are some points that need special attention and they are as follows:
• All messages from the coach are important for players. So make sure that they are interpreted correctly.
• Convey your messages in a positive language to encourage players to play their best game. Allow them to grow and become better players instead of highlighting their flaws.
• Spend equal time with all players. Studies indicate that coaches spend relatively more time with star players in team (up to seven times more!).
• Don’t wait for the problems to arise to sort them out.
• Accentuate your player’s self worth by balancing praise with criticism. In coaching high school soccer, the balance should be a bit more towards the praise.
Believe me. Once you start to apply this in your training programs, the benefits will far exceed your expectations.
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Andre Botelho is a recognized expert in youth soccer coaching. He influences well over 35,000 youth coaches each year with his unique coaching philosophy, and makes it really easy to explode your players’ skills and make training more fun in record time. To download your free youth soccer coaching guide visit: Coaching high school soccer.
Tags: Coaching high school soccer, coaching youth soccer, football coaching, soccer coaching