How to Establish Positive Relationship Between Coach and Athlete (Part 3-Athlete Communication)
Welcome back! Today we will be finishing up our discussion on how to develop a positive relationship with your athletes. Last week we looked at effective communication. We will wrap up with additional ways communication plays a role in the development of a positive relationship with your athletes.
Every hour, minute and second within the gym is crucial for the athletes. An additional way to effectively communicate with them is by communicating expectations about the schedule of events, skill focus, and the amount of routines assigned, etc. This allows the gymnasts to understand their role, and mentally and physically prepare accordingly. One way to communicate clearly with your athletes is to be as transparent as possible. When skills and/or routine are assigned, it should also be explained what the purpose is. For example, one way to do this is by explaining the purpose of drills and strength activities. If a gymnast is motivated to acquire new skills, they will be more likely to be focused on the drills and strengthening exercises needed to develop that targeted skill. We also found that it helps with the gymnast’s ability to make corrections and gain better body awareness.
We also want to encourage our gymnasts to be transparent as well. By encouraging them to communicate about their successes, struggles, goals, and apprehensions we are helping build trust. For example, if and when an athlete is struggling with an assignment or a fear, it is important for the athlete to take responsibility and communicate with the coach about their needs. However, this isn’t something that all kids know how to do or will feel comfortable with.
We can facilitate this process by helping athletes learn how to talk about both their positive and negative feelings.
Last week, we mentioned having athletes journal about a motivating word, tip, or quote of the week. This process helps the athletes understand how to reflect and apply their feelings to specific situations. To build on this activity, you can encourage your athletes to journal about their practices. By setting the athletes up with an open-ended reflection questions, they can begin to embrace their successes and areas of needed improvement during each practice. The reflections can be discussed weekly as a group. This type of activity can be modified for all age groups, and practice times. Check out the our coaches resource for a sample reflection activity.
Remember young minds are like sponges, they absorb everything that you say, whether it is positive or negative! So stay positive and always be patient. Be sure to open the lines of communication and listen to what your athlete is telling you. Don’t forget to encourage conversation that does not just focus on gymnastics, but the athlete as a whole.
Focus all your energy on being as transparent as possible; in respect to communicating your expectations.You are not just teaching your athletes how to be better at gymnastics but about concepts like responsibility, communication, and positive relationship building. All of which are great leadership qualities.
Building a relationships with your athletes is no easy task. However, with the essential components of individualized coaching techniques and effective communication, you are on your way to building a positive professional coach-athlete relationship!
Keep up all of your hard work! Competition season is quickly approaching, happy coaching!
