|
|
Post by Defcord on Apr 14, 2017 8:04:43 GMT -6
The other day our head baseball coach, who I respect and enjoy working for, said something that got me thinking. In his last message to the team before we started the game he told the guys:
"Okay guys, I want you to remember to be process oriented. You can't control the result. You just can't. Focus on controlling what you can control. Take good swings against good pitches and live with the results. Process, process, process. Got it? Now let's win a ball game."
I thought that the speech was good. I thought the message was good. I believe in being process oriented.
But, does finishing the speech with "let's win a ball game" go against focusing on the process?
Also are we as coaches so ingrained with winning and losing that we can't remove winning from the equation?
When I was a head coach one of the other head coaches in our conference deep in a late-night-lot of drinks-clinic session said to me "anyone who tells you they would rather play well and lose than play like {censored} and win is a damn liar."
We all want to win, but can we find contentment in losing if we maximized our talents as a program?
|
|
|
|
Post by bigmoot on Apr 14, 2017 8:18:43 GMT -6
it depends. Ive coached as an assistant in some very good programs and won a lot of games and championships. Now at this point in my life where there are some things that are more important. My children, the school theyre in, and the community i live in. I am now the HC of a school that will probably never be a serious contender no matter what i do. If we can be a .500 program, i would go into their Hall of Fame. We have 110 boys in school, 40+ play football every year, they work extremely hard in the weight room and practice field, but you cant fight genetics.
to answer your questions...i can sleep well at night knowing, I/we are doing things the rights way and it may only lead to a 3-7/4-6 record.
Now all that doesnt mean im content to accept average. Im constantly looking for ways to improve myself, my assistants, and the program.
|
|
|
|
Post by CS on Apr 14, 2017 8:22:10 GMT -6
Unlike some, I don't subscribe to the "never talk about winning" approach. The kids are thinking about winning, the fans and the parents.
Win at all cost thinking is wrong but showing that by focusing on controllable actions will give us all better chances to compete is what it's about.
So I don't feel that what he said was contradicting at all.
|
|
|
|
Post by **** on Apr 14, 2017 8:33:43 GMT -6
I usually say "lets go do what we do and great things will happen"
|
|
|
|
Post by coachwoodall on Apr 14, 2017 9:17:32 GMT -6
The other day our head baseball coach, who I respect and enjoy working for, said something that got me thinking. In his last message to the team before we started the game he told the guys: "Okay guys, I want you to remember to be process oriented. You can't control the result. You just can't. Focus on controlling what you can control. Take good swings against good pitches and live with the results. Process, process, process. Got it? Now let's win a ball game." I thought that the speech was good. I thought the message was good. I believe in being process oriented. But, does finishing the speech with "let's win a ball game" go against focusing on the process? Also are we as coaches so ingrained with winning and losing that we can't remove winning from the equation? When I was a head coach one of the other head coaches in our conference deep in a late-night-lot of drinks-clinic session said to me "anyone who tells you they would rather play well and lose than play like {censored} and win is a damn liar." We all want to win, but can we find contentment in losing if we maximized our talents as a program? Maybe it wasn't dissonance. Maybe he just was making the leap from 'focus on the process' to 'the process will make/help us(you) successful/win. |
|
|
|
Post by natenator on Apr 14, 2017 9:53:32 GMT -6
you can't become a winner, in a real sense, without losing. Losing and failure is where we learn.
If we didn't lose or fail then we'd have no way to know what winning or success is.
|
|
|
|
Post by BrendanQB on Apr 14, 2017 12:47:15 GMT -6
He may have just slipped up?
I've been there before and definitely done that. I'm very much about focusing on the process and living with the results.
Something you have to take into account though with a pregame speech is that ending with "let's try our best and whatever happens happens" isn't the most encouraging thing to say before you run out of the tunnel. I know it goes against what we preach with "process, process, process," but I think what this coach said came from more of a motivational standpoint. High school kids get more excited thinking about winning than they do thinking about the process.
|
|
|
|
Post by Defcord on Apr 14, 2017 16:54:04 GMT -6
He may have just slipped up? I've been there before and definitely done that. I'm very much about focusing on the process and living with the results. Something you have to take into account though with a pregame speech is that ending with "let's try our best and whatever happens happens" isn't the most encouraging thing to say before you run out of the tunnel. I know it goes against what we preach with "process, process, process," but I think what this coach said came from more of a motivational standpoint. High school kids get more excited thinking about winning than they do thinking about the process. I am definitely not mad at him. The speech just made me think that as coaches or athletes our whole lives are driven to win so much that it's hard to let it go, even when we want to. |
|
|
|
Post by carookie on Apr 14, 2017 17:17:17 GMT -6
We all want to win, but can we find contentment in losing if we maximized our talents as a program? To an extent, I think we can find contentment in having players play to their potential, as long as you are in the right situation. I think for most of us our primary goal is to develop these kids into quality young men and we recognize that football is an amazing tool to do that. Moreover, we realize that most teams (in a given year) simply don't have the natural physical talent to win it all, or even make it that deep in the playoffs. However, with the proliferation of coaches who poach other schools (and disrupt enrollment numbers), the propensity for parents to look for a coach who can "get their kid a scholarship", and the always present cries for W's; maximizing talent may no longer be acceptable to all stakeholders. And unfortunately, that could mean losing a job. |
|
|
|
Post by s73 on Apr 14, 2017 21:10:21 GMT -6
I just finished reading a book by Bill Walsh called"The score takes care of itself".
FOR ME, I feel like when I focus on the PROCESS and all the details that go into that process, winning WILL take care of itself. But...more importantly MAYBE, is that when I focus on the PROCESS and doing everything we do with an excellent standard of performance and focus less on the outcome, it has a way of removing anxiety from the job IME.
Now does this mean I don't care about winning...he!! no! Just the opposite, or else I wouldn't spend so much time on doing all the things I believe will help us to win. It just means that mentally, I train myself to focus on something that I have more control of and as a result, is less stressful. Hence...the score takes care of itself.
Back to the book... this was the approach BW started with, but once they began winning so much, expectations became so high that he couldn't control the anxiety & pressure of having to win, which is why he retired probably 4-5 years earlier than he probably should have.
In other words, thinking about the process is a way to think about winning w/o the stress of worrying about a games outcome.
JMO.
|
|
|
|
Post by 53 on Apr 14, 2017 21:14:19 GMT -6
Dream big. Small dreams don't motivate the soul.
Enforce winning at practice and make winning a part of your program. The score board will take care of itself.
We can fool a lot of people about our coaching, but the kids will know if we're making them better or not.
|
|
|
|
Post by ccscoach on Apr 15, 2017 8:16:32 GMT -6
We always say focus on doing your job and kicking the crap out of the guy across from you.
Don't really talk about the process it's more if you can get your job done then you've went through the process.
|
|
benloe
Sophomore Member
Posts: 186 
|
Post by benloe on Apr 16, 2017 9:20:18 GMT -6
But, does finishing the speech with "let's win a ball game" go against focusing on the process? I, too, believe in focusing on the process, but we're focusing on getting better in order to achieve the goal (winning), right? Many people struggle to find inner motivation. Winning provides plenty of outer motivation. To me, the process is an everyday-mentality. It's the concept of focusing on doing the little things right to improve day by day. Focus on the development and the results will come. At the same time, we are aware of what type of results we want. |
|
