Things I like in a coach:

 Photo by Sam Kelly

• being really directive, confident, and self-assured (but not a dick, obvs)

• making me sometimes do push ups (I like push ups)

• running intense sessions that involve a lot of moving and a lot of sweat

• telling me exactly what they expect from a drill or skill and when I do it right.
  (I don't like being told I'm doing it wrong; I'll assume it's wrong until told otherwise).

It took me awhile to be able to really understand why I liked some training sessions better than others and why some frustrated me more than others.  And it pretty much boils down to those things up there ^ ^ ^. 

When I started coaching, guess how I coached...  

Well... I was really directive and a bit bolshy.

Annnnd I dished out loads of push ups.

Annnnnnnd I didn't stand for a lot of dithering about and pushed people constantly.

Annnnnnnnnnd I explained things quite specifically and gave lots of feedback. 

So, I pretty much ran sessions the way I would love them if I were skating.  Which makes sense to a point...

It didn't take too terribly long to figure out that not everyone likes to be coached the way I do... not everyone likes push ups (*wtaf?*) and some people don't want me to drone on about weight distribution, they want to go and distribute their weight without me.  Some folks come to training because they wanted to be social and to have time to chat to their friends.

I’m constantly working to find my balance between how I love being coached and how I support skaters with different expectations, needs, and motivations.

I'm a work in progress.  But aren't we all?  

What do you like in a coach?  

Originally published by Rule 56 Coaching August 2017… republished May 2023 because it’s all still true…