What Makes an Elite Coach?
There are many kinds of good coaches. Only a few are elite. They don’t need every trait, but they better be strong in several.
READ ARTICLE →Backspin Blog — Free Instruction / The Early Days of AHD
From the 2015 archive
This is historical coaching writing originally published under Krush Athletics. The wording reflects its original period. For current guidance, use AHD lessons and SwingChecker.
How YOU can be an effective instructor
I have been a coach with the freedom of not having to teach (God bless all you teachers & teacher/coaches). This has allowed me to put in more time than most in studying the art and science of hitting and learning. I think it is just a formula that has allowed me to create a living teaching hitting.
No life + obsession with hitting + no real job + living in Arizona + a lot of luck = The Krush Hitting Company.
All this is just prefacing what I believe are the most important things I have learned about being an effective coach. Now this has changed a whole lot in my 30 year coaching career. The most important characteristic of being a quality coach is being a good communicator. Whether you are right or wrong, if you communicate well, you will be effective. The second characteristic is to be very knowledgeable (big surprise) in your field. What I really mean by this is to know a lot about a lot in the field. Acknowledging what others believe or teach is showing that you are not just a stubborn, narrow minded coach. The ability to rattle off what this coach teaches or what that player thinks about will make you a much better teacher.
Another very important value you must build between the players and yourself is trust. If a player doesn’t trust you, for whatever reason, you will not get the most out of the player. The athlete must trust that; 1, You know what you are talking about 2. You are fair 3. That you care about the individual 4. Your word is good
These days you have to be a Psychology major, as well as a coach, to get the most out of your players. You must analyze and figure out what buttons to push on each, individual player. The days of, “Do it because I said so” are long gone… not many players respond well to that teaching methodology. I have several ideologies and teaching methodologies that I go through in detail in our coaches’ clinics(along with swing mechanics, etc)
. I will also be detailing these, along with several real life stories that have molded me and way more importantly, help you as a coach, in the posts in near future.
Quick answers
What is the most important skill for a hitting coach?
Communication. Whether a coach is right or wrong on a point, a coach who communicates well is effective, and one who can’t won’t reach players.
Why does trust matter between a coach and a player?
A player who doesn’t trust the coach won’t give full effort to the work. Players need to trust that the coach knows the subject, is fair, cares about them and keeps his word.
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