A Fine Line Between Self-Awareness and Development

        Some of you are aware of this, but many of you are probably not.  My roots are actually in education.  I've taught social studies at the high school level for the past seven years and am reminded of one of the characteristics of adolescence from a Sociology course I caught a few years back as I write this morning.  The characteristic I am thinking of is called "Search for self" and refers to the very tenuous nature of what high school kids are experiencing as they try to find themselves.  They are no longer little kids who blindly follow the direction of all adults, but they are not yet adults themselves.  It's a period of self-discovery that is crucial for development not only as athletes but as people.  That is part of what makes coaching at the high school level both so special and so important.  We really have the chance to make an impact on people.

        So where am I going with this?  Well, one of the most crucial concepts in sport psychology to me is self-awareness.  This involves knowing both strengths and weaknesses as a player/coach and person as well as understanding the connection between the two.  Who we are as people absolutely has an impact on who we are as players or as coaches.  For example, I was a perfectionist growing up.  Although it helped in developing a strong work ethic, it hurt my perception of what was tolerable in performance.  I actually thought I should get a hit every single at-bat in high school!  To expect to get a hit every time up is one thing, but the way I handled the inevitable getting out more often than not was unhealthy.  This also affected how I took criticism from coaches.  I didn't do very well when I felt like criticism was questioning my work on my swing.  In hindsight, the mental coach in me would tell myself to focus on the message not the delivery from the coaches.  I'd tell myself not to be so extrinsically motivated by how my coaches perceived me.  The mental coach in me today would also tell coaches that how you handle a perfectionist should be different than how you handle someone who is haphazard in everything they do.  But Coach Ehrlich, I thought we are supposed to treat everyone the same?  Only if you don't want to be as effective as possible.

        So, what can we do with this information?  The real message I wanted to send with the post is there is fine line between being self-aware and still looking to develop as a player and person.  Dealing with high school players is going to be different than working with ten  year professionals.  At the high school level, athletes are rapidly changing as they garner more experience and mature both physically and mentally.  What made them successful as a ninth grader would hopefully evolve as they grow.  Therefore, a delicate balance is necessary between accepting who one's self is but still looking to improve.  It would be viewed as unacceptable, as an example, for a player to just say, "Well, being lazy is just who I have always been."  To accept this would be against our DNA as coaches.  Instead, a followup for the player would be something to the effect of, "Well are you okay with being the player you have always been?"  The answer would be indicative of what a player's future goals are.  If he is okay with just being an average player, then that is ultimately his decision.  You then don't stop coaching him up, but it honestly keeps you from driving yourself crazy wanting it for him.  If he wants to be a "dude," then hopefully it clicks for the player to make an adjustment.  That "got it" moment may be what helps the player to then accept coaching to the point of being pushed to become as good as possible.

        In conclusion, I would like you to consider this point.  Being you is one of the greatest character traits I admire in both athletes and people.  I think the most exceptional of athletes are able to know what their strengths are and to play to those strengths as often as possible.  I'm also reminded of what has become one of my favorite quotes from a surprising "expert" in the field of sport psychology, Dr. Seuss.  "Today you are You.  That is truer than true.  There is no one alive who is Youer than You."  That quote will always be true.  What we have to challenge ourselves to do as people and players/coaches is to accept that while still looking to become the greatest version of ourselves possible.  When we stop learning, after all, we stop living.

Composure is King

        As noted in the last blog entry, I'm camped out at the Prospect Select Vero Beach Classic this week.  Many  things have stood out to me as I have had the pleasure to watch some incredible talent throughout the week.  While the last entry focused on how "elite" can take many different forms, I would like to address one distinct commonality I have noticed as well.  The "Elite Player" is composed as they perform.  The "as they perform" phrase is key to what I am saying.  As noted in the previous blog, it was interesting to see how some of the players at the Topps Showcase were joking around beforehand while others were locked in.  Some appeared very relaxed while others appeared to have some nervous energy worked up.  The reality of the situation is none of that ultimately matters.  What matters is the composure during actual performance.  What matters is the ability of the player to lock into the present moment and focus on the external task at hand.  Don't get me wrong.  If a player's nervousness prior to a game has an effect on the ability to perform, it absolutely needs to be addressed.  All I am saying is it is possible to be on either end of the nervousness spectrum before competition (think Inverted-U) and still perform on a high level.

        Much of what I see as I watch NCAA regionals and super regionals centers around building a facade of bravado as players and as teams.  That is how a hitting routine turns into a hitter looking like he is a samurai warrior.  Ultimately, it is eyewash and a very surface level understanding of what sport psychology is really about.  One of my mentors within the field, Geoff Miller, has said what I mean really well.  Miller, or G as he is known to many, has questioned this "pump myself up" "confidence confidence" focus of the mental game by saying something to the effect of, "Well, what  happens if I take my deep breath and still don't feel confident?"  What does happen?  Do you just turn around and go to the dugout?  What ideally happens is you accept that you're not going to feel your best all the time and work to focus on the external task at hand.  The number one task of the hitter isn't to feel good.  I've never heard a coach say, "Alright, we have a runner on third base and less than two outs.  I want you to feel good about yourself for 3 pitches, and head back to the dugout."  The task of the hitter is to see the baseball and react accordingly.  This requires the hitter to trust himself to do what he has done thousands of time before and react.  Of course it is preferable to feel confident, but you still have to compete when you do not.

        I've gotten sidetracked a little bit which is not unlike me for many of you who are regular readers of the blog.  Let's get back to the composure deal.  What stood out to me, again, about the elite players at the Topps Showcase was their composed look during performance.  They all had a look of confidence in their abilities that comes from any number of factors including talent, preparation, and past success.  Players stepped into the box for BP with some presence.  Infielders had a little "swagger" in how they took ground balls.  One player, Albert Suarez, even went between the legs on the transfer after he fielded a ball!  You don't do that if you are not confident in your abilities (I'm not recommending this on a regular basis, but it definitely made Suarez stand out!).  Pitchers took the mound and announced their presence with authority.  The look of composure was just as much in what didn't happen as what did.  Guys who took a bad round of BP or had a bad at-bat, for the overwhelming majority, did not come out of the cage pouting or slamming bats.  There was little, to no questioning of umpires.  One player was particularly impressive when he struck out on a called strike.  Another player, who had just done the same and complained, invited him to join in the strike zone pity party.  Instead, the player accepted responsibility and said he should have hit the pitch.  This player has a chance to be a special hitter, and I love the responsibility for performance he took!

        The composed player deals with the "failures" that inevitably come with playing baseball.  The metaphor that comes to mind is that baseball, in terms of results, can be a series of peaks and valleys.  Composed players are able to limit the valleys by being steady mentally and emotionally.  They take successes and failures for what they are and move on.

Once again, "Consistent behavior leads to consistent results."- Harvey Dorfman

SS Albert Suarez pictured on right with fellow Topps Showcase participant Randy Romney

The Many Looks of the "Elite" Player

        As many of you already know, I am currently in Florida working the Vero Beach Classic.  The Vero Beach Classic, or VBC, is a huge tournament ran by a company called Prospect Select.  There are somewhere in the neighborhood of 180 teams playing at several picturesque locations in the Vero Beach area.  My primary responsibility for the week is in scouting, but I am always on the lookout for topics to write about.  Last night provided the perfect opportunity with the Topps Showcase.  The showcase featured approximately eighty elite players from Florida, other areas in the United States, the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico.  I went in with no preconceived notions about what I would write about and wanted to just kind of see what I see.  Quickly, a theme emerged.  Below are my thoughts.

        The elite player.  In sports, we are fascinated by what the best do and how they do it.  How do they swing?  What pitches do they throw?  How many hundreds of jump shots do they take?  We all want to know in hopes of bottling a secret formula allowing us to suddenly be able to churn out elite players like a factory churning out donuts.  I myself just read a book called How Champions Think.  Although the book is one of the best I have read in sport psychology, the implication that all champions think a certain way lends itself again to this factory mentality.  Twitter is peppered with tweets from coaches and messages like, "Do you want to be good?  You better be willing to take 1000 swings a day before games because that is what Joe Blow from Cocomo does! #TheGrind."  I even saw one recently, which many of you probably liked, that had the implication that a player's hydration choices have an effect on whether a college coach would recruit them.

        In having the opportunity to watch the best collection of young talent I have seen at one location last night, I was excited to see what these elite players look like.  How would they prepare prior to the showcase?  How would they warm up?  What does the body language of the elite player look like?  The answer: Every elite player is different.  Prior to the showcase getting started, some players were joking around with each other.  Others were already quiet and focused.  Some looked like nervous balls of energy, and others looked like they could lay down in the grass and take a nap.  Some players had sleeves, wrist bands, necklaces, glasses, etc.  Others went natural.  The differences didn't end there.  Some BP swings were quiet and controlled, and others were loud and violent.  Infielders all had their own way of going about catching and throwing the baseball.  Players ran really fast 60's.  Some clearly had coached form, and others just let it happen freely.  One could argue that the players who ran with uncoached form were "raw" and would be even faster if they knew how to run, but there is something to the freedom of letting the body do what it naturally does.  Maybe becoming too technique oriented would prevent their body from just going and doing what kids naturally do every day in playgrounds around the world.

        If my point isn't clear yet in what I have written, here it is:  There is no one way to be elite.  No matter how many studies are conducted, everyone is different.  What works for one player may not work for another.  We need to be aware of this as coaches.  Let's stop creating robots and start coaching human beings.  Celebrate the individuality within a team sport.  It is what the forward thinkers in sports are already doing.  Right now, they are viewed as the exceptions.  They are the Steve Kerr's, the Pete Carroll's, and the Tim Corbin's of the world.  My hope is that one day their way will instead be the rule.  Celebrate the individual nature of being elite.  If you are player, find what makes you elite.  Then do it...over and over again.  The consistency of performing would be something that I would argue elite players have in common.  All of the players I saw last night were elite in their own way.  No two players were identical.  Each had something different to offer.  And guess what?  That led to some coaches liking them and some not...which is fine!  The commonality in all of the players last night was they are uncommon.  That is what being elite is!  This absolutely ties into my thoughts on what sport psychology is and how it can best serve those in sports.  Every athlete is different.  To think that certain mental drills and skills work for everyone is to do a disservice to the athletes.  Coaches, do you want to work on the mental side of the game just to say you do it, or would you like to be as effective as possible?  The concept is not dissimilar to teaching everyone to hit the same or to pitch the same.  Some coaches do this, and some are as effective as possible in coaching the individual.  Let's move beyond this surface level understanding of sport psychology and into something deeper.  Let's help individuals perform as well as possible and to enjoy the experience.


       

       

     

Consistency Wins

        When I began my journey into the world of sport psychology I had a very narrow focus:  Help athletes be as good as possible all the time.  Although that is still part of what I would like to do, it is now only a part of what I hope to do with sport psychology.  My scope has broadened tremendously, and one area I hadn’t considered when I started out is helping coaches.  I can remember being exposed to several units on best coaching practices in my first sport psychology course.  It can be challenging to read something of this nature because none of us are perfect as coaches.  If you are reading this, it’s probably because you think you can do better.  When looking to improve, at anything, then you are forced to reflect on what you presently do to if you are truly hoping to get better.

         With that in mind, there are so many techniques and methods to being an effective coach.  Learning to give feedback, how to communicate expectations with players and parents, post-game management, and proper development approach are just a few of the many topics.  The greatest piece of coaching advice I have read though is that you need to be yourself CONSISTENTLY.  As coaches, we preach it constantly to the players we coach.  “You need to be consistent.”  “I need to know what I am going to get from you.”  “I want guys who will make the routine play all the time.”  This can be a maddening challenge at really every level of play.  There is a reason many high school athletes are inconsistent:  They are high school athletes.  We need to have the same expectations for ourselves that we have for the athletes we coach.  “We need to be consistent.”  “Players need to know what they are going to get from us.”  “We need to be able to make the routine decisions consistently.”  Players respond to different coaching styles.  There are some methods that are more effective than others, but looking around the coaching landscape of any sport, at any level of play, will reveal many personalities and ways of doing things.  What I would guarantee, however, is the best coaches are consistent in what they do.  Being the best version of yourself possible is something to strive for. 

I leave you with a quote from the late, great Harvey Dorfman.  The simplistic genius resonates with me, and I hope it resonates with you as well.  “Consistent behavior gets consistent results.”  We expect it from our athletes.  Let’s have the same accountability for ourselves.