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Becoming a Coach
Photo Credit: irishrugby.ie/playing-the-game/coaching/an-integral-part-of-rugby
It’s September and apart from being ‘back to school’ time, it’s also that time of the year many sports clubs get going for the coming season. If you have young children starting out there’s a fair chance you might be asked to help out and perhaps even to coach for the first time. For many people, their first instinct will be to refuse and say “No”, maybe because they don’t feel qualified or have much, if any, experience. But, if my own experience of coaching for over a decade is anything to go by, I’d encourage you to give it some consideration. Remember, you don’t have to be an expert, you don’t need to be experienced and you might not even have played that particular sport. Instead, you need to have an open mind and be willing to learn. And learn you will for coaching young kids and teenagers is a microcosm for management and leadership.
It’s now over 12 years since I found myself on the sideline and got roped in to help out. It was probably an easy sell because I’ve always had an inkling to pay-back and so, coaching provided an avenue to do just that. When I was a lad, I both played sports and was involved in scouting and I could have done neither save for the time given by adults as coaches and leaders respectively. I firmly believe being involved in those activities were the building blocks of my character and many of the lessons I learned then have served me well in life and in my career. It was only later, as a mature adult, I really appreciated all the time and effort those people had given just so that we could play our sport or do our scouting activities.
Besides, I realized I was going to be bringing along my kids anyway and I may as well be active and staying warm rather than getting cold on frosty mornings standing on the sideline.
My eldest son has now graduated from youths level and so I’ve travelled on that journey as a coach over those years at minis and then youths’ level, up to U18s. Each level provided learnings and in many ways, my abilities as a coach, mentor and team manager have grown at each level. I’ve learned more about Sports Management & Science than when I started and I’ve been fortunate enough to have received the latest training in Sports Management, covering motivation, communication and performance. As my professional career led me into leadership roles, I’ve come to realise that there’s really no difference between Professional Management in industry and Sports Management so the lessons gained here have made me a better leader in the day-job. Sure, there is some chore-work to be done that can be a little time-consuming at times but seeing young people develop and grow is very rewarding. I’m often reminding of advice I received in my first training course, “they won’t always remember what you said to them, but they’ll always remember how you made them feel”. That advice stuck with me.
The other nugget of wisdom to share is a question for yourself – “Why do you want to coach?” It’s a seemingly straightforward question for which an outwardly verbal response isn’t required. It does, however, force you to honestly examine your motivations. Are you coaching because you want your side to win? Because you want to manage success for your child? Because you didn’t reach your potential as an athlete yourself and now, you want to live your dreams through your child? There are many wrong reasons to coach and your motivations may even be subconscious. But, coaching is about giving. It’s about giving and not expecting to gain from it. It’s not even about the wining. It’s all about giving, perhaps the way someone gave to you. It’s about giving-back.
My advice is, if you’re asked or if you feel you’ve got something to give, then put your hand up - you won’t regret it. Or rather, there will most certainly be times you will regret it but overall, it’ll be worth it.
Donnacha Forde
September, 2023