LESSONS LEARNED

A fellow coach and judge gave this letter to me. I am unsure of the author’s name, but I believe he or she would want me to share the lessons learned from years of experience. Some of it is common sense; some things you may not think of until you face the situation. Please read to the end, I think you will be glad you did.

To a New Coach: Lessons Learned

I want to share with you a valuable lesson learned, and, hopefully, put you on the right footing as a coach. You will either burn out from frustration quickly or you will learn that there are many aspects to coaching and discover that there is so much more to this than a trophy at [the end of a season.] Never a goes by that I don’t have an invitation to a baby shower, a wedding, a birthday, or some event! There is never a day that I don’t venture out to pick up my grandchildren at nursery that I don’t run into former cheerleaders with their children. There are few competitions that I go to that I do not see the teams of one of my former cheerleaders who is coaching now. I sit in church with some, and saddest of all, I have buried a few. Those are the big moments in coaching and the ones you learn to appreciate. I don’t know where the trophies and the medals are, but I do know where the athletes are. They are forever a part of my life.

With almost 30 odd years of coaching, and twenty years of judging, I learned some lessons that I want to share with you. These were not easy lessons. Sometimes they came at a price, but I learned them and it paid off in the end.

Lesson One: Never blame one team member for a loss. Teach your team now that winning or losing is a team job. If a mistake is made all participants accept that it was a bad day or an incident occurred. If a stunt comes down, the entire stunt group has to accept that they need to work on the skill, not just one member. Never point out individuals. Learn from mistakes, because tomorrow another group may make the same mistake. If you do not teach your athletes to work together as a team and learn from every mistake, then you have lost before you take the floor.

Lesson Two: Teach your athletes to analyze their routine and to realize when they have a good day and when they have a bad day. They will not always win and they need to focus on their routine and not someone else’s. They need to know the differences in difficulty levels and skills. They need to realize that neither you, nor they, can control every situation. There are many forces out there, and every competition is a different one. Wake up tomorrow, and move forward!

Lesson Three: Teach your team to appreciate the efforts of the other teams. When another team wins, teach your squad to applaud that team’s efforts and to appreciate that this day belongs to the other team. Tomorrow could belong to your team. If they learn to focus on the past, develop “get even” attitudes, and work on past performances, they will never improve. Learning to appreciate the performance of another group is a major step toward developing a team’s commitment to success.

Lesson Four: Explain the system to the cheerleaders’ parents. Be honest with them and encourage them to respect decisions. Teach parents to analyze a routine, what to look for, how to judge difficulty. Set standards for sportsmanship. They are a part of your team. What they say to the athlete when the athlete goes home can make a huge difference. If they look for blame, then it puts doubt in the mind of the athlete. The athletes need the coach’s guidance and the positive support of the parents. Teach parents the importance of respecting the decisions of the officials.

Lesson Five: Bottom lines, if blame needs to be placed, then you accept the blame. You take the credit so why not step up and take the blame. Teach the athletes not to blame others and not to make excuses for mistakes. If they did the best job they could, then they won that day. It doesn’t always take a trophy to spot a winner. What you say to them when they come off the floor makes a difference in the “team” tomorrow.

Lesson Six: Teach your squad to work hard and to strive to do their best, every day. If they only put half effort into the practice, then they will only give half a performance. All members must commit to every practice and to being there when needed, then they will not perform as a team. You can teach commitment and dedication!

At some competitions, there are Special Needs teams that perform an exhibition. They will never win a trophy for excellence, but they are usually the only teams to receive a standing ovation. They compete with their hearts. The thrill for them is to step on the floor, in front of the crowd, and to see the faces of their families smiling at them. They walk off to hugs and to cheers and to people who don’t care if they took a wrong step, or if someone did better than they did that day. If a stunt doesn’t go up, they try again.

We could all learn a lesson from them!

Thank you for reading, and please feel free to add your comments.

THE FIVE D's OF CHEERLEADING

Desire to learn

Discipline to practice

Dedication to support your squad

Determination to push through the tough times

Delightful Spirit that comes from within when the other D's are in place