PCA Development ZoneTM
Search thousands of resources to develop better athletes, better people
About PCA Development ZoneTM
PCADevZone.org is produced by Positive Coaching Alliance, a national non-profit developing Better Athletes, Better People through youth and high school sports. Learn more about products and services that can impact your community, as well as how to support our mission.
Visit them at: http://devzone.positivecoach.org/
PCA's Mission
Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) is a national nonprofit organization committed to providing all youth and high school athletes a positive, character-building youth sports experience.
The Bolingbrook Soccer Club is proud to be a part of the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA)
The PCA Movement is people powered. You don't impact millions of youth and high school sports coaches, parents and athletes without a great team. And you don't teach those coaches, parents and athletes about teamwork -- perhaps the key life lesson inherent in sports -- without fully understanding it yourself. All Parents who have players involved with any BSC Team will have the opportunity to attend a PCA workshop. The Bolingbrook Park District requires all parents/guardians to attend a PCA workshop at least once every 2 years.
The strength of the PCA Movement lies in our team's diversity and breadth and depth of experience. The result is a cross-pollination of ideas -- from the youth sports coaches and parents on our staff and PCA Trainers Corps to the internationally renowned pro coaches and athletes on our National Advisory Board.
From PCA's Elevating Your Game
(Thank you to PCA for allowing us to reprint sections of this chapter)
Using Chapter 2.1: Leadership is for Everyone
This chapter is not conventional leadership thinking. Jim Thompson says that unleashing the full potential of your team depends on the involvement of all of your athletes as leaders and followers. Read it, and decide whether you want a team in which everyone looks for ways to move the team ahead by playing leadership roles.
As a coach, you have the unique opportunity to teach young people, most of whom spend their lives passively following directions, how to lead.
(Note: If you already have an existing captain or mentor program that works well, keep doing it. Beyond that, you can still promote the growth of leadership for every single athlete. That’s the goal of this chapter and the activities described below.)
How to use it?
1. A) For Older Players - U13 and Older: Introduce the topic using this activity. Put your athletes into groups of three or four. Give each group an index card, a pen, and a highlighter. Ask this question: What does leadership look and sound like? Ask each group to brainstorm answers. Bullet points and sentence fragments are okay. The goal is to generate as many ideas as possible. Have each group share their responses. Then give each group a highlighter. Tell them to highlight any of the ideas that could be carried out by any member of the team, from coach to least experienced member of the team. Discuss these questions: What did you discover about leadership from this activity? Is leadership something that only a few members of our team can demonstrate? Will we be stronger or weaker as a team with more leaders? What if everyone agreed to lead in all of the ways you identified? As you think about leadership, what thoughts do you have about following? When does it make more sense to follow rather than lead?
B) For Younger Players - U12 and Younger: Introduce the topic at a practice, start to see who is listening, who wants to learn more. Talk about good sportsmanship and how important this is to not only our teams health but our players health as well. Work towards a little lesson on sportsmanship at each practice. Talking about it during a water break for a few minutes will help your younger players understand how critical it is for each of them.
B) For Parents of Players - All Ages but especially U13 and Younger: Your role, your attitude will be one of the key factors in the qualities that your player will exhibit on and off the field. We encourage you to show good sportsmanship at all times. This can be very difficult, especially if the opposing team/fans are not showing good sportsmanship. As players start to develop their skills, move to larger fields, learn new aspects of the game, your role as an encourager will be even more important. Show your player and those around you that being a good sport is priority number 1. In doing so, you will help your player understand that character counts in everything you do, and that good character will take you well beyond the playing field.
2. Use the talking points below.
l Leadership is not tied solely to a title such as coach or captain. Leadership is open to anyone who is emotionally committed to the team’s success. It is not limited to heroic, charismatic, strong, and/or brilliant individuals who "look like a leader."
l Leadership isn’t so much "yell and tell" as it is leading by acting with energy and passion to help the team. In fact, the "yell and tell" approach can shut others down and kill their potential as leaders.
l What can you do to lead? Arrive early to practice. Set the pace during conditioning drills. Go all-out no matter what the score. Learn your teammates’ names and use them when you greet them in practice. Invite a teammate to have lunch with you and your friends. Notice when teammates are down and do what you can to pick them up. Everyone can lead.
l Leadership is also knowing when to follow. When you follow, follow with a commitment that helps others lead. That’s being a dynamic follower. Dynamic followers don’t publicly challenge their coach. They wait for a private moment to discuss issues they are concerned with. Dynamic followers never put down or make fun of teammates who have been given a formal leadership role. They do everything they can to make it easier for others to lead.
l Leadership is enhanced by emotional commitment. Emotionally committed athletes don’t just go through the motions. They are committed to team success heart and soul and relentlessly look for ways to make their teammates better.
l Leadership is the release of energy. How can you release energy on your team? Encourage role players or underclassmen with notes or words of encouragement. Tell them the potential you see in them. Play hard all of the time. Do the dirty work. Serve others as opposed to expecting to be served. Cheer and encourage your teammates. Be relentlessly positive. Don’t belittle or demean your teammates. Be upbeat and energetic.
3. Get commitments to lead. Discuss this question: What is one thing we’ve talked about today that you can do to lead during the next week or so? What commitment to leadership will you make? Decide, and tell a teammate or coach what you’ve committed to do.
See the PCA's website for more information: http://www.positivecoach.org/