A good coach works professionally within the framework of the task he has been given and tries not to cross this line. He or she should not turn into a confidant of personal matters and must be able to separate matters related to training from those not related to training.
So if you are a trainer you should not comment on matters that you do not deal with. In the case of problems related to dietetics, physiotherapy or medicine, it is your task to have a general knowledge of these issues and to know when to refer the athlete to the appropriate specialist.
A good coach should be someone who knows and works efficiently in the following fields of knowledge:
- physiology
- training methodology
- psychology of sport
A coach should be:
- a leader
- a motivator
- an instructor and teacher
- a logistical and organisational manager
Remember that safety comes first
Your job is to keep the athlete safe. Of course, it is well known that sport is a competitive activity and requires you to step outside your comfort zone. However, when it comes to health issues, the most important role of a good coach is to keep their charges safe. Professional athletes like to underestimate injury issues and stubbornly pursue their goals. You as a coach should be able to take a cool and rational look at such matters. Take a long-term view of training, a safe approach will allow your athlete to stay healthy longer, enjoy their running results and experience less disappointment.
Treat each person individually
A successful coach-athlete relationship is not a master-apprentice relationship, where the student follows the master's path to achieve the same goal. Is the practice of running complex or complicated? Complicated is flying a rocket into space. Complex, on the other hand, is raising a child. The first you can duplicate, each flight will be a more perfect copy of the first. The second: anyone who raises children knows that every child is individual, unique, requires a special, unique approach, attention, interest, cooperation.
Training cannot be compared to flying a rocket into space. It is something more difficult. It is something more complex, something with so many unknowns that using one person's experience to make another person achieve exactly the same thing in exactly the same way is simply impossible.
Therefore, if you want to be a good coach, remember that you have to be open to continuous learning.
Continuous development
If you are a coach who thinks he has the answers to everything in his briefcase, you will not be a good coach. You can only harm your athlete. A good coach knows that he doesn't know everything and feels the need to constantly develop. Look for articles, keep up to date with scientific research, don't just rely on what others say. Training methods that were in use twenty or thirty years ago, sensibly applied, will certainly still bring some results. But do you want to be some kind of trainer? Or a good trainer? So why not open yourself up to more possibilities and constantly expand your training methodology workshop?
Every person is different and not everyone is like you
Remember that if something once worked for you, it may not necessarily work the same for your athlete. Just because you have achieved success using a particular training method is not enough to copy and apply it to another person.
5 Qualities of a good coach
1. The ability to communicate perfectly
Focus on excellent communication. Take advantage of the coaching tools available and do more than just exchange Excel sheets by email. For example, use the Good Coach App. It will allow you to plan your training more effectively and keep you up to date with what's going on with your athlete.
2. Flexibility
Remember that life is dynamic and all of us, especially our athletes have work, family and other activities. Training also has different effects at different times. So be flexible and try to be able to make quick training changes even during the week. The Good Coach App will help you stay on track. It's easy to make quick changes to an athlete's training plan.
3. Timeliness
If you agree with an athlete that you will do something at a certain time then just live up to your words.
4. Honesty
Be honest and tell the truth. This is especially true if you think the athlete's expectations are unrealistic or if you think what they are doing will not benefit them. Sometimes this may mean that you will affect a loss of confidence, but the long term benefits of this approach will be much greater.
5. Sensitivity
Be sensitive to another person and try to choose your words carefully. You are there to support, motivate and encourage growth and for that you need a lot of sensitivity.
What is not expected of a good coach?
1. He does not have to be a good athlete
It is a myth that a good athlete is automatically a good coach. Of course this can be the case, but equally a great running coach can be someone who is not and has never been a professional athlete.
2. He doesn't have to know everything
It is unlikely that there will ever be a point at which you know everything. However, it's good to be able to ask questions. It's also worth admitting sometimes that you don't know something and having the urge to look for the answers.
3. You don't have to have many athletes
Every coach decides for himself how many athletes he has enough time to be able to work effectively with. It is better to take care of fewer athletes, but to do so reliably. There are some coaches who go for quantity and rely on their authority to attract too many athletes for their time. Do not take this path if you want to be a good coach.
Is that all? Certainly not. Being a coach is a great adventure, you need to be able to talk to people, be a good businessman and know a lot about marketing. In the following articles I will write more about individual areas of this very interesting job.