Don't Assume That People Know How To Get Better!

"Focus"!!!  "Relax"!!!  "Work Harder"!!!  These are just a few helpful items you may hear at a practice or at a competition.  The reality is that if the athlete could focus or knew how to focus, you most likely wouldn't have to tell them.  Sure, we all need reminders.  The reality is that we assume that we are reminding others but the fact is that they probably don't know what to do in the first place.  As a coach, I need to make sure that the athlete knows what "focusing" or "relaxing" or "working hard" really looks like and how to do them before I can remind them to do it.  We assume that those around us know how to do what we may do fairly easily.  The truth is that we need to be better at teaching how to perform desired behaviors or mindsets before we remind them to do them.