The ladies came together gathering around the central pillar in our weight room to receive feedback from our strength & conditioning staff regarding the outcome of their mission.  They circled up standing shoulder to shoulder while their hands were still covered in chalk and sweat still pouring down their faces.  They look eagerly towards us awaiting to receive their mission outcome.  We make it a habit to debrief the team and the individual leader for every session (or evolution) we lead our athletes through.  In this session, Whitney stood proudly in front of her teammates having lead her squad through the 60 minutes of challenging feats of strength & power.

“Give it up to Whitney for having the courage to lead the team today”, I command.  The teammates hoot and holler while applauding and acknowledging Whitney’s trial of fire through our leadership program.

“Let’s Debrief.  Whitney, give your teammates one thing they did well today and one thing they need to improve on before our next session.” I said.  She turned to her teammates and commented that her squad did a great job communicating coaching cues to each other while navigating through a new lift, consisting of new exercises.  I nod my head while listening to her.

Whitney then addressed that the team needed to do a better job at hustling from one exercise to another.  I paused as I listened to the words Whitney was saying.   “Their were moments where I was coaching you to jog from one side of the weight room to the other and not every single athlete was responding”.

I affirmed her statement by nodding along as she was recalling the tough and physically challenging 60 minute session.  I held a long pause, to draw the team’s focus, before moving along.  “Teammates!  Give your team leader one thing she did well today and one thing she needs to improve on before her next opportunity to lead.” I asked the team.

The teammates were quick to respond on Whitney’s ability to to “see the room” and offer vigorous partner coaching to every single one of them.  Tonya, one of Whitney’s teammates, quickly added “Although I wasn’t Whitney’s partner during this lift, she was always pushing me to do better; even while she was struggling through an exercise, her focus was on improving her teammates.”

“Tonya, You’re absolutely right” I said.  I scanned the team and made individual eye contact for a few moments with every athlete.  “What’s one thing she can improve on before her next leading opportunity?” I inquired.  The team fell silent and soon after, the eye contact strayed.

“If you’re too afraid of hurting someone’s feelings, you’ll never be confident in your ability to lead” I said.  I attempted to get the ball rolling by addressing our fundamental strength & conditioning belief.

‘”Whitney, you’re responsibility is to make sure our teammates accomplish the mission.  Your mission today was to ensure every athlete abide by our four weight room standards.  You identified that several of your teammates did not respond to you coaching.  Their response falls upon your ability to lead; as its your sole responsibility to complete the mission.”

She responded with an affirming nod and continued to listen.

“Use my staff to help communicate your message.  If you see teammates not responding to your command, confront the teammate to walk in lock-stop.  I promise you that I’ll back you 100% during the session.” She again nodded understandingly.

I asked the rest of my staff to contribute their feedback regarding what they witnessed during the lift.  In an instructed and educated manner, they sandwich their responses to the team of athletes.  They start by reinforcing  or praising a few positive elements of the session.  Our staff then follows the positive reinforcement with future-oriented instruction that identifies elements of the lift where the athlete could improve.  My team then encourages them with motivational praise ergo conveying our confidence in their ability to perform the skill correctly.

“What are we saying today” I enthusiastically command as I reach my clutched fist into the middle of the circle.  “Shocks on three”, Whitney responded.  In a violent eruption Whitney yells out “one, two, three” .  The team roars will a loud and defining “SHOCKS!” 

It’s all in a days work, and coincidentally, it all transpires in final moments of each session.  I believe these last 5 minutes allow for the greatest growth of an athlete.  Perhaps, more importantly, it allows for the greatest opportunity for the growth of a leader.

Some of my best tips for staying productive in the coaching environment.

Whiteboard Lesson related to Program Design at Wichita State Strength & Conditioning

December 31st passed by and with another tick of the second hand on the clock, another year of coaching had passed.  Throughout the year, I keep accurate notes on everything from: leadership development, my staff’s performance, athlete/team progress, and a wide variety of other topics and metrics.  I’m a firm believer of journaling and recording information.  Peter Drucker said it best, “What gets measured, gets managed.”  The mind is a fragile thing and it prefers to remember the good things over negative experiences.  That’s our recall-bias protecting our egos.  As I reflect back,  there are a number of journal entries that influenced me to write this post.  I want to a few of them with you today.

Finding a Mentor (Somebody Really Smart)

I’m fortunate enough to have a group of colleagues (near and distant) who are willing to help me develop and grow.  I’m indebted to them for the knowledge they instilled and shared.  They believed in me (or were gutsy enough to take a risk) and allowed me the opportunity to learn and grow.  If you find yourself without such a support team; I would encourage you to reach out to your network and volunteer your time to help them in any way.

I do believe in karma.  Doing good for others has always paid dividends in the long run.  I guarantee, if you start doing good for others with no intentions of them reciprocating, good karma will find you.  If you happen to build a relationship with a person who is more knowledgeable than you in a given subject, when the opportunity is there for this person to take on a mentee; you’ll have earned your shot.

Find a Mentee (Pay it Forward)

Think of mentoring as investing in future karma.  There has been nothing more gratifying than helping others succeed.  Isn’t that why we are in coaching to begin with?  Watching others professionally succeed is rewarding like no other.  Take on a mentee and challenge their beliefs, philosophy, education, and fortitude.  Allow for them to grow into the position, take calculated risks, and experience the successes and failures within their field.  Invest in people, not equipment.

Invest in your Team (Continuing Education)

I know it looks like a small fortune to send staff to clinics, conferences, workshops, and across the globe.  I’m begging you today to not take this piece of advice lightly.  Investing in your team’s education pays HUGE dividends.   My argument?  I’ve seen some of the most expensive and technologically advanced equipment being wrongly utilized by coaches who invest solely in equipment and not education.  The coaches who invest in continuing education are the ones who cultivate a program filled with future professionals who are talented.

Invest in Yourself (Don’t Neglect Numero Uno)

This statement could go a number of different ways.  Invest in yourself professionally, emotionally, educationally, etc.   My last recommendation was continuing education for your team but that also includes your attendance.  There are a number of great DVDs, workshops, and online material out there.  Invest in your family and friends and the relationships that have been built.  Treat everybody like a garden because in life you reap what you sow.  Are there relationships that are starving for sunlight and water?  Take an accurate assessment of your body.  Have you been sacrificing yourself for others?  Should you be eating better, lifting more, training harder, studying more, etc.?  Make it a mission in 2012 to carve out time for you personally every day.  A better you creates a better coach for your athletes.

Challenge Your Own Beliefs (Be Proactive)

“If in the last few years you haven’t discarded a major opinion or acquired a new one, check your pulse.  You may be dead.”  - Gelett Burgess

I often ask my team to approach my office whiteboard and brainstorms areas of our department and program that can be better and more efficient.  I purposely look at research that counters what I do and how I coach in order to challenge my beliefs.  Too often, I find coaches only read the research that supports their cause and disregards anything other.  I approach every piece of information with a “beginner’s mind”.

This doesn’t mean I change often or jump from one fad to another.  On the contrary, it often supports my progressive thought process and practice within the strength and conditioning field.  Shunryu Suzuki author of Zen Mind  wrote, “In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, in the expert’s mind there are few.”

80/20 Principle (Become Efficient)

New York Times bestselling author Tim Ferriss of The 4-Hour Workweek and The 4-Hour Body repopularized the 80/20 principle; which is a shorthand series of observations by political economist; Vilfredo Pareto.  Pareto noted that 20% of his country’s population owned nearly 80% of its wealth.  He later went on to find this distribution in nearly every other domain.

So how does the 80/20 Principle apply to Strength & Conditioning?

Dan John is a brilliant man.  If you were fortunate to be at his workshop in Utah, he mentioned something so casually, yet brilliant, it probably went unnoticed.  Imagine you were a prisoner of the state who was locked up 23 hours and 45 minutes a day in isolation.  You have ONLY 15 minutes to workout a day in order to plan your escape.  What you would do?

I’m guessing your naming 2-3 of the most important things.  You’ve effectively cut through the clutter and fluff and isolated your MOST IMPORTANT 20% of exercises that produce 80% of your results.  Now do the same for your athletes.  What should you be concentrating on the most?

It is our failure to become our perceived ideal that ultimately defines us and makes us unique. It’s not easy, but if you accept your misfortune and handle it right, your perceived failure can become a catalyst for profound reinvention. ~ Conan O’Brien

“It is our failure to become our perceived ideal that ultimately defines us and makes us unique. It’s not easy, but if you accept your misfortune and handle it right, your perceived failure can become a catalyst for profound reinvention” – Conan O’Brien

Work Hard; Be Kind, and Amazing Things Will Happen. Conan O’Brien, from his commencement address to Dartmouth ‘11.

It was a particularly gloomy day in Wichita, Kansas but that didn’t stop the hustling of our Wichita State athletes from flying through the weight room like a precision strike missile set upon it’s destination.  I love days that this.  The atmosphere in the weight room was perfect; one part fantastic momentum from a great weekend sweep; another part great senior leadership; and equal parts of both competitive & hungry freshman and sophomores eager to move up the depth charts.  This makes for a great environment to train and an even better one to coach under.

This atmosphere is akin to having a freshly hand-washed 2011 Ferrari, turbo charged, and eager for top speed drive.  The road conditions are perfect with freshly paved cement and a straight away stretch that begs for putting the pedal to the metal.  What a great day for cutting loose and opening the speed up.

Stephanie was one of my more gifted athletes; she was one of the most talented athletes I’ve worked with.   On the court, she was a complete show stopper; dominant, aggressive and eager to put the team first.  I cannot reiterate the capabilities and talents Stephanie had.  My job is to help her realize how dominant she really is.

Stephanie had only one downfall to her game; herself.  The session was coming to a enthusiastic finish and I noticed Stephanie wasn’t herself throughout the lift.  ”Steph!” I said questioning. “Let’s talk when you finish foam-rolling”.  She nodded.  Moments later, Stephanie came into my office with her workout card in hand and sat down in front of my desk.

As I commonly do, I motioned for her workout card and she slid it across my desk.  I sat bewildered as I read through her latest lifting session.  After drawing comparisons from her previous six weeks of lifts, I noticed that Stephanie didn’t attempt to progress in either weight or reps during this last lift.

“Stephanie, is there any confusion about what my expectations are?” I said sternly.  She looked back at me and repeated “The team looks up to me during the sessions because I am their go-to on the court”. She added, “I don’t want to fail in front of them so I didn’t add weight to my lifts today.  I don’t want them to see me struggle, or possibly worse, fail.”

I handed the workout card back to Stephanie and added to the conversation “Steph, you’re an amazing athlete capable of so much more; I wouldn’t tell you otherwise if I didn’t believe in these words with full conviction” I said.  ”You are a top speed Ferrari but are deathly afraid to take it above 35 MPHs.  Believe in yourself.  Believe in your preparation” I added.

“You’re teammates are counting on you to push yourself to your full potential and any failure to do so hurts the team” I said.  ”I know you were trying to protect the team by securing their confidence in you, but in reality, you’ve cheated yourself an opportunity to let it rip”, I said.

Stephanie gathered her belongings and collected herself before leaving my office.  She responded “I understand what you mean about being capable of so much more.  My team needs me to lead and part of that means that the need to see me confident under stress.”

I nodded and I repeated our leadership creed,  ”A leader accomplishes the mission first, and protects their teammates second.  Your mission is to prepare yourself to the demands of the sport.  Do not forget what the mission is.”

The next lifting session I witnessed a transformation in Stephanie.  I want to write that I didn’t know this transformation was possible, but that would be a lie;  I knew Stephanie had more to give than what she ever believed.  After all, she’s a top speed Ferrari.   It’s up to her to continue pushing the pedal to the metal.

Strength and Conditioning Coach Adam Ringler discusses his favorite items of the Summer 2011.

How to break into the Strength & Conditioning field.

This is my first attempt with video production. I promise you that as time goes by, the production value with these Strength & Power Hour video podcasts will definitely improve.  I’m already planning on redoing some of the videos I’ve already shot in order to encode it in a higher resolution for all you loyal readers.  Bare with me as I continue to evolve and learn the software.  Thanks everybody!!

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