The Effect Of Coaches On Athletes: Seasonal Goals (Essay Sample)

The Effect of Coaches on Athletes
Names
Institution Affiliation
The Effect of Coaches on Athletes
A coach has a tremendous influence on their athletes. They have a direct influence on the performance and attitudes of their athletes. According to Short & Short (2005), coaching is simply more than teaching the basic skills of a sport. A coach has an influence on the physical and psychological development of their athletes. They help athletes to develop full potential and are responsible for training athletes by analyzing their performance and skills. The coach creates the right conditions for learning and motivates their athletes by performing their effective roles. Creating a positive coach-athlete relationship that is founded on trust, commitment, respect, cooperation, responsiveness, and appreciation is essential in the physical, emotional, and psychological development of an athlete. Therefore, to attain high levels of performance, a coach should perform the roles of a teacher, leader, and organizer effectively to enhance chances of success of his or her athlete.
The coach as a leader
Establishing seasonal goals and objectives
As a leader, the coach plays a significant role in establishing the seasonal goals and objectives that he or she wants to attain with athletes at the end of the season. Considering the role of sports in an athlete’s life, a coach with good leadership traits is important in teams performance. Establishing achievable goals and objectives that one desires to attain at the end of the season is vital in establishing the team and modeling athletes into great team players (Short & Short, 2005). Goals and objectives that are set should reflect the philosophy of the league and should be consistent. The goals and objectives should aim at improving skills, athletes’ ability, and maturity. The coach has a role to define these goals to enhance understanding and improve the chances of improvement. Demonstrating respect to all coaches, teammates, opponents, and referees by using appropriate language and obeying the rules should be paramount. Furthermore, the goals and objectives should be measurable and aim at improving the ability of athletes. Setting both short-term and long-term goals increases the chances of improvement of the athletes and establishes the team as a whole.
Using a democratic style of coaching
Coaching is not just about teaching the right skills but also allowing the contribution of athletes by exercising a democratic style of coaching. Democratic style of coaching is important in attaining goals and objectives. Prioritizing goals and assisting athletes to develop these goals through the right kind of physical and psychological training is essential in improving performance. Democratic style of coaching allows the input of every participant in decision-making including athletes. However, while allowing inclusive decision-making it is necessary to provide an appropriate structure and establish rules to allow optimal and total development of athletes (Watt, 2004). Therefore, the coach should give direction and make decisions where necessary but not to overrule the importance of athletes contribution. This increases satisfaction and enhances performance. Furthermore, employing a democratic style of leadership is essential in enhancing the performance and abilities of athletes in decision-making. It molds them into responsible individuals and creates a positive image for the team. Moreover, a democratic style of leadership improves communication and enhances athletes’ motivation to achieve more in terms of development and participation.
The coach as a teacher
Providing quality training
The coach as a teacher is the most recognizable function of a coach. He or she is tasked with providing quality training by providing the correct skills and knowledge to help athletes in preparation for competitions. Training involves offering the skills about physical, technical, tactical, and mental aspects of a sport. Therefore, to be effective in the role of a teacher, a coach should be knowledgeable in skills, rules, and strategies of a game. Teaching as a skill needs to be learned and it is important for a coach to learn new strategies to improve this skill (Short & Short, 2005). For instance, learning the right art of communication can enhance teaching and make the sport enjoyable. Furthermore, teaching the skills should be done systematically starting with the most basic skills that are easy to learn to skills that are more complex. In teaching these skills, a coach should employ the correct progression to enhance learning and make the sport enjoyable. Moreover, a coach should aim at providing detailed information into each skill to enhance learning and mastery of the skill.
In addition to teaching the right physical skills, a coach should teach athletes psychological skills such as relaxation techniques and mental imagery. Such skills improve athletes’ self-confidence, regulates arousal levels, and anxiety levels (Teodora, 2011). It enables athletes to be in control during a game enhancing their overall performance. Moreover, psychological and social skills can help an athlete to navigate through everyday activities rather than sport.
The coach as an organizer
Plan effective practices
Organization in sports entails the planning and scheduling of practices and competitions to make for a successful season. It is important for a coach to make an explicit plan and vision and make the necessary steps to achieve this plan. Planning effective practices is significant to enhance and maximize learning in a safe and fun environment (Nash, 2014). Well-organized practices enhance the mastery of skills and maximize the time given out for practice. Moreover, it encourages the inclusion of all athletes creating interest in the game. Furthermore, well-planned practices help the coaches to identify weaknesses of athletes and work towards their improvement. For athletes that are very poor a coach can opt for individual instr...