Without quality systems in place in the team setting, the momentum from a couple wins can quickly dissipate into localized chaos. Most strength coaches are used to developing a lifting program for their athletes that consider the game schedule, offseason, and preseason. It seems like a no-brainer. But when we get into other realms of what it means to be a “performance coach” in today’s world, that sturdy systematic way of working oftentimes gets thrown to the wayside. The goal becomes to survive day to day and to keep athletes and coaches healthy and happy. However, by failing to develop systems in all other areas, we as coaches are leaving so much on the table, and here’s why they are so important:
Creates stability for athletes to rely on
Between playing time, relationships, and how they are currently playing, distractions are everywhere for athletes. Providing structure and creating a process for how WE work gives them something to stay grounded to. The way you define the process of how they come in in the morning, take care of their bodies, report fatigue, and participate in recovery all give their day structure that doesn’t change as the rest of things in their life does.
It encourages good habits from everyone
When you have a structured plan for an athlete’s return to play program, and you present that to the coaching staff and ask the question, “what does next week look like for training so I can adjust my plan?” you are immediately bringing up the standard for the entire staff. You are making the statement that “if I can plan my details out, so can you”. Plans will always change and we need to be adaptable, but don’t underestimate your ability to change team culture by always being the most prepared staff member in the room.
It allows us to continue our own development and REFINE our processes
If we don’t clearly define our initial process, how can we examine it for flaws or ways to be better? If we perform that return to play process differently for every injury, we’re never going to be able to definitively analyze that process and decipher how to improve that process. Altering that process every round will undoubtedly lead to pushing out some of the good with the bad, ultimately returning to net-zero improvement. Stick to your process, and after a significant amount of time, analyze the quality of it and the results, and make strategic changes accordingly.
Saves you energy by not having to make redundant decisions
We only have so much mental bandwidth. If we are choosing a new order to prepare for the day every day, we are depleting our mental energy stores before the day has even truly gotten underway. Spend time to develop a process, then simply stick to the script. Soon, things become mindless, and you can spend that mental energy on more important tasks WHILE performing your daily routine.
It creates objectivity
Our bias is everywhere. Whether we like it or not it is. By building a process for how you handle situations, it allows you to honor your experience (by initially developing a quality process) while avoiding making excuses for why things aren’t going a particular way.
Processes help us stay organized and on target. Examine the list below. Do all of these areas have clearly defined processes in place for you and your team? If not, consider starting that discussion.
Consider adding structure and process to:
- Daily set up
- Athlete check-in
- Flow of daily meetings
- How/when you send reports
- Return athletes from injury
- Weight room organization
- Lifting session flow
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