I’m not a yeller. I’ve been coached by yellers and I’ve worked alongside yellers, but I’ve decided to take a different path for myself. Saying that though, I have nothing against coaches who yell at their players at the collegiate level…those student athletes knew what they were getting into before they stepped on to campus. My opinion changes for those who coach at the age-group levels though and I hope you’ll take a moment to read this and decide if your yelling is productive or counterproductive.
ESPN.com ran a good article called College Coaches Who Yell, And Those That Don’t a while back and I thought it was pretty interesting. Their focus group was men’s basketball coaches. The writer asked a good question: Does having fire in your belly automatically equal being a screamer? Some of the folks in the article would say yes (you all know where I fall on this matter), arguing that “yelling can raise the energy level”. On the other side of that coin was a coach who’d been in both the college and NBA ranks and he talked about how the yelling and “emotional manipulation” didn’t work with the pros. About how they respect one thing above all others: schematic intelligence. So let’s talk about…
3 things that are better than yelling at your players
1. Knowing your stuff. I acknowledge that this is my own personal bias, but yelling seems like you’re covering up a lack of knowledge. Like you’re saying, “maybe if I scream and holler and curse, then no one will realize that I’m clueless about this sport.” Now of course I know that this can’t possibly be true of every yelling coach, but again…it’s my first thought when I see a coach screaming. As a college coach, I don’t see the point of yelling at adults to get them motivated…and when I was a high/middle school coach, I certainly wouldn’t turn myself into a bully by yelling at children. My advice: stop hollering and just be good at what you do.
2. Respecting their effort. If they’re working hard at trying to get better, you’ve got to appreciate that. Especially if you’re working with the young ones, if you can get all-out effort for the entire practice…it’s time to celebrate. Remember that athletes can only control their skill level to a certain degree, but they are 100% in control of their effort level. My advice: teach the skills, applaud their effort, and always demand more from your athletes.
3. Holding them accountable. Common misperception about the non-yelling coach: we’re walkovers, our teams won’t take us seriously, and we’re soft. But if you’ve armed yourself with knowledge (always looking to learn more!) and have shown your team the respect that you’d like in return, then you should feel free to use all of the tools in a non-yellers toolbox. Don’t know what those are? Well, let me explain. As a hockey coach in that ESPN article says, “the bench screams”…so why waste time yelling when you can use playing time as a motivating tool? Or “opportunities for fitness” as I like to call what others would call “punishments”. And don’t underestimate the power of stopping a drill and asking a player why they did what they did…just get ready for a lot of mumbling and stumbling, before they eek out an “I don’t know”. Something to the tune of: explain to me why you didn’t do what I just asked you to do…and then wait for the answer. It’s powerful, I tell ya! My advice: get some swagger about not yelling at your players and be creative!
I’m sure all of you guys have other techniques that you’re successfully using as well. A yeller isn’t necessarily more passionate than a non-yeller…we’ve got the quiet confidence that comes from knowing our stuff and believing in our approach!
