Coaching Kids Right

Tom talks about the do's and don'ts when dealing with issues with the league. You may need this the next time those uniforms don't come in before the game or the gym doors are locked.

Tom talks about losing and, in his team's case, losing big. He talks about the best messaging during and after a game no matter what side of the score you are on.

Tom talks about what to do when your team has new players. He stresses what's important and why. Put yourself in the kid's position-how would you like to feel. Remember-as part of the Positive Coaching Alliance-keep up the compliments.

Tom talks about what to do to prepare for the season. He even tells you why it's important. Trust him on this one, he knows from experience.

Tom discusses the advantages of being an organized coach. Organization doesn't just mean you send out a schedule or show up for practice. Being organized as a coach is a lot more and he lets you know what that is.

In this Podcast Tom suggests what sports go together. If your daughter plays soccer, what other sport should you consider that offers similar skills. Or if your son plays hockey, what sports is a compliment to hockey? Tom shares and if you have any questions, please email him at geisert@me.com

Tom discusses whether children should play more than one sports and why. You'll want to hear this one.

Tom discusses the most important goals--the ones the players and the team can control. The outcome of the game depends too much on outside influences, like the ref and other team. The team and/or player can commit to their play: like giving good effort, understanding that mistakes will happen and not complaining about them...Tom discusses the Positive Coaching Alliance's ELM tree. E-Effort. L-Learning and M-Mistakes will happen. He also shares Pia Nilsson and Lynn Marriott's Controllable Goals--like effort, passes, defensive play, tenacity, etc -things the players control.

Tom talks about his philosophy of games. Yes they are important, but maybe practice is more important. If the kids work hard during the game the outcome doesn't matter. if we have prepared them and we, as coaches, work hard to plan for the game, then we have no regrets. The game is a seance that we have prepared for at practice and the outcome is irrelevant. Only hard work matters, both from the kids and the coaches. Parents can work at practicing with the kids too.

Tom talks about what practice should mean to you. You should have a plan--down to five minute increments. You should allow for immediate teaching without calling players out. You should build confidence and work with players who lack some ability to focus on one or two skills, which will give them confidence. Practice is almost more important than the game. it's where you make sure they know what they need to do at the game.

In this first Coaching Kids Right Podcast, Tom, discusses what's really important to you as the coach and to your players. He explains some of the pitfalls of dealing with parents and acknowledges that not all of his coaching time has been spent making the right decisions. He's learned--a lot-- and he wants to share that wisdom so you don't make the same mistake.