What Makes a good coach?

Recently I was in two spin classes on successive days, and I observed a stark contrast in in the instructors. 

As a lifelong cyclist, one of my latest hobbies is a Peloton bike. While I love the different classes and challenges it provides, one of the things I find the most fascinating is the varying range of instructors available. I don’t mean from a classic diversity sense (although they are) I mean the varying range of teaching and coaching styles.

Two distinct styles

There are two coaches with distinctive styles that have stood out to me in the past week that I wanted to share. The first class was driven by the instructor continually using the words “I want you to ….”.  That led to the class being a Bootcamp style with him barking out instructions.  The second class was punctuated with “you should try….” 

 The difference was so stark, and perhaps more noticeable as I did these classes on consecutive days. I was totally unmotivated in the first class as the instructions were about what the instructor wanted; I was showing up in the class for me because I wanted to. Why should I do what the instructor wants?

The second instructor – it was all about the class. That was incredibly motivational. When I looked at the “statistics” of both classes, they were pretty similar – heartrate – kilojoule count etc. The difference was how I felt at the end of each class. At the end of the second class I felt motivated to carry on and do more – whereas by the end of the first class I was clock watching and waiting for the end. The basic quantifiable metrics were almost identical. The emotional and mental journey was completely different.

 Coaching my kid’s teams

Years ago, I was the coach for my daughter’s u15 and u16 soccer teams. On the first day I told the entire team that I had never played soccer at a high level, but I played hockey at the state level.  The games in format and structure are the same, and I would pull in experts to teach them specific soccer skills.  This worked really well as they respected the strategies and playing formations we practiced and they acknowledged the “experts” I brought in for skills training. Every exercise at training was prefaced with “you will learn …..”  or “ you will take away from this …”. Everything was phrased in a way that centered the group of players in the narrative, and not myself or my ambitions to see them win.

What Makes a good coach? 

So the question is- what makes a great coach? Some participants may have preferred the bootcamp style approach to the other style.  Is the role of the coach to teach and encourage students (players) to follow a path? Or is their role to be on the sidelines directing the game?  

Over the years of coaching and watching sports, I have observed two distinct styles.  The one coach is hoarse by the end of the game as they continually yell instructions out to the field. Then there is the coach who observes – rotates players and talks one-on-one. The latter assumes that the players have the required skills but potentially are missing components of the game plan. The former assumes that they don’t have the “big picture skills” and must continually direct the play from the sidelines. My conclusion is that the coach who believes in the team and makes the players know that their skills are great, while sometimes directing the play, has a much more motivating and lasting effect on the individual players.

So – what type of coach are you?

I believe that we should be the one who believes in your player’s innate ability and encourages them to be excellent. Each individual member of their team has their own strengths, weaknesses and lived experience that will inform how they show up in any situation. It’s the excellent coach who can harness their team’s innate abilities and balance that with business goals and overarching team desires. That’s how you can create an excellent team.

Unsure how to become the best coach? Or overwhelmed by how to truly tap into the best of those around you? Don’t stress. Coaching, managing, leading a team- whatever word you use, is a skill that needs to be learned and acquired just like any other.