Coach the person, not the sport. This succinct piece of advice always ranks highly when coaches are asked to list their ‘top tips’.
It is a fundamental part of coaching, which, adding a bit more flesh to the bones, involves treating each performer as an individual, in the knowledge that every person has their own development needs, personality, goals, strengths and weaknesses.
It stands to reason, then, that coaches will have to continually alter their coaching styles in order to meet the diverse needs of their performers.
The rewards are great, as the better you know their behaviours and idiosyncrasies, the better you are going to be at coaching them.
Recognising and understanding the vagaries of emotions and behaviour is the first step to becoming adroit in behavioural agility – the ability to control and adapt your behaviour and the behaviour exhibited by others.
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