What makes a great coach?

Posted In: Coaching July 19th, 2012 divider No Comments »

Notice I didn’t say what makes a “good” coach? That’s for regular folks!

Looking back at some of the coaches I’ve had over the years, the ones I remember as being great had one trait that really stuck out: being able to relate.

Don’t get me wrong, you need a minimum level of ability and/or knowledge so you’re speaking the same language. But ability alone doesn’t translate to great coaching skills. I’d like to argue that the “soft” skills make up over 50% of the success of a coach.

Looking at our poster boy, All-World Wayne Gretzky, is arguably the best hockey player ever. Let’s just say his career coaching record is not all world…

Did the game passed him by? Did he forget everything about hockey? I would guess he simply couldn’t pass along his knowledge or relate to his players very well.

There are a lot of great systems and/or programs out there. What makes a great coach for you is the fit; someone who can motivate you while also keeping you accountable. Someone to take a step back and provide some perspective and an objective view on things, along with some words of wisdom.

I don’t think I’m the best football player, runner or even business man but I’ve been told people can easily relate to me. I love helping folks and  passing along some experience, whether it’s football, ChiRunning and now small business.

And every time I do it, it makes me a better coach. How cool is that?

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And what’s this new study about? Running is actually good for you? So say the new findings from the world’s largest study of runners’ health, the National Runners’ Health Study. The study, involves more than 100,000 participants, some of whom have been followed more than 20 years.

What will they think of next?