Jamy Bechler

Providing Insights on Leadership and Success. Coach Bechler is a John Maxwell Leadership Team Member.

7 Things I Changed My Mind About as a Coach

Hey Coach, if you’re like me, you’re constantly trying to get better and improve. You probably see things differently now than you did five years ago, one year ago, or even yesterday. In my 20+ years of coaching and athletic administrating, I had my fair share of ups and downs, but I also felt that I got better every year. Leaders are learners and I wanted to always be learning.

I’m a product of those people I’ve been associated with and the environments I was a part of. Oftentimes in coaching, we do things the way others close to us did them. We may coach similar to the way our old coach did back in the day. We might run some of the same plays. Our communication might resemble their methods, as well.

However, through the years I realized that if I’m going to get better and improve as a coach, I must constantly be re-evaluating and honestly assessing some of my actions, words, and philosophies. Especially toward the end of my career in organized athletics, I tried to be as coachable as possible and be willing to adjust, adapt, and pivot when it was necessary.

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Four Ways to Better Prepare for Your Coaching Interviews

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We see it happen all too often when our team at Bechler Leadership is doing a school’s search. Candidates come into the interview process not prepared to present themselves in a way that will help them win the job.

We did a national study with college athletic directors and those in the hiring process, for college coaches to understand what kinds of questions work best for them and help them understand the candidates the most. Based on those answers, here are four quick tips for coaching candidates about how they should better prepare:

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The Coaching Traits Athletic Directors Struggle to Uncover

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Hiring a college coach is one of the most important decisions an athletic director makes.

It is also one of the easiest decisions to misread.

Not because athletic directors are careless. Most are not. They work hard, ask thoughtful questions, involve key people, and carry the weight of knowing how much the hire matters.

But coaching searches are difficult because the most visible parts of a candidate are not always the most predictive.

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Utilizing Committees On Your Team

There’s no doubt that you want a stronger culture and a successful program. This is oftentimes accomplished when you have athletes that are good leaders. This might manifest itself in the form of strong team captains, upperclassmen, or an overall atmosphere of all players taking responsibility for the team’s leadership.

However, whether the leadership on your team is currently where you want it to be or not, you can do something to make it even better.

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7 Creative Ideas for More Effective Practice Sessions

The Navy SEALS like to say, “Under pressure, you don’t rise to the occasion, instead you sink to the level of your training.”

Very few athletes are true “gamers” in that they can show up on game day and flip a switch. Most athletes need to prepare and build good habits, so they can call upon their skills when needed.

In order to best prepare your athletes to face certain situations during games, you need to inspire them.

Here are seven ways you can make your practice sessions a little more creative in order to increase their effectiveness…

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What Signals is Your Coaching Resume Giving?

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Many coaches assume the hiring process starts when the interview begins.

Athletic Directors would tell you it starts much earlier.

It starts the moment they open your resume and cover letter.

And whether you realize it or not, they are asking one central question:

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13 Fundraising Ideas

Raising money for your team, organization, or cause is a necessity. Whether it’s for necessary items and operations or for extra stuff (e.g. trips, extra set of uniforms, etc…), you’ll want to find the fundraising activity that makes sense for your situation.

Here are 13 things that you can do to raise money…

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6 Ways to Better Utilize Assistant Coaches

The late great Billy Graham liked to say, “A coach will impact more young people in one year than the average person will in a lifetime.” The quote didn’t distinguish between head coaches or assistant coaches. All coaches have an opportunity to make a difference.

As a head coach, your platform is greater and you may have more opportunities, but your assistants can make a tremendous difference in the lives of your athletes – both from an athletic and personal level. The best programs have great coaches. A good head coach can only do so much if the assistant coaches are not very good.

Having a good assistant coach isn’t automatic even if that person has the knowledge or experience.

Here are 6 ways that you can better utilize your assistant coaches more effectively…

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How to Interview (and Answer) to Make the Right Hire

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When coaches prepare for interviews, they often focus on:

  • Recruiting plans
  • Practice structure
  • Systems and schemes
  • Scheduling philosophy

All important.

But based on our recent research at Bechler Leadership, they’re not the primary focus.

We asked Athletic Directors a simple question:

“What’s a favorite interview question you ask when hiring a coach?”

The answers told a very different story.

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Using an Application to Select Team Captains

Selecting team captains is one of the most important things that you’ll do all year for your program. You want to select the right individuals who’ll best lead, influence, and impact their teammates.

Utilizing an application during the captain selection process can be beneficial. This article will outline some of the reasons you might want to use this tool, as well as some things to consider if you decide to take advantage of this resource.

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