Jamy Bechler

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

11 Off-Season Team Building Ideas

There’s more to a good team than just talent, strategy, and philosophy. The best teams have a high level of trust, respect, and a sense of purpose. This doesn’t happen by accident. Building a strong and healthy team is intentional.

There’s an old adage that says, “One day the winter will come calling and it will ask what you did all summer long.” You reap what you sow, and this is no different for your athletes, your team, or even yourself. The off season is a great time to prepare for the upcoming season. It’s a great time to build strong habits.

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8 In-Season Team Building Ideas

11-time NBA Championship coach Phil Jackson said, “The strength of the team is each individual member, and the strength of each member is the team.” As a coach, you understand the importance of building a strong team.

There are plenty of teams that consist of skilled individuals and athletes with tremendous physical assets. However, some of these teams never reach their potential because they are just a bunch of puzzle pieces that don’t seem to fit together.

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8 Ways to Choose Team Captains

Having a good team captain can make your job easier. Conversely, if your captains struggle to lead effectively, then your team will most likely underperform during the year. Team captains can often make or break your season.

You’d probably love to have a Derek Jeter, Sue Bird, Tim Tebow, or Mia Hamm-type captain, but those are exceptions, not the rule. No matter who wears the captain’s armband or dons the “C” on their jersey, you want to be training them and helping them develop their skills for this leadership position.

As you think about selecting your team captains, maybe you’ve always done it a certain way. Maybe you’re ready for a change. No matter how you select your captains or how successful this process has been in the past, you should always be evaluating your methods so that you can be as good of a coach and have as strong of a program as possible.

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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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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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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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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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What REAL Leadership Looks Like

You’re a coach, which means you have a position of leadership. However, keep in mind that just because you have a business card, plaque on your office door, or embroidered shirts saying “coach” doesn’t mean you are a good leader. There are plenty of politicians, CEOs, administrators, and yes, even coaches that aren’t maximizing the leadership potential of their positions.

Your status as a coach provides you a tremendous opportunity and starting point to make a positive impact on people. Leadership isn’t about positions or status, but about influence. Anyone can be a leader because anyone can have influence. However, you have a head start because you have power, status, and authority. You have a built-in platform and opportunity to use your power for good … or for bad.

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