Instilling a Culture of Fun
Well, we are off and running! We just finished up fall camp and our first game is next week Saturday. Many of us already have one game in the books. So, with that in mind, I thought I would entitle this post…”Remember THIS at the start of the season.”
Remember to HAVE FUN! It was a lot of work to get here. All the hours in the weight room. All the emails to parents. The ordering of uniforms and equipment. The fundraisers. The reorganization of your staff. This is supposed to be the fun part! Let’s not kid ourselves. The off season kind of sucks. 7 on 7 gets boring and fake. The weight room can get mundane. If we aren’t having fun now, then why are we doing this?
Now, sometimes this is easier said than done. If you are winning and throwing it all over the field and improving every week, it’s easy to have fun.
But, the reality is that, for a lot of us, we are overmatched and we know that we are going to be overmatched week in week out.
In this case, it’s on us as coaches to keep it fun. Keep it light. Keep focused on the big picture of developing men giving the kids an experience.
Remember that our guys will follow our lead. Kids are perceptive. If you are down, they will know it and they will mirror it. The team will take on the characteristics of its coaching staff. So, if we are going to have fun at the center of our mission, we have to embody that every single day no matter the circumstance.
Most coaches can’t pull this off. Most coaches look like they wake up mad and go to bed madder. How many times have you heard a coach after an NFL game say something like, “Winning is just a relief.” Or, “the losses hurt way more than the wins are enjoyable.”
There are very few guys at the top of our game that have been able to change this perception. That’s why I love Pete Carroll. He actually looks like he is enjoying himself…running up and down the field, chewing his gum, patting guys on the back, playing catch before the game.
Why does he do this? Because he knows that his persona will filter down to his guys. Doesn’t it look like a lot of fun to be a Seahawk? I mean, they do yoga on Tuesdays for cryin out loud. Now don’t get me wrong, Carroll is incredibly competitive and driven. Don’t mistake his persona with “Soft.” The Seahawks are anything but soft.
Of course, some would argue that Carroll has had a lot of success and so it’s easy to smile and have fun. But, maybe the success is a derivative of the attitude. Maybe the reason for his success is the way he acts and the way that influences his team. If that works in the NFL…what kind of impact could we make on a high school team if we were always positive, always smiling, always having fun?
Check out this quote by Carroll,
“Think of your favorite teacher you ever had in school: the one who made it the most fun to go to class. They surprise you. They keep you guessing. They keep you coming back, wanting to know what’s going to happen next.”
That’s exactly right! One of the core principles of Win With The Pass is that football is supposed to be and can be fun! And, if it is, kids will keep coming back!
So, as we start the season, let’s remember why it is that we do this and work to instill a culture of fun!
Keep Chucking It,
Erick
