{"id":4296,"date":"2015-09-02T08:00:24","date_gmt":"2015-09-02T13:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/5bd4f92546.nxcli.net\/?p=4296"},"modified":"2025-04-18T12:21:54","modified_gmt":"2025-04-18T17:21:54","slug":"what-makes-a-great-coach","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bluecotton.com\/blog\/articles\/coaching\/what-makes-a-great-coach\/","title":{"rendered":"What Makes A Great Coach?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Image
Image Credit: Karen (The Brit_2)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Need t-shirts and gear for a sporting event? Take a look at our products<\/a> and print your team logo on any product of your choice.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

NFL coach Gary Kubiak\u2019s been getting a lot of attention in the media lately. Most recently, Ring of Fame coach Dan Reeves – Kubiak\u2019s coach when he first started with the Denver Broncos – took to the media to sing Kubiak\u2019s praises. According to Reeves, Kubiak showed glimpses of the professional he\u2019d become even in the early days of his career. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the key times in the game, he came over to me and said \u2018Coach, they\u2019re not even paying attention to me. When I hand the ball off, they\u2019re ignoring me,\u2019\u2019\u201d <\/span>Reeves recounts<\/span>. \u201cHe said \u2018I can just keep the ball. Call the play, don\u2019t tell anybody else. Let them run the play and I\u2019ll just keep it.\u2019\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

You can imagine what happened next. Reeves followed Kubiak\u2019s advice, and the Broncos took home a victory against Washington. This would be the first of many such instances where Kubiak showed his technical aptitude for the game. He was more than just a warm body to place on the field; he was cunning, quick, and always thinking of some new play to roll out.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cReeves had a feeling Kubiak would be a natural fit [for coaching], and for good reason,\u201d <\/span>writes Ben Swanson of DenverBroncos.com.<\/span><\/a>\u201cKubiak, whom Reeves described as one of the smartest players he’s ever coached, took on something of a coaching role as a backup quarterback.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019ve talked a bit in the past about how coaching involves <\/span>knowing how to inspire your players <\/span><\/a>and understanding how to help them keep their heads in the game. We\u2019ve discussed how coaches need to have a great deal of emotional intelligence; how t<\/a><\/span>hey must be capable of solving disputes between players<\/span>.<\/span><\/a> We\u2019ve touched – briefly – on <\/span>the importance of knowledge to coaching success<\/span><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

Through it all, we\u2019ve left out what may well be the most important element of coaching: game sense. A combination of knowledge, experience, intuition, and tactical aptitude. It\u2019s more than just possessing knowledge of the game, it\u2019s knowing how to apply that knowledge to maximum effect. <\/span><\/p>\n

This is what allows some coaches to craft killer plays like Kubiak\u2019s, while others are stuck acting as motivators and hoping for the best.<\/span><\/p>\n

The good news is that, to some extent, the game sense is something you can develop through hard work and determination. The bad news is that there are always going to be people who\u2019ve got a better head on your shoulders than you; people who\u2019ve more tactical prowess on the field than you do. The only thing you can do when you come up against such individuals plays to your strengths and hope for the best. <\/span><\/p>\n

So…how exactly do you develop game sense? <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf you want to become a great coach or personal trainer, then you need to be groomed to be a coach or personal trainer,\u201d <\/span>explains Chris Matsui of Fusion<\/span><\/a>. \u201cFar too often people see online personal training certifications of 6-month personal training schools and think it\u2019s going to give them all the knowledge they need to know.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBook knowledge is great however if you don\u2019t know how to apply that, then it\u2019s pretty useless,\u201d he continues. \u201cSo if you want to become a better coach or personal trainer, then you need to do a mentorship or internship.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

As a coach, you need to be capable of inspiring respect and fervor in your team. You need to be the kind of person that makes them want to step up their game; the kind of person who inspires them to be better than they already are. At the same time, none of that really matters if you\u2019ve no sense of how a game is played. It\u2019s not enough to simply know the game – you need to temper that knowledge with experience and develop your skills as you go along. <\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s pretty much all there is to it – the last secret to being a great coach.<\/span><\/p>\n

Need t-shirts and gear for a sporting event? Take a look at our products<\/a> and print your team logo on any product of your choice.<\/strong><\/em> <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Need t-shirts and gear for a sporting event? Take a look at our products and print your team logo on any product of your choice. NFL coach Gary Kubiak\u2019s been getting a lot of attention in the media lately. Most recently, Ring of Fame coach Dan Reeves – Kubiak\u2019s coach when he first started with…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[653],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4296","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-coaching"],"yoast_head":"\nWhat Makes A Great Coach?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Gary Kubiak\u2019s been getting a lot of praise. It\u2019s not hard to see why. He\u2019s a great coach \u2013 and you can be too. 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