Monday, August 17, 2026

Tryouts a Week Away

 Tryouts for MVB 26 start in under a week. Be excited not anxious. 




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Sunday, August 16, 2026

The Job of Captaincy

Captains "support the mission." They do whatever it takes...in the big and the small tasks.  


Rallying from a 1-2 deficit, Mireya Luis (Cuban outside hitter) inspired her team vocally and used her 46" vertical to finish Brazil in a bitter match at the Olympics. Watch what led to the end...and what happened next?

How do you plan to "add value" as a captain? 
  • What leadership opportunity happened today? 
  • "The main thing is the main thing." What's yours?
  • How do you support younger players? 
  • How do you bring positivity, energy, and consistency?
  • "Leaders make leaders." How did you do that today? 


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Win-Win

Seek "win-win" situations where both sides benefit. 

What Win-Win Means

  • Best interests of the team
  • Best interests for you
But there's more. Unstated, non-negotiable truth:

Ethical behavior 

This isn't a novel concept. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world [wealth, fame, success], and loses or forfeits himself? - Luke 9:25.

Make no "Faustian bargains" of selling your soul, your integrity for short-term gain. 

Coaching - Do Not Compromise

This applies to sport. Consider these examples:

  • Winning by humiliating athletes - "You're worthless."
  • Winning through cheating. - "Astros pitch signaling"
  • Winning while destroying team culture. - "Bronx Zoo"
  • Winning while sacrificing integrity. - "Donald Sterling"
  • Winning while neglecting family or health. - "Going hungry" 
MVB has succeeded for decades without compromising integrity. Coaches create a culture where you can succeed and also ask you to leave your comfort zone to become more. 

Win with Integrity

Succeed the right way. 

There's no seniority system. You earn your spots.

Politics has no place in who makes the team or plays. 

MVB can't recruit talent.  

Being Different

"The quality and the quantity of your work is different from everyone." - Deputy Manager Oh in Misaeng   The "newbie" came to the team without credentials, experience, or fanfare. All he did was to outwork and outperform all the other new employees. 

The only way to become exceptional is to be different. More positive. More focused. More committed. Relentless.

It borders on obsessive. Make a difference.                            


Lagniappe. MVB has enjoyed exceptional families. 

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Add This Tool to Your Toolbox

Emotional self-regulation is a powerful tool. Add it to your others:

  • Mindfulness including "stop and take a breath"
  • Visualization
  • Conventional self-talk

Don't allow yourself to be hurt by "the second arrow."

Don't take personally what others say because their comments often say more about them than they do about you. Some said, "Melrose's game is 'too simple'." Mature simplicity is powerful. 

Don't allow emotion to put you in a "bad place" where you cannot perform at your best, decide best, or bring your best version. 

In addition to your "identity statement" (this is who I am) and your "performance statement" (this is how I play), recognize and say your emotional state. 

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Saturday, August 15, 2026

Why? What? How? Now (Save and Print)

Why are you here?

What do you hope to learn?

How will you learn? 

Do this NOW. 

Some of you visit at the suggestion of your coaches. The best reason is to extract value daily. 

The introductory video shares a framework for your presentations. Use it along with the SUCCESS story acronym to present better;

S - Simple

U - Unexpected

C - Concrete (specific)

C - Credible (believable)

E - Emotional 

Ss- Stories

Why?

You want to be seen, heard, and valued. Show out at tryouts. Every day is your opportunity to make an impression. 

What? 

Be a difference maker at tryouts. Have the "it" factor and the "wow" factor. Defenders read plays and get to balls. Hitters find ways to put the ball down. A few "ball strikers" cause the ball to make a different sound when they hit it...long-time fans know their names.

How? 

Bring energy, a positive attitude, teamwork, and hard work. Focus, listen, and be coachable. A young player said that her biggest improvement is defense. There's an expression, "I'm from Missouri. Show me." (Missouri has the nickname of the Show Me state)

Now

Be yourself. Every one of you is special. Bring that to the court.

Lagniappe. The Italian national team used this as their walk-off music after a win. 


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Volleyball "Via Negativa" (Edit Our Lives)*

All opinions expressed in the blog are solely my own. The blog is not an official publication of any City of Melrose organization.  

*Adapted from my basketball blog with a major AI assist

With The Power of Negative Thinking, Bobby Knight went back to something older than any playbook, "via negativa," the negative way. 

The Greeks and Romans had it right.

Define something by what it is not.
Strip away the unnecessary.
What remains is closer to the truth.

Classic example: Michelangelo was asked about sculpture and he said that his job was to take a block of marble and find the sculpture within.  

Applied to volleyball:

Winning volleyball isn’t always about adding more.
It’s about removing what loses points - bad decisions, bad swings, bad platform skills. 

Simple is hard. 

Practice Subtraction

Every rep should redirect toward winning.

  • No wasted movement
  • No empty reps
  • No filler

Borrow Brian McCormick's line, “No lines, no laps, no lectures.”

What to remove:

  • Long lines replaced with high-contact, small-sided reps
  • Static drills gone, instead game-speed decision making
  • Cognitive overload, use one point, one correction

Tighten the system:

  • Shrink the drill book
  • Shrink the playbook
  • Shrink the language (terminology)

Limit film:

  • 10–12 clips max
  • No video fatigue
Don’t just watch great practices. Study what great coaches don’t do.

Offensive Subtraction

Points are lost before they’re won. Remove low-value decisions:

  • Out-of-system hero swings
  • High-error serves without intent
  • Blind setting (no read of block/defense)
  • “Me too” swings on bad sets

Recall Jay Bilas's "Toughness" advice:

“It’s not your shot, it’s our shot.”

Translate it: It’s not your swing, it’s our swing.

Tighten core decision-making:

  • In-system = terminate or stress
  • Out-of-system = live to fight the next ball

Eliminate:

  • free balls into the net
  • predictable high balls with no plan
  • wasted transition opportunities

Decision clarity:

  • Good pass leads to full offensive array
  • Medium pass decide on controlled aggression
  • Bad pass equals make a disciplined choice. 

Defensive Subtraction

Defense improves faster by removing mistakes than adding schemes.

Eliminate breakdowns:

  • No more seams in the block
  • No hands drifting backward
  • No flat-footed base defense that reduces defensive range/reaction

Communication is non-negotiable:

  • No silence
  • Early, loud, often (ELO)

Stoicism in action - Control the controllables:

  • Put downballs in play
  • No free balls landing untouched
  • No missed coverage assignments

Discipline:

  • No reckless net touches
  • No out-of-control pursuits
  • No “almost” effort
  • There are no 50-50 balls. Jousts are yours.

Block and floor connection:

  • No “ghost blocks” (jumping without purpose)
  • No disconnected defense

Teaching Via Negativa

Use questions, not just answers.

Ask:

  • What should we do?
  • What must we stop doing?

The System

When you remove:

  • bad swings
  • bad decisions
  • bad communication
  • no intentionality

What’s left? Clean volleyball. Simple. MVB 12 style play that overwhelms with aggression and consistency. 

Bottom Line 

Think about it. What should be stripped from our lives and our volleyball? Excellence is often subtraction, not addition. Do less and do it better.

Lagniappe. Every day is “prove it” day.

Lagniappe 2. "Arms lead hips."

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Give Yourself Grace

Give yourself grace. While working to improve your skills, strategy, physicality, and psychology, understand it won't be perfect. 

"Chase perfection and catch excellence."

Here's a personal saying that works, "Don't beat yourself up; there will always be someone to do that for you." 

Stay positive and "always do your best." That's all you can ask of yourself or anyone can ask of you. You cannot shape a positive life with a negative attitude. 

Lagniappe. Practice activities (process) should impact performance. Warmup laps have a rationale - to transition muscles to a ready state. Running stadia (steps) increases aerobid fitness (endurance). Weight training and plyometrics increase power, quickness, and vertical jump. 

When Ralph Labella and I watched the UCONN Women practice, the goal was to 'up our game'. It wasn't just about watching great players like Breanna Stewart. UCONN practice was carefully scripted, ran at a high tempo, and was always competitive - whether scrimmaging against men or free throw shooting (recorded percentages). 

"Winners are trackers." - Darren Hardy in The Compound Effect 

Be able to say, "We're doing this because ________ . 

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"Moving the Needle"

All opinions expressed in the blog are solely my own. The blog is not an official publication of any City of Melrose organization. 

Don't use AI as a search engine extension. Apply it as a partner to extend your ability to work better, think better, live better. This post shares examples, using ChatGPT Plus that way. My AI "editor" researches and informs principles from the blog. 

Prompt: Imagine that I'm a high school student-athlete with enough skill, volleyball IQ, physicality, and mental toughness to make the varsity team and contribute as a freshman. I am committed to contribute at a higher level going forward, while maintaining a competitive GPA, and "work-life balance." What advice would you share with me?

You’re already on the floor as a freshman. That means the ceiling is real.
Now the game shifts from making the team → becoming a difference maker. Here’s how I’d coach you.

1. Define your edge (separate yourself)

Most players try to improve everything. That’s slow.

Pick 2–3 skills that get and keep you on the floor. 

Sample edges:

  • Elite serve receive (earn trust)
  • Fast, disciplined blocking reads
  • Relentless defense + communication (ELO: early, loud, often)
  • Low-error attacking (“ROB shots”: range, open lane, on balance)

👉 Ask your coach:

“What 2 things would get me on the court more?”

Build around that.

2. Reduce errors (this is the fastest path)

Varsity coaches value:

players who don’t give points away

Focus on:

  • Serve consistency before power
  • Smart shot selection
  • Out-of-system decisions

You don’t need more highlights. You need:

fewer “zero percent possessions”

3. Practice with intent

Everyone practices. Few practice deliberately.

Turn reps into progress

  • Track: “good reps / total reps”
  • Set constraints:
    • “10 perfect passes in a row”
    • “no missed serves in a set”
  • Add pressure:
    • consequences for misses (e.g. pushups)
    • simulate game fatigue (run a sprint after a drill)

4. Become a problem-solver (volleyball IQ)

Become your own coach while studying film. 

Ask:

  • Where is the setter leaning?
  • What does this hitter do under pressure?
  • Where is the seam in the block?

👉 Keep a notebook:

  • “What I saw”
  • “What I missed”
  • “NBA - Next best action”

5. Build your physical base (turn solid into excellent)

You don’t need to be the strongest or the fastest. 

You must be:

  • Quick (first step wins)
  • Balanced (on every contact)
  • Durable (available every day)

Focus on:

  • Core strength
  • Jump mechanics
  • Lateral quickness
  • Sleep (this is performance, not luxury)

6. Excel at Academics creating competitive advantage

Most athletes separate school and sport. That’s a mistake. "How you do anything is how you do everything."

School builds:

  • focus
  • discipline
  • time management

👉 Treat school like practice:

  • Show up prepared
  • Do hard things first
  • Avoid “last-minute chaos”

Elite academics isn't 'for show': 

It’s: mental training that builds resilience.

7. Value Work-life balance

Balance doesn’t mean equal time.

It means: right priorities at the right time

Simple system

  • School hours → school
  • Practice → full presence
  • Recovery → real recovery (not scrolling)

Protect:

  • Sleep
  • Family time
  • One thing you enjoy outside volleyball

8. Be a great teammate (this elevates everyone)

Talent gets you noticed. Teammates get you trusted.

Do this:

  • Communicate (ELO)
  • Celebrate others (Mudita: "Your joy is my joy")
  • Own mistakes quickly (accountability)
  • Bring energy every day

Coaches play: reliable competitors

9. Grow Year-to-year (mindset matters)

Freshman → Sophomore

  • Reduce errors
  • Earn trust

Sophomore → Junior

  • Expand skill set
  • Handle pressure

Junior → Senior

  • Lead
  • Make others better

But don't confine yourself to a timeline. This season expectations should be ahead of schedule. 

10. Set daily standards 

Ask yourself:

“Did I get 1% better today?”

Not in everything. In something that matters.

You don’t need to be spectacular. Bring value consistently in everything you do. Do that long enough…and your role grows. 

Lagniappe. You know what's possible, the performance provided by excellent players. Chase perfection and catch excellence. 

Lagniappe 2. Train to hit harder. 
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Thursday, August 13, 2026

A MasterClass for Coaches Appears Where You'd Never Look*

All opinions expressed in the blog are solely mine. The blog is not an official publication of any City of Melrose organization. *Adapted from my basketball blog. 

Some have called Misaeng: Incomplete Life the greatest workplace drama ever made. Misaeng shares an abundance of coaching "dos" and "don'ts."

Here are translatable lessons for coaches.

1. Standards Define Culture

Culture isn't what we write on posters. Culture is what flows from leaders that gets embraced and internalized. 

When inappropriate behavior goes unchallenged, it quietly becomes the standard. "Dogging" younger players or "kicking down" has to be prevented. Hierarchy is not hazing. 

2. Master the Fundamentals

The most experienced employees and the best coaches never outgrow the basics. Ballhandling, passing, attacks , blocks, and serving need attention daily. 

Communication and preparation get everyone on the same page and need emphasis and testing. 

3. Earn Responsibility

Misaeng rejects entitlement. Captains and seniors bring more experience and coaches expect a lot from them. Credentials, like previous all-star status don't 'mistake-proof' teams.

As Peter Parker's uncle said, "With great power comes great responsibility." 

Gregg Popovich told the Spurs, "Don't skip steps."

4. Separate Roles from Worth

"There is always a pecking order."  That doesn't entitle coaches or upperclassment to throw 'juniors' under the bus. 

Everyone deserves respect and compassion whether they're the stars or deep reserves. Lower position on the totem pole doesn't nullify human value.

5. Give Credit

Secure team leaders share credit generously. In Adam Grant's "Give and Take" he cites numerous examples where withholding credit cost leaders (Frank Lloyd Wright and Jonas Salk) dearly. 

Recognize the contributions of everyone associated with the program - including custodians, quality control assistants, public relations, and donors. 

6. Become a Teacher

Many high school coaches are also teachers. Teachers educate; education changes behavior. 

Player development shows in many ways, including language. Coach Mike Krzyzewski didn't call pick-and-roll defense "hedge" or "show." Instead he was descriptive, labeling it "fake trap." 

Great educators like Richard Feynman had a process: name, explain, research, and simplify. If we can't explain it simply, then we need to be better. "Run and jump" might be called, "trap and go" or "trap and rotate." 

Ball movement could be descriptive with "paint touches and ball reversal." 

7. Contribution Exceeds Recognition

One of Misaeng's recurring themes. "Who helped us succeed?" The player who comes in off the bench playing shutdown defense or pounding the boards getting extra possessions has great meaning. 

Winning depends upon more than "scoreboard" watching. 

8. Accept Responsibility

One of the strongest scenes in the series is Mr. Park accepting responsibility with the client. 

Coaches and players make mistakes. Leadership begins where excuses end. Coach Wooden's "Don't whine, don't complain, don't make excuses" is eternal. 

"Experience is the best teacher, but sometimes tuition is high." Mistakes become tuition when honestly acknowledged.

9. Learn Continuously

Geu-rae succeeds because he remains teachable. The best players in every sport are students of the game. They're in their notebooks and they study video.

Baek-ki struggles because he initially believes he already deserves more. When we show up to the court, we're entitled to nothing. 

10. Communicate Early

Most problems originate with relationships. Problems rarely improve through silence. Communication has to start at practice. 

Great teams communicate: Early. Loud. Often.

Misunderstandings compound when conversations don't occur, especially when hard conversations are needed.

11. Integrity Has No Small Situations

Warren Buffett says three ingredients for success are intelligence, enegy, and integrity. He adds that without integrity, intelligence and energy are dangerous.

Where does a lack of integrity show up? Moving screens. False hustle. Stat padding. Winners don't cut corners. Small compromises often become larger ones.

12. Build People

Championships, winning, and recognition matter. But another question remains: 

How differently do people leave our program than they started here? That's the mark we coaches try to leave. 

Studying Process

My study has focused recently on a "Unified Theory of Coaching."

  • Howard Gardner asks: How do leaders develop?
  • Alfred Adler asks: What relationships produce growth?
  • Misaeng asks: How do people become professionals?
  • Anson Dorrance asks: How do people continually ascend?
  • Jocko Willink asks: Who owns the problem?
  • Kevin Eastman asks: What standards separate the best?

Coaching helps craft competence, character, and ownership.

"Misaeng" takes place in a trading company, but it's about player and leadership development. 

Lagniappe. Where's the ultimate focus? 

 

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