All opinions in the blog are solely my own. The blog is not an official publication of any City of Melrose organization.
Here's a rhetorical question, "What makes a team perfect?" I've never played on one and never came close to coaching one. The closest a team I coached came to perfect was a close loss against a far superior team.
Perfection
It wasn't about the scoreboard.
It wasn't about the minutes.
It wasn't about the coaching.
It was about the quality of the effort, the sacrifice, the grit and the teamwork that the girls showed.
Telling a Story
Each day gives everyone a chance to tell their story.
We don't control all the plot, or the characters, or the dialogue.
But we control a lot - how we prepare, how we bring energy, and how we share the stage.
Make no mistake; winning is wonderful. But for 12-14 year-olds, it can't be everything. That’s not you.
The Volleyball Experience
Why is coming together as a team so tough?
It's hard to bring a group together with individual agendas.
It's hard for the girls to see the "experience of team."
And it's up to us as coaches to be faithful to that story.
Give the game what it needs. Sometimes, you won't have every club in the bag - your serve is a bit off, your passing is at 80 percent instead of 90, or your sets are tight. It happens.
You have to give the game what you have - enthusiasm, communication, awareness, and the parts of your game that are working.
Keep your head up. Stay fully engaged. Energize. Have the character to impact the game because you can.
Lagniappe. Sometimes doing well starts with stopping the unhelpful.
Major cheat code for life: Every pattern in your life repeats until you learn the lesson. The moment you choose differently, the loop ends and growth begins.
"We are drunk on our own ideas." - Rolf Dobelli in The Art of Thinking Clearly
Dobelli informs the NIH principle - not invented here. Most of us value our own ideas, simply because they are ours.
Coach Ellis Lane told me about a coach who came to him with a "new" offense. The coach said, "I understand it perfectly." Coach Lane said, "There's a problem. Your players won't." Even good ideas need broad understanding and eventual adoption to matter.
Best-selling author Adam Grant tells a story about being offered an idea to invest in. The Penn students didn't have a website or what he considered a viable business plan. Their names? Warby and Parker.
Basketball lives in the public domain...everything is out there. As a writer, I wear a different hat, seeking ideas to steal, to understand, and to expand upon.
Find "timeless" ideas and share them widely. Coaching is communication and relationships. Here are ten:
Develop a "learning" culture.
"Every day is player development day." Good players make smart coaches.
"Be easy to play with and hard to play against."
"Do well what you do a lot."
Develop teams that play 'harder for longer'.
Intangibles like toughness and resilience travel.
Whatever your offense, have "hard-to-defend" elements - e.g. spacing and separation, pick-and-roll, hard cutting with on-time, on-target passing, simple and complex screening (e.g. screen-the-screener, Iverson action, Spain PnR).
Have a simple philosophy. I used TIA - "Teamwork, Improvement, Accountability."
Don't become beholden to or ignore analytics.
Stubbornness is sticking with a bad plan or no plan.
Vrabel showed the team boxing trainer Teddy Atlas' "We are firemen" corner speech to amplify the identity he hopes to create. There were also clips of Vrabel calling out Brown and defensive tackle Milton Williams, showing that he holds some of the team's best players accountable in front of everyone.
"It's about staying laser focused to put out the fire," he said. "It's going into this week with a mindset that we need everybody -- you can't put out the fire with just one person."
Team sports isn't illusory. It's shared vision, mission, and execution to do what is necessary. There is never a shortage of metaphor.
The back row relies on the front to get "hands on" balls. The attackers need coverage. The setter needs actionable passes to do her job.
"You can't put out the fire with just one person."
Here's the real deal with competitive sports:
Toughness isn't proving how much punishment you can endure.
Toughness is maintaining the discipline to do what gives you the best chance to win.
Preseason polls are for entertainment purposes. They don't decide games, lineups, or postseason seedings.
Last season MVB was 13-8 and graduated a Division I recruit, Sabine Wenzel, who has helped her new team to a 5-1 start.
MVB has a challenging schedule that will afford it a chance to prove itself against a tough early schedule and excellent non-league competition. Many of those names are showing up on the preseason stories...some for excellent reasons.
Coach Ellis Lane used to ask us from time to time, "You know what I like about you guys?" To which we would answer as one, "Nothing."
Coach was demanding but not demeaning. His words stuck with us:
"Sacrifice."
"I'm pleased but I'm not satisfied."
"On the line." (Time to run.)
Competitors want to be coached. They want to improve, to excel, to become their best. That comes with no guarantees. Choose to always do your best because anything less is not enough.
Lagniappe 2. "Who are those guys?" Another Coach Ellis Lane saying...going into the season, our team was unranked. Going into the postseason, it was still unranked. "Prove them wrong."
Some athletes want to continue playing in college. This coach suggests keeping your athletic profile up to date.
Assess your "fit" for a specific program, realizing that your education comes first and if you put athletics first (before fit), it often ends badly for many different reasons.
Keep high academic standards to give yourself the best chance to succeed long term. MVB has always had many elite student-athletes because "how you do anything is how you do everything."
Theory is about studying and practice. In "Golf Is Not a Game of Perfect," Bob Rotella says that games are not the time to be thinking about your fundamentals. Have your shot planned. Take the club out of the bag. Address the ball and take your best shot.
Struggling in a volleyball scrimmage is not the storm. It's tough elements to prepare you for the storm.
Most of you have not seen the storm yet. For your sake, let's hope not. Becoming your best self means responding well to trials - physical, emotional, psychological.
Develop the tools to respond better and get help from your family and support system when you need it.
This paragraph by Haruki Murakami hits hard:
“Once the storm is over, you won’t remember how you made it through, how you managed to survive. You won’t even be sure, whether the storm is really over. But one thing is certain. When you come out of the storm, you won’t be the same…
Legendary basketball coach Pete Newell said that the coach's primary job was to help players "see the game." He added, "they're not cattle."
The author emphasizes the importance of "context." When Coach Scott Celli prioritizes serve-receive and closing the blocks, there's underlying simplicity. That's how good teams score most of their points against you.
Lagniappe. The nonleague game schedule is on the horizon. Coach Celli works to add value. "Iron sharpens iron." An important way to improve as an individual and as a team is to play better competition.
The University of Minnesota (at the time a top ten team) traveled to Japan to play Japanese collegians. Minnesota got crushed. The Japanese coach suggested they play some good high school teams. At first the Minnesota coach felt insulted, but he decided to do it anyway. Minnesota went 9-4 against the high school teams...
Lagniappe 2. Beginner's Mind is a Japanese concept implying openness.
OKC is not resting on last year's results.
Last year's results are history. The Patriots' Super Bowl loss is history. Exceptional programs constantly seek to unearth truths about their sport and themselves.
Sam Presti wants his people to have a beginner’s mindset…
The Oklahoma Thunder GM fears the tight grip of formulaic approaches. Stay curious, stay open, he urges.
This of course requires balance for all in sport, in business, and in life. To search for the shiny and new is… pic.twitter.com/zRKZyQMZV8
Control what we can control. Control our response to adversity. Mental toughness means the ability to respond well to adversity. Feeling sorry for ourselves accomplishes nothing.
In 2021 Melrose trailed 3-10 in the fifth set of the sectional finals. They fought off three match points amidst a 13-4 closing run.
Melrose fell to 3-10 before it’s epic rally to victory. Here’s video from Ralph Labella of the comeback fists of fury starting with Melrose trailing 11-14.
Success starts with the ability to reset and to play harder for longer, regardless of the situation.
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.
Years ago at Fenway (from a front row, third base-side seat!) I heard first base coach Dave Parker walk by and yell at Jim Leyritz (coming up to bat), "Do something." Having a 6'5" behemoth yell encouragement didn't help.
An important question for players and coaches to address is:
“What does this behavior hope to accomplish?”
Rude, insulting, or passive-aggressive behavior seldom accomplishes the desired intent. "I knew that you'd eventually take a good shot," won't endear you to a player.
Better communication connects better: separate the person from the problem. Instead of labeling the athlete as lazy, selfish, or negative, ask "what's your why? What are you looking for from this?" That creates more room for change as coaches seek to change behaviors.
Coaches want to raise player and team performance. Understanding their motivation might open a pathway.
Does a player understand we're on her side?
Does a player understand their position on the performance to potential continuum?
Does a player know her strengths, weaknesses, and chance to add value?
By the time the player's "at bat" it's too late. Exceptional players want coaching and have already come for it. They know the difference.
Lagniappe. Approval requires somebody else to complete the transaction. Contribution doesn't. Control whether you add value in domain expertise; we don't control who reads or appreciates it. Good work stands on its own.
"I'm cool with my kids failing... It's part of the process. Every day there is adversity... They have to learn how to deal with junk... It's okay to make a mistake. Get back up and let's keep going forward."
Setbacks and disappointments are part of the game. The Japanese proverb "Fall down seven times, get up eight" is a cultural maxim emphasizing resilience, perseverance, and the refusal to surrender.
The ability to persist is a superpower. Another cultural message is "chop wood, carry water." Stick to the fundamentals.
Study leaders, coaches, and exceptional players and you always find both skill and will.
The great John Wooden won his first championship at UCLA in his 16th season. Dean Smith, who coached Michael Jordan at UNC, won his first title in his 21st season. Students burned him in effigy in his first year.
Lagniappe. Coaches have a mental "depth" chart of players and roles. If you're dissatisfied with your status, keep working. Persist.
Here's an approximation of positional distribution (alphabetical)
Today is a big day with the PlayDay at Winchester. There is no availability for spectators, so it's "Black Box Thinking" for MVB fans.
All opinions shared in the blog are solely my own. The blog is not an official publication of any City of Melrose organization.
Life comes without an instruction manual. Over time, you become your own coach - seeking resources that add clarity, specificity, and simplicity.
Develop your own list.
A coach's prime responsibility is helping players to "see the game." - Pete Newell
Inspire. Nobody can achieve much if they only work when they feel like it. Learn to motivate yourself and draw inspiration from the world.
"Mentoring is the only shortcut to excellence." Find a mentor. Mr. Rogers said it another way, "Look for the helpers."
"Via negativa." Learn to subtract as well as add from your core. What techniques, beliefs, and drills no longer apply. "Less is more."
"Make sure your work is good enough that you would put your name on it." - George Roberts
Exceptional players are ordinary people whose work ethic allows them to do extraordinary things.
"Video is the Truth Machine." Work to harmonize what you think you see with what actually happens.
"Mistakes kill dreams." Volleyball is a game of momentum. Learn to get stops by avoiding errors and maintain runs by making plays.
Self-assess. "How can I get better today?" About 2,500 years ago, Sun Tzu wrote, "Every battle is won before it is fought."
Develop a core philosophy. Think of a list of attitudes, beliefs, values, and standards. Then use the "25-5 principle" to choose the best.
Accept the truth, live the truth, tell the truth. Great players thirst for the truth.
These are just a few ideas, many stolen from others. Remember what Picasso said, "Good artists borrow; great artists steal."
Lagniappe. All of you are good volleyball players. What many of you want is to become exceptional. Some of you will gain more athleticism as you grow and mature. In the meantime, cultivate it. Voltaire said, "It is up to us to cultivate our garden."
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.
Volleyball is not war, yet presents metaphorical battles and concepts available to us. More than ten years of Navy service taught lessons. History teaches more.
"I can learn."
Bowdoin Professor turned Congressional Medal of Honor recipient Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain explained how an untrained Rhetoric professor became a hero at Gettysburg.
Volleyball - Develop a learning culture.
"Always forward."
General Alexander Suvorov was the "General who never lost." He treated his mean well, was committed to training, and never retreated.
Volleyball - Earn the right to confidence via high performance.
"Every battle is won before it is fought."
Sun Tzu's The Art of War is a timeless classic from over 2500 years ago. He believed that preparation and a host of principles set strategic standards.
Volleyball - Preparation, practice, and performance follow intent.
"We will fight in the shade."
According to the historian Herodotus, a native of Trachis warned Dienekes that the Persian arrows were so numerous they would blot out the sun. Dienekes answered, "Good; then we will fight in the shade."
Volleyball - Think "Whatever it takes."
"Duty. Honor. Country."
MacArthur's legendary "Address to Graduates" (West Point) emphasizes the core values of the service academy.
Volleyball - Distill standards and values. Character. Sportsmanship. Community.
"Find one more thing."
General Hal Moore argued that there was always "one more thing" that could be done to help earn victory. Include that concept into your philosophy and teach it to our players.
Volleyball - Our basketball training and experience can shape us to become more when we're willing to apply what we know and sometimes to think "outside of the box."
"You can’t help when or what you were born, you may not be able to help how you die; but you can—and you should—try to pass the days between as a good man.” - Sam Damon in "Once an Eagle"
We can't choose our size, our biological limitations, or our upbringing. We can choose our attitude, our choices, and our effort to grow our character and competence.
Volleyball - Everyone can't become an exceptional player. We can choose to become an exceptional teammate and the best leader we can be.
