4. Pay attention to little things. The crocuses are sprouting.
5. Meditate to become more mindful of people and the world around us.
Lagniappe. Don't let what we don't have interfere with allowing us to practice with what we do.
Lagniappe 2. Recent research isn't the only approach. This summary from William Irvine's book about stoicism is another legit approach. "Want what you have."
All opinions are solely mine. This blog does not represent the City of Melrose, the Athletic Department, the Melrose School Department, or Melrose High School. Don't blame them.
An area coach called Melrose a "Legacy Program." That speaks to results but reflects underlying processes. Winning is a byproduct of doing the right things at the right time.
1. Stability. Great businesses and great programs have leadership stability.
What do failing businesses have? Changing leadership, debt, and shifting priorities.
Barnstable has Tom Turco. Westborough has Roger Anderson. Newton North had Richard Barton until he retired. Melrose has Scott Celli.
2. Player development. "Every day is player development day." Legacy programs have systems to develop skill, strategy (game understanding), physicality, and psychology (resilience). Teams that do well consistently have a high percentage of players playing off-season volleyball and more playing high level competition.
The process develops more players with ability and consistency, both essential ingredients for success.
3. Gravity. Programs cannot lose players consistently to 'recruiting oriented' private schools. Private schools are now recruiting from other private schools, especially in football and basketball. At one point two years ago, three top area high school basketball players from Melrose were playing in Prep, private, or charter schools.
It's remarkable when a community can "keep players home" such as Reading has with their hockey program under the constant assault of recruiters.
When a program starts to fail, players achieve "escape velocity" and leave. Players want to come to Melrose and play volleyball.
4. Community support. Melrose enjoys solid backing from the community. It's necessary but not sufficient.
5. Relative independence. Every program and every coach lives in a hierarchy of administrative politics. When leadership dictates who plays and how much, independence is compromised and results suffer. Sport is a meritocracy where "you earn your paycheck." At the professional level it's obvious. At lower levels, it exist but is less apparent.
Fifty years ago in a neighboring community, local politicians had a vendetta against a program that cut a politician's child. Sanity ruled and the program not only survived but thrived. "It takes a village to raise a child, but a single child can also destroy a village."
Lagniappe (something extra). "You earn your paycheck." Invest your time don't spend it. Find out what exercises your coaches prefer.
The near arrival of another banking crisis warns us about the dangers of arrogance and leaving humility. Never underestimate an opponent.
Rule 1. Put the team first. Rule 2. Never forget Rule 1.
Build your playing value system using some of Don Meyer's.
Passion. Love to do what you do.
Unity. Be better together.
Servant leadership. Lead by caring for others.
Humility. Be gracious in victory and humble in defeat.
Thankfulness. Express gratitude without reservation.
Uncontrolled ego has uncontrolled risk.
Jonas Salk helped create the polio vaccine. But his refusal to share credit cost him. H never won the Nobel Prize and never was elected to the National Academy of Sciences.
Frank Lloyd Wright was a brilliant architect who refused to credit subordinates who helped his designs. His selfishness cost him professionally as his business suffered.
George C. Marshall was a master of logistics. He stayed in the shadows as General Dwight Eisenhower went on to command Allied Forces in World War II. The "Marshall Plan" rebuilt Europe.
General William Tecumseh Sherman avoided major battles during the Civil War, yet corrupted infrastructure giving the North a strategic material advantage during his March to the Sea.
Frank Lloyd Wright design.
"Pride goeth before the fall." Give your best to build a great team.
The AI Take:
"Pride goeth before the fall" is a proverb that means arrogance or excessive self-confidence can lead to a person's downfall or failure.
The phrase comes from a passage in the Bible, specifically from the book of Proverbs 16:18, which says: "Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall."
The proverb suggests that when people become too self-assured or overconfident, they tend to make mistakes and take unnecessary risks, which can lead to their downfall. It is a cautionary tale that warns against the dangers of hubris and encourages humility and modesty.
In essence, the proverb reminds us to be humble and to avoid becoming too full of ourselves, as it can lead to our eventual downfall.
All opinions are solely mine. This blog does not represent opinions of the City of Melrose, the Melrose School Department, the Athletic Department, or Melrose High School. Don't blame them.
Coach Nick Saban is a polarizing figure, creating cognitive dissonance, opposing thoughts about the same subject. He is one of the most accomplished college coaches in history. In the clip he discusses, "and" or "but" appended to your athletic profile.
Don't give evaluators a reason to add "but" to your resume.
Young people have many temptations which terrify coaches. Coaches counsel standards of behavior or Code of Conduct and most players get the message. "Unwritten" standards also apply.
Your school and the Middlesex League have chemical health standards for reasons. Use of alcohol, drugs, and tobacco products threaten your health and performance. Years ago parents allowed alcohol to be used at a party in their Massachusetts community. In the morning, a teen was found dead in their home. Not drunk, dead.
Social media can hurt you. Showing up in a photograph at a party where alcohol or drugs are being used may implicate you. Nowadays, people feel compelled to post their bad behavior. Who would have guessed that could come back and bite you? "Don't let 140 characters take away $140,000 scholarship.
Not everyone can be a great player but everyone can be a great teammate. Talk your teammates up, don't put them down.
Your choices affect your teammates. "Did you hear what the Melrose volleyball player did?"
Actions have consequences. Years ago a Middlesex League team (not Melrose) was favored to go deep in the basketball playoffs. One girl "stole" a teammate's boyfriend just before the postseason. The team fractured and got eliminated early. "Talent isn't enough."
Everything counts. Your behavior at home, academics, and your performance on the court all matter.
"You wouldn't understand. You're old." Everyone who is old was once young. Life brings challenges, ups and downs, joy and sadness. Choose to be an "and" player not a "but" player.
Lagniappe. By now you should have 'knowledge fatigue' about technical, tactical, physical, and psychological development. Sport rewards explosiveness, so train physicality.
Legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden gave every returning player a new ball at the end of the season. They had to return it at the beginning of the new season. It had better look used. Coaches don't have to ask if you're working on your game. It shows. "Champions do extra."
Coaches are teachers first. We benefit from research and experience in information transfer. Here are some lightly annotated quotes from Doug Lemov's book, The Coaches Guide to Teaching.
Leadership is a "we" business not a "me" business. Collaboration promotes survival. You know the African proverb, "it takes a village to raise a child." But there's a corollary, "a single child can destroy a village."
This quote is literal not figurative. There is no "muscle memory." Repetitive action adds a reinforcing sheath, myelin, to nerves improving the speed and accuracy of nerve transmission. It's "myelin memory" not muscle memory. Experience helps your 'volleyball IQ' along with your nerve transmission.
"Working memory" is limited so the more we "automate" processes like serving or blocking, the more we free up decision-making. "Repetitions make reputations."
Seeking the ultimate competitive advantage. Shelve your phone on game day. "Not gonna happen."
VDE means reliance on vision, decisions, and execution. Elite athletes "scan more" to see more opportunities.
"Why are we doing this?" Block practice includes hitting or serving drills. Game-based activities include scrimmaging. Tactical activities include 'situational training'.
Sports and teams have unique vocabulary which in theory gets everyone on the same page. A football play audible could include a variety of adjustments including blocking schemes, pass routes, and snap counts. Your lexicon could include hand signals, a clipboard with colors, or unique words.
"Less is more." Everyone processes information differently. Some players have learning issues (dyslexia, ADD, etc.) that demand extra attention and feedback to help sustainable competitive advantage.
I've heard, "any idiot with a whistle can coach" or "just a bunch of dumb jocks." Coaches and athletes acquire skills over decades. Many forms of intelligence exist. Coaches need intelligence across multiple domains.
Lagniappe. You don't need a whole gym to work on your footwork. Work on passing footwork, blocking footwork, or attack footwork in your driveway, on your lawn, or in your house if you have an open area that's not slippery. "Don't tell me you can't; show me you will."
Every great player was once a beginner. Hockey great Wayne Gretzky explained that one season he only scored ONE goal. "Of course, I was only six and all my teammates were eleven."
Opinions expressed are solely mine. They do not represent the City of Melrose, Melrose High School, the Athletic Department, or Melrose High School.
HS rosters always have turnover. One of the challenges is integrating young players. There's no sugar coating.
Returning players and parents don’t always see newcomers as part of winning tradition. Some see them as threats, carpetbaggers seeking to displace veterans from “their rightful spots.”
That shows up as bans on rising frosh from summer teams, workouts, and other exclusions. Carl Pierson shares that and other issues in his book, "The Politics of Coaching."
Reality is that girls mature at an earlier age and freshmen often have the size, athleticism, and skill to succeed young. By age fifteen, on average girls have 98 percent of their adult height. Mostly it's WYSIWYG, what you see is what you get.
I’ve heard stories of upperclassmen telling young players to “know your place” and “don’t make me look bad.” That dog does not hunt.
Melrose volleyball has less of that issue because of its culture. 1) everyone gets opportunity and 2) the best players, senior or freshmen, earn the spots. When you have the receipts, you play.
Coaching young players, I trained them to compete for contributing roles as freshmen. They know that other players will come along with the skills and determination to compete against them. Competition brings out the best, and the best enjoy success.
Screenshot from MasterClass, Coach Mike Krzyzewski
Success is a byproduct of values, not the other way around. Every program informs core values.
Successful coaches get full "buy-in" to the values and team concept.
As a middle school basketball coach, I preached "TIA" - teamwork, improvement, and accountability. Accountability means holding ourselves to a high standard - at home, school, and on the court.
Years ago I spoke with Kayla Wyland's parents, commenting on her exemplary character. Her Mom shared that she was every bit as cooperative and pleasant at home. If the walk or driveway needed shoveling, she was on it. That's accountability.
Coach K discussed having team meetings and team dinners to discuss program values.
Communication. What and how we share matter. Teammates feed off positive communication with each other. Communication breeds confidence. Communication keeps the ball off the floor.
Trust. Have each other's back on and off the court. Teams need ability, durability, and reliability. In the Patriots' culture, Bill Belichick preaches, "Do your job."
Care. Whether someone is an upperclassman or an underclassman, what counts is that they are your teammate. It can be a cliche', but your teammates are like your family.
Collective responsibility. As individuals and as teammates, you represent the team, the school, and the community. Community is one of the founding principles of "servant leadership."
At times, it may seem that we live in the era of self - me, mine, ours. Other cultures haven't seen it that way. "Through the Native American worldview, each person identifies character traits based on values they experience within their tribe, community, or family. Character traits or core values expressed are respect, integrity, responsibility, humility, and wisdom.
The Swahili word, "ubuntu" translates to "I am because we are." And another African proverb says, "I can go faster alone but we can go farther together."
Pride. Pride has an inexact definition. Pride encompasses satisfaction in knowing you did your best. You can be proud of your own accomplishments or those of others. You can also be proud of having done the work to succeed, even if your efforts fall short of the goal.
Everyone can't be a great player but everyone can be a great teammate.
Lagniappe. You don't need a net or a gym to build your body.
Front, back, and side lunges (two sets of ten each) are also great for leg workouts to increase jumping power and explosiveness.
"Luck is the perfect meeting of preparation and opportunity."
"Competence is the antidote to fear." - Chris Hadfield, Astronaut
Some people are reluctant to lead, concerned that they'll be labeled "rough, bossy, strident." Choose to lead by talking with, not talking at, by raising teammates up, not putting them down. "We can do this."
The voice in your head says, "I don't have a chance." Remember Henry Ford's quote, "whether you believe you can or you can't, you're right."
Work on our voice -
"This is what I'm doing today to improve as a student, an athlete, a player, a leader."
That might include studying leaders, reading a biography or listening to a speech.
It might mean critiquing your speech. "I spoke a little too fast, or said, "um" or "like" or "you know" that disrupted the flow.
It might mean recognizing a need to improve athletic explosiveness and doing drills for power, quickness, and jumping.
That happens by investing time instead of spending it.
"The only place 'success' comes before 'work' is in the dictionary." Remember the improvement template:
Technique
Tactics
Physicality
Psychology
You don't need a lot of fancy equipment to get started. In the video, the "equipment" includes a jumprope, box jumps (a low wall could substitute), and a mat.
"Winners are trackers." Track progress over time. The coach recommended that you track 'antenna touches'. Continually seek your PB (personal best). That works for school, jobs, sports.
Find your catch phrase, also part of sport psychology (parameter four) of your "performance statement." Make it personal.
"Champions do extra."
"I do the unrequired work."
"Repetitions make reputations."
"Competence is the antidote for fear."
"I don't cheat the drill."
Coach Sonny Lane reminded us fifty years ago, "I'm pleased but I'm not satisfied."
Play some inspirational workout music in the background, whatever your playlist is.
Many people are too proud to ask for help. They could need spiritual help, emotional help, money, technical help. Maybe they need a mentor or a friend.
If a player stops growing, they won't succeed.
Everyone benefits from coaching. The same categories of improvement for players apply to coaches:
Technical (skill development)
Tactical (strategy)
Physicality
Psychology
Be specific with recommendations. Mr. Rogers said, "Look for the helpers." Where are they? As coaches, are we supporting or chastising each other?
Skill development. At some point, every coach says, "I don't have enough good players." Remember what legendary UCLA Coach Wooden said, "Don't whine, don't complain, don't make excuses." Use available resources to improve our skill development - YouTube videos, online clinics, blogs.
Do our players 'buy-in' to the process? That's on us. What separates the most successful players from others? "Champions do extra."
Strategy. Xs and Os, analytics, "countermeasures" are all part of the game.
Study topics. Hitting, serving, passing, blocking, etc.
When watching games, "play along." What would I do here? Take a timeout? What actions are working or not working?
Study video. Break down successful teams' actions and study why other teams fail. Where are the points and errors arising?
Compile written and mental actions that work in your notebook or other "commonplace book."
Apply more "hard-to-defend" actions according to your percentages - outside versus middle attacks, setter dumps, back sets.
Physicality. Are our players in optimal condition? What's our plan to train them and to assess the training response? What's their nutrition and hydration plan? How much sleep do they get? Many teens don't get enough sleep. If we don't ask, then we can't know.
You snooze, you win. Study showed sleeping more increased performance in basketball.
"At the end of the sleep extension period, the players ran faster 282-foot sprints (16.2 seconds versus 15.5 seconds) than they had at baseline. Shooting accuracy during practice also improved: Free throw percentages increased by 9 percent and 3-point field goal percentage increased by 9.2 percent. Fatigue levels decreased following sleep extension, and athletes reported improved practices and games."
Psychology. Each of us comes with different hardware (cognitive capacity) and software (knowledge, learning and study habits). What's our plan to upgrade the hardware (neuroplasticity) and software (what's in brain storage?).
Mindfulness training improves focus, grades, and standardized test scores, lowers stress hormones and blood pressure. Use these free guided meditations.
Sports psychologists advocate for "positive affirmations" and visualizations. Have a mental "highlight reel" of proven success.
From AI: Volleyball downball hitting is a technique used to hit the ball over the net in a controlled and aggressive manner. This technique is often used in a defensive or transition situation when the ball is in a vulnerable position and the objective is to get it back over the net and put the opposing team on the defensive.
To perform a downball hit, the player typically approaches the ball with a low center of gravity and jumps off one foot, swinging the hitting arm down in a vertical motion towards the ball. The aim is to make contact with the ball at the highest point possible, near the peak of the jump, in order to generate the most power and speed.
It is important to note that the hitting arm should not come across the body, as this can result in a net violation or result in a weaker hit. The hand should be relaxed and make contact with the ball at a slightly angled trajectory, so as to generate topspin and give the ball a downward trajectory over the net.
To be successful with downball hitting, players need to have good timing, hand-eye coordination, and a well-trained arm swing. It is also important to practice good footwork and body positioning, as these elements can greatly impact the success of the hit.
In conclusion, the downball hit is an important weapon in a volleyball player's arsenal, as it can put the opposing team in a difficult position and help to control the tempo of the game. With proper training and practice, players can develop the skills necessary to execute this technique with precision and power.
It's more than a "free ball" and often less than a full on attack.
“Anyone can enter the toughest battle and die. This is easy for a common thug, but for a samurai true determination is in impartiality, and true virtue is knowing to live when you must live, and to die when you must die. ”
-Prince Tokugawa Yoshinobu-
Bushido informed seven elements or virtues in the Way.
Courage
Respect
Compassion
Justice
Loyalty
Honesty
Honor
Bushido reminds me of Don Miguel Ruiz's, "The Four Agreements."
Courage. Bring your best self to each match. Courage means facing your opponent's best with your best. Melrose has won numerous matches when others presumed they were outgunned. Perhaps the first was in the D2 North title match in 2003. Melrose faced Arlington Catholic which came in 22-0 without having lost a set. Melrose sent them home stunned by a 3-0 defeat.
Respect. Respect the game, teammates, opponents, coaches. Respect means treating everyone well. Melrose has won the MIAA Sportsmanship award in the past.
Compassion. Have compassion for each other. When I coached basketball, I worked to remember, "how does it feel to be coached by me?" The twelfth player on the club has equal value as a person to the star player.
Justice. "Do the right thing." Social media has great potential for benefit and harm. "Be demanding without being demeaning."
Loyalty. Make it about the team and about yourself. Be consistent. When success comes, act graciously and credit teammates and coaches.
Honesty. As in "The Four Agreements," be impeccable with your word. Also reminiscent of what Kevin Eastman preaches, "be able to live the truth, tell the truth, and take the truth." Coaches say, "don't cheat the drill," meaning to give every repetition your best, whether in a scrimmage, lifting weights, doing jump training, or playing in a sectional championship games.
Honor. Honor reflects how we do everything, how we carry ourselves, how we treat others, how we take care of business. Honor is doing our best, maintaining dignity in victory and in defeat. Honor shapes our character and ethos.
When someone describes a player as a "warrior," they give her tribute for dignity, respect, and integrity. From The Last Samurai, "From the moment they wake, they devote themselves to excellence in whatever they pursue."
"Leave our comfort zone." You've read it multiple times, "Champions do extra."
Beating weak competition is fool's gold. It sanitizes won-loss records and doesn't fool sport aficionados. "You are what your record says you are," said Bill Parcells. That applies at the highest level of sport, not when we choose to take candy from figurative babies.
A young girl watched a mogul skier. The girl said, "I love how you ski. You never fall."
The skier didn't take it as a compliment. She realized that she held back, refusing risks needed to improve and become a champion. She reinvented herself and became one.
Players and teams improve by challenging themselves to play tougher competition. "Iron sharpens iron." Coach Scott Celli has never looked for the easy path.
Coach Celli reported that the non-league schedule is finalized. Melrose faces three 2022 state champions - Newton North, Westborough, and Frontier and the always competitive Central Catholic.
"We can call this The 1 Percent Rule. The 1 Percent Rule states that over time the majority of the rewards in a given field will accumulate to the people, teams, and organizations that maintain a 1 percent advantage over the alternatives. You don’t need to be twice as good to get twice the results. You just need to be slightly better. "
Many sports distill to these concepts:
Optimize initial spacing
Create advantage (often via player and ball movement)
Execute at the scoring moment
The serve created advantage. Sadie Jaggers executed. Don't overcomplicate things.
Life is like that. Your offseason program is your opportunity in many ways.
Excel academically. Coaches promote players and hear back that the player couldn't qualify at their institution. That's disappointing and disempowering for the athlete.
Build skill. As basketball guru Kevin Eastman says, "you own your paycheck." Your "pay" becomes minutes, role, and recognition. At the end of the day, players play or bench themselves - their paycheck.
Learn the game. Watch video. Read about your sport. Find mentors. As Mr. Rogers said, "Look for the helpers."
Build athleticism. It won't happen automatically. Find drills and training advice wherever you can.
Become more resilient. "Toughness is a skill. Hard work is a skill. Success is a choice."
All the success stories in Melrose volleyball were earned. Nobody 'granted' a position or achievement to players. Remember the formula:
ACHIEVEMENT = PERFORMANCE x TIME
It takes time. I recently shared the "Pyramid of Success." Near the top, FAITH and PATIENCE flank Competitive Greatness. That means BELIEF and TIME. Build your pyramid using all the stones available to you.
“Be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them.” ― William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night
Lagniappe (something extra). "Champions do extra."
*I knew I'd omit exceptional players from the "tiering" and added the excellent Autumn Whelan, a fixture at libero for the 2021 Melrose sectional champion. MY BAD.
All opinions expressed within are solely mine. They do not reflect those of the City of Melrose, Melrose School or Athletic Department. Don't blame them.
To see a world in a grain of sand, and a heav'n in a wild flower. Hold infinity in the palm of your hand, And eternity in an hour. - William Blake
Independent film director Mira Nair says that to do her job well she needs, "the soul of a poet and the hide of an elephant." That fits the job description of coaches, too.
What belongs for coaching with each analogy?
The Soul of a Poet
Poets communicate and evoke emotional responses. So do coaches. Poets use imagination to shape their vision. So do coaches. It takes time for poets to develop their craft and engage a following. As does coaching.
The Hide of an Elephant
If you put yourself out there as a teacher, writer, or coach, others will push back against your tone, content, and context.
Missouri Senator Thomas Hart Benton literally brushed his skin regularly with a horsehair brush to achieve a leathery quality.
Sometimes people form opinions to generate controversy or to challenge conventional wisdom. Copernicus postulated the sun at the center of the universe with planets orbiting it. Colleagues lambasted Semmelweis for his germ theory of handwashing to reduce infections. Few accepted three-point shooting theories of Mike D'Antoni. If you want to be publicly different, get thicker skin.
Every new idea isn't correct either. Neville Chamberlain's policy of appeasement of Hitler turned out fatally flawed. British researcher Andrew Wakefield manipulated data showing the immunization caused autism. He had his medical degree stripped and continues to spread disinformation. We still aren't sure about how many planets exist in the Solar System.
Bottom line, if you want to coach, or write, finding critics won't be difficult. Or as I remind people, "don't beat yourself up, there will always be someone around to do it for you."
An AI Take:
The soul of a poet is a complex and elusive concept, as it encompasses many different qualities and characteristics that poets possess. At its core, the soul of a poet is a deep sensitivity and a profound appreciation for the beauty of the world around them.
Poets have a unique ability to see beyond the surface level of things and to find meaning in the smallest of details. They are often deeply introspective, and their work is an expression of their innermost thoughts and emotions. The soul of a poet is therefore deeply connected to their creative process, which involves a constant exploration of their own inner world and an ongoing quest to understand the world around them.
The soul of a poet is also marked by a deep sense of empathy and compassion. Poets have a unique ability to connect with others on a deep emotional level, and their work often reflects a profound understanding of the human condition. They are often driven by a desire to communicate important truths about the world and to help others to see things from a new perspective.
Finally, the soul of a poet is marked by a deep commitment to their craft. Poets are often driven by a deep sense of purpose and a desire to create something meaningful and lasting. They are willing to put in the time and effort required to hone their skills and to perfect their craft, and they are constantly striving to improve their work.
Overall, the soul of a poet is a multifaceted and complex concept that encompasses many different qualities and characteristics. At its core, it is marked by a deep sensitivity, a profound appreciation for the beauty of the world, a strong sense of empathy and compassion, and a deep commitment to the craft of poetry.
