Motivate to be self-motivated.
That’s the mantra of every coach and teacher, isn’t it?
Along the way someone in each of our lives has inspired us to work harder, reach higher and do the extra steps needed to do our best for ourselves, our classmates and teammates.
Me. I had a couple such teachers plus my parents. It was my high school English teacher who told me I had the potential to write. She inspired me to read beyond the assignments.
Reading words helps you to write words. She was harder on me than any other student in the class but I respected her and still continue to do so.
Coaches need to motivate athletes to be self-motivated.
Work has to be done in the off-season by athletes and coaches to turn programs around.
Being "in" the weight room is not motivating athletes to come in and work hard. Coaches need to reach out to athletes. Now days, it's harder than ever to get past the hours youth spend on electronic devices — phones, video game systems and the like.
Don't make excuses for them.
Find out why they miss a workout session during the summer. Go beyond just like you ask your athletes to do when they play.
We all have to ask ourselves are we doing our best to provide our youngsters opportunities to be competitive. Have we found the right offense, defense, the right workout schedule, the right type of play — power hitting, small ball — to put the kids in position to be successful.
Being successful is not just about wins and losses. It's about wanting to do better the next time, to strive for that next step.
Athletes, I'm not forgetting about you.
You have to take advantage of coaches being in the weight room, being there to teach offense and defense during the summer.
Don't give excuses. Do the work and reap the reward. Participate.
Motivate.