In coaching high school soccer it’s a proven fact that self-control is a choice and players have to choose it just like they do for confidence. In soccer coaching, the connection between emotions and thoughts establishes the self-control strategies. All of us know our mental state influences our passions that accordingly enhance our performance.
I’ll share with you a 12 step strategy to help players learn the ability and discipline of self-control. Still, it is better that players take up these steps only when they feel that it is going to be of value to them.
What’s more, the players should also be prepared to take full responsibility for the actions they take. These are the 12 steps for your information.
1. Awareness: In coaching youth soccer, lend a helping hand to players in identifying their weak points. Have them analyze where, when, and how they lost control on field during the past.
2. Understanding: Make the players realize why their thinking changed and how it caused them to lose their emotional balance.
3. Differences: Give them time to recollect situations when they did lose control and when they did not. And then they should determine the difference in their emotions, attitudes, and behavior.
4. Problem: Make an attempt to identify the exact problem in coaching high school soccer. For example: The player may be feeling guilty that he let the entire team down due to his actions.
5. Belief: The players should be taught to raise their expectations for themselves with self-control as one of the traits. Persuade them that they can change.
6. Reinforcement: Reinforcement encourages a change in behavior. So, as a coach, you must reward improved behavior of players on their way to permanent change.
7. Goals: To guide the players through skill upgradation process, set a series of small goals for them. Guide the players in understanding the correlation between way of thinking, thought process, and actions.
8. Techniques: Build a series of behavioral techniques for maintaining confidence. For example: Course of action must be clear in the minds of players when a certain situation arises.
9. Plan: In football coaching, teach a planned and systematic way of chasing the goals to players.
10. Progress: Teach them how to be patent. Let them understand the principle of gradual improvement including the ups and downs.
11. Setbacks: Teach the players on how to live with the setbacks that are unavoidable. So, the best way is learn from them and become even stronger.
12. Remembrance: Last but an important point is to let the players identify the good reason behind the change. They should always bear in mind why they’re doing this. What would the change mean to them for their future?
We all agree that a perfect performance state for a soccer player is that of a relaxed promptness. It signifies the ability to use energy without any fear.
This should not be taken lightly. Coaching high school soccer must include relaxation techniques so that the players can learn to be in-charge of their emotions to save energy and kill any fears.
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Andre Botelho is a recognized authority in youth soccer coaching and has already helped thousands of youth coaches to dramatically improve their coaching skills. Learn how to explode your players’ skills and make training fun by downloading your free ebook at: Soccer Practice Drills.
Tags: Coaching high school soccer, coaching youth soccer, football coaching, soccer coaching