CAP II CLIPBOARD Success
Author’s mission is to promote, respect and nurture a love for the sport of volleyball by Joseph Lynch
S
uccess is defi ned in the Webster’s dic- tionary as “a favorable or satisfactory outcome or result.”
What is being a successful volleyball coach?
I have been coaching club volleyball for eight years, fi rst as an assistant coach for two years and as a head coach for six. I was an assistant for two head coaches that had completely different styles. I tried to take the positives from both of those coaches to create my own style of coaching. I had no other resources to draw from because prior to the beginning of my coaching career I had played adult league for 15 years but never in a program. I learned the game from other players and referees.
I never had a volleyball coach as a role
model. What kind of coach did I want to be and how would I be successful? One measure of success as a coach or program is wins and losses. Having a win- ning season or going undefeated is a self- evident measure of success. But is being a successful volleyball coach measured by only wins and losses or championships? For some athletic programs and coaches I would say yes. Early in my coaching career the numbers seemed to be the most evident sign of success, and I evaluated myself and my success based on the numbers.
As I grew as a coach and educated my- self through USA Volleyball IMPACT and CAP courses, I re-evaluated my coaching philosophy and priorities, and the numbers
became less important. My coaching style and philosophy changed. Now my mission statement is to promote and nurture a love, under- standing and respect for the game of volleyball. It’s kind of a simple statement and is now my barometer of success as a coach. Another of my measures of success is developing a player, or a team, to his or her fullest potential. Being from a small club, I have frequently taken on players with limited volleyball skills and experi- ence to meet our roster number. This poses some obstacles, but also great opportunity. Starting with a mediocre player who has a good attitude and willingness to learn allows you to start with the basics and work toward developing skills and confi dence. Watching that player’s transformation during the season to where he or she becomes competi- tive and the team begins to win matches bring meaning to the work of a coach. Achieving this success requires a great deal of patience and is progressive over a season or a career.
While this type of success is gratifying and part of the job descrip- tion as a coach, it doesn’t meet the measure of success for making a difference in players’ lives.
Returning to my mission statement, the fi nal measure of success for 54 | VOLLEYBALLUSA • Digital Issue at
usavolleyball.org/mag
a coach or program is to instill a lifelong love of the game in your players. How do you measure that? Early on I had thought it would take years or a lifetime to know that one or more of my players would love the game for life and I had something to do with it. I fi gured it was a good goal, but hard to measure, espe- cially in the short term.
Three years ago after a very mediocre and trying 18s season, I was contemplat- ing whether to continue my coaching career or switch to refereeing. I was analyzing whether I was being success- ful as a coach. Was I the reason for the recent mediocre season? Was I making a difference?
Around this time a player from the most recent team I coached contacted me. She was a player with limited experience and skill, but she had a great attitude. She eventually worked into my second middle and developed a good block. Most players show up early for practice and want extra sets to hit. Well, this player was the one across the net blocking. She took great pride in her blocking. You have to love the defensive mindset.
This former player just graduated from high school and had gone off to her freshman year at college. In September, I received an email from her thanking me for my time and my patience with her. She thanked me for teaching her how to block. She also indicated that she was very disappointed that her college did not have a club volleyball team, so she had
started her own club at school. Wow! Our team was far from unde- feated or of championship caliber. We did not develop NCAA Division I level players. But one of my players now had the love and passion to take it upon herself to start her own club team. I had not expected to see evidence of that passion to blossom for years to come. As a coach I have had winning seasons, losing seasons, cream-of- the-crop players and mediocre players that progressed and reached their potential. Not until I received that email did I feel successful as a coach. I realized that I crossed paths with a young lady who when I met her was moderately enthusiastic about the sport, and now she had a passion for the game of volleyball. I can’t help to think I had some small part in that. Her email couldn’t have come at a better time, as I pondered my future in coaching. It helped me realize that I was making a difference and helped me recommit myself to being the best coach possible. It also made me realize how those players who I have coached in the past have touched my life in such a positive way. And taking my players example, I am looking forward to the start of my fi rst season as club director!
PHOTO: J. SCOTT CLOUSE
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