I learned that it’s not about working with the best coach, it’s about working with the right coach – someone I trust and can let my guard down around. In one of my earliest conversations with my coach he bluntly told me I wouldn’t get where I wanted to go unless I let go of some of my beliefs and changed how I think. I was used to hearing about my skill defi ciencies, but no one had ever challenged my outlook on the world. T at was personal, and it stung. I could have walked away then, but something made me go back. In that moment I realized that I had met someone who would not only help me improve my skiing, but help me improve myself if I let him. Your ability to be vulnerable with your coach is key; it’s what lets them into your head and what allows you to be open to change.
When you trust your coach, you have
confi dence in their advice and are willing to step out of your comfort zone. Change is never painless, you’re not going to be able to do everything that’s asked of you, and you will question some of what you’re told. Sometimes I feel like I’m banging my head against a wall, but I never abandon a task or idea, because I trust my coach with my development. T e certifi cation process is not easy.
T ere is an enormous amount of input coming at you from a variety of sources as you train, and reconciling all of it can be daunting. You’ll hear things you don’t want to hear and have conversations you don’t want to have. T ose moments are hard, but I get through them because talking to my coach is like confi ding in a friend. T ere is no judgment, just support and an unconditional willingness to help. My coach keeps me grounded, focused, and confi dent that I will get there.
THE TUTOR: THE ONE WHO HELPS ME FIGURE IT ALL OUT My tutor answers my never-ending stream of “why” questions, spends hours analyzing video with me, and helps me work through what’s going on in my skiing. If you’re familiar with Bloom’s Taxonomy and its classifi cation of learning levels, you know that there are many layers to developing our cognitive skills. Remembering is just the start. As we move through the certifi cation
84 | 32 DEGREES • FALL 2015
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On the fence about pursuing your own path to certifi cation? Check out these words of encouragement from fellow snow pros.
realize how much I don’t know, but that excites me because it’s during the time that I am exploring things with my tutor that knowledge and skill develop.
THE GUIDE: THE ONE WHO SEES THE BIG PICTURE A guide is diff erent then a teacher; they may off er tips, but their primary role is to show you how to apply what you know. My guide is the one who reminds me that learning means nothing if you never apply what you’ve learned. It’s easy to be so focused on your training that you become fi xated on performing tasks well and forget that the tasks are there to improve your skiing, not to be your skiing. Eventually you have to put the pieces together and see what happens. I have a habit of spending too much time practicing specifi c tasks in specifi c settings. My guide can sense that immediately and is quick to pull my focus away from the details and toward the purpose. A guide is also there to keep you safe
as you navigate new and challenging situations. You’ll fi nd yourself standing at the top of some runs, thinking, “I can’t
process we are tasked with developing an in-depth understanding that we can use to analyze and create. For
me, learning occurs through
questioning and vocalizing. My tutor is the one who will talk through concepts with me and explain things 10 diff erent ways until I get it. It once took two hours, props, and a lot of patience for me to grasp steering angle. I tend to walk away from clinics with more questions than answers, but I appreciate that because those questions lead to hours of discussion that broaden and deepen my understanding, which ultimately improves my skiing and teaching. T e more I know, the more I
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PERSONALIZE IT My system works because it’s personal. I didn’t set out to build a support system, nor did I recruit to fi ll these specifi c roles. It developed over time as I found the people I click with and came to understand what they bring to my training. T ere are a lot of great trainers out there, but if you don’t connect with them, you probably won’t get as much out of the partnership. Find the people you’re willing to open up to – those are the people who will be truly infl uential. Although I have three people who fi ll very diff erent roles, the constant is that they all challenge me to do better. If I think I am getting close to the bar, it goes up, and if I think I’ve mastered something, they make it harder. T ere is no easy way out, and there is no such thing as “good enough” when you’re trying to better yourself. T e people who expect the most out of you are the ones who will push you the furthest, so seek them out. A blueprint for success doesn’t exist and there is no ”right way” to train. It’s up to you to know yourself and what people and what system will work to make you better. T e path to certifi cation is long and it will test you, but with the right people behind you, you’ll get there.
Tanya Milelli is a Level III alpine instructor and USSA Level 200 coach. She spends her northern hemisphere winters teaching at Colorado’s Aspen Highlands and her southern hemisphere winters coaching under 12s for the Queenstown Alpine Ski Team at Coronet Peak in New Zealand.
do this.” It doesn’t take me long to psych myself out, but when I’m with my guide I don’t have time to think because he takes off and I had better keep up. I don’t always feel confi dent in my abilities, but I am confi dent that he wouldn’t ask me to do anything I can’t handle. So, I focus on putting my skis where he puts his and hope that the rest will take care of itself, and it usually does. If we never challenge ourselves to apply what we’ve learned because we’re seeking perfection, we’re missing the point. It’s easy to get bogged down in the details, but my guide reminds me to put it
all
together, and that is when adaptability and versatility develop.
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