Wooden & Walsh On The Process

The following was taken from an interview that Steve Jamison did about writing about these two coaches.

 Bill Walsh said the score takes care of itself. And he really meant that. In our conversations, he explained how he placed his emphasis on doing things the right way. His primary focus when he took over the 49ers was not on telling everyone when the team would win the Super Bowl. He talked a great deal about his expectations for everyone in the organization. He wanted players, coaches, and staff members to focus on executing the details of their roles.

John Wooden has some maxims on this topic that I really like. He says, “Little things make big things happen,” and “There are no big things, only an accumulation of little things done well.” He never said, “We will win a championship this year,” or “Our goal is to go undefeated.” He never talked like that. He never announced an audacious goal such as winning a national championship. He focused on doing the right things right now.

Skill Development--Isolate the skill, then Teach

A critical part to the game planning process is to identify the skills each player needs to perform the steps (tasks) involved in a particular play or sequence. After identifying the skills needed by the player, a team must a have a process in place for ensuring that their players develop these skills so that each play or player sequence is productive. Taking steps to develop these skills in every player occurs in two stages: Isolating the Skills & Teaching the Skills.


ISOLATE THE SKILLS
The first step in the process should be to analyze the tasks involved in the assignment of every player. Next, a decision must be made regarding whether the players have the ability to master the necessary skills. If it's determined that the ability of the players does not mesh with the skills required for a specific task. The Head Coach must either discard this part of his offensive plan or alter the play sequence to fit the level of talent.


Whatever the decision, the decision can be made easier if one strictly adheres to one of the cardinal principles of training--SPECIFICITY. This refers to the fact that "an individual gets what he trains for". All factors considered, the more specific his player's preparation, the better their performance.


TEACH THE SKILLS
Teaching players skills they need involves an evolutional process of promoting, enhancing, practicing and refining each facet of the capacity being developed. Rudimentary teaching progression of "hear it, see it, do it".

Bill Walsh's Perspectives On Coaching Values And Responsibilities

Bill Walsh’s Perspectives on Coaching Values and Responsibilities
From Coach Walsh:

“To ultimately become the best in your field you need time and experience to gain wisdom. And being inquisitive, having an ongoing interest in your own growth, and being able to communicate well. That’s vital.

I think the key to gaining respect as a coach is to be extremely competent yourself. Really, the true measure of your competence as a coach is in your technical knowledge and your ability to verbally exchange that with people.

In coaching, learning, speaking and writing proper English and being able to express yourself publicly are all extremely important. You should be able to openly engage in an exchange with anyone and everyone associated with your sport. The ability to communicate is really critical and without it you’re either not going to be a teach or you’re not going to be able to gather others around to support the program. "