Coaching a basketball team is a very complicated task. The job as a coach demands a lot out of an individual. A head coach would have to deal successfully with the other coaches in the team and also the players. All these individuals will have different personalities, socio-economic backgrounds and also behavioral attributes. Therefore, to successfully deal with each one of them, a coach must possess a few qualities that distinguish a successful coach from a bad one.
Good coaches usually have different game plans, different styles and different approaches to training. However, the things that they have in common are the key attributes that make them good. These attributes are indispensable towards successfully dealing with other coaches and players. Besides being intelligent and being able to spot problems in the team before it spirals even more, coaches need to be equipped with attributes such as humility, respect, trust, and optimism.
Humility is very essential to get the team to want to work with you as a coach. You must bear in mind the fact that you alone cannot ensure the success of the team and also your career. As head coach, you must acknowledge the roles that are played by the other coaches as well. In fact, if these coaches decided to stop working one day, you would be in a lot of troubles. Therefore, you should be humble enough to ask them for their opinion and also accept their ideas. Instead of forcing them to implement your ideas, you should try to discuss with them why you believe your idea is better.
You should also be humble with your players. Never try to belittle them because of their weaknesses. Instead, always encourage and support them to continuously improve to become better players.
In addition to this, having a sense of mutual respect with the other coaches and the players is very important. Mutual respect goes a very long way towards ensuring a teams’ success. When the coach successfully instills mutual respect within the team, unity and understanding within the team will flourish. The simple rule to achieve mutual respect with other coaches and players is to be humble, polite and above all, walk the talk. Also, a coach must, at all costs avoid favoritism.
A coach is essentially a leader. A leader is only able to lead his men if and only if his men trust him to lead them. The moment a leader breaks his word, players will immediately lose trust in him. Losing the trust of the team is equivalent as losing the whole team. Therefore, it is very important that the head coach deals with other coaches and players in a trustworthy way.
Next, a coach must at all times be optimistic about his team. The head coach is the focal point of the team. During times of despair, the team looks at the coach for inspiration. The optimism of the coach will somewhat pass on to the other coaches and players in the team. However, if the head coach is a pessimist, this negative attitude will pass on to the other coaches and players as well.
These three attributes are essential to ensure that a team is run smoothly and at its best. A coach who neglects these attributes will most probably have problems in dealing with other coaches and players.
