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How to keep individuals engaged in your sessions
Keeping individuals engaged isn’t easy, but there are ways to do it, whether that is by ensuring practices look like the game, building a rapport or setting attainable targets.
Keeping individuals engaged when playing a team sport can be difficult.
But, when you are coaching, you are surrounded by like-minded people with a passion for the game and an ambition to achieve something.
To engage individuals fully, it is important to know them as people before coaching them as part of a team.
How you engage one person might involve a different strategy or understanding than it might for another.
These are my top tips on how I keep individuals engaged...
Keep it game-related
Whenever I plan a session, I always consider this question: "How does this relate to a game and is it realistic for the players?".
It is important to communicate the objective of a session before you start. This instils in players the accountability for their actions to implement and achieve the objective.
"It is important to communicate the objective of a session before you start..."
Making it game-related means having the ball rolling and giving players freedom to travel - not too limited by cones.
That way, they are able to achieve the outcome naturally without it being forced on them in a non-realistic fashion, making them more likely they will perform the relevant skill during a match without instruction.
This process allows a coach to step into a session, ask questions, reaffirm the objective, provide demonstrations and add progressions or regressions, depending on development.
If players are progressing at different rates, challenges can be given to individuals to keep engagement levels high.
Coach-athlete relationship
Effective relationships and coaching environments are built on trust.
So, when joining a new team, I let the players know me as a person first before I coach. The players hear my background and why I am there to support them.
By showing yourself as a person first, and building a connection with players, you create an environment that breeds creative thinking, determination and a positive attitude.
Showcase your pathway with players. Get to know them as individuals and learn how they develop best. That way, they are more likely to listen, take things in and develop as people and players.
Put yourself in their position and ask: "How would I like to be coached? What environment would give me positivity and support?".
Let the team know your door is always open for any communication and reassurances required.
Believe to achieve
Higher-performing athletes tend to make more mistakes as they are more willing to take greater risks and try something new, all in order to keep pushing themselves to be the best player they can.
I ask my players to improve the 1%, those defining moments that can make the difference.
Make the accomplishments attainable and realistic, and help players to create a positive mental attitude as talent will always come second behind character.
I say to the players that I am their biggest cheerleader and in order for them to develop they sometimes have to pressure themselves, which is a privileged place to be.
Being a role model and leader
I, too, was once a young player aspiring to become a professional. Back then, with female football in the UK not publicised enough, I only ever had male coaches, so I never had someone I could relate to or aspire to be.
"The destination is the same but the journey makes all the difference. Enjoy it..."
Since becoming a coach, I have always tried to become a role model for young players or future coaches to show that opportunities are available to everyone.
Thankfully women’s football in this country has grown, making it more accessible. So now I show the girls that if you work hard and want something enough, you can achieve it.
Empathy and understanding
It is important to treat each team member as a person first and player second.
When any problems arise, always try to empathise with them and understand what they are going through. Often, we’ll have been there ourselves. Discuss what the problem is, whether it is football-related or not, and how it can be resolved.
Success is a journey - let’s have fun along the way
If we see failure as a negative then we are only limiting ourselves and not seeing mistakes as great opportunities for growth in the future.
If we walked a straight line, our vision and experiences would be very limited. But if we try a different route, off the beaten track, the new experiences gained are invaluable.
The destination is the same but the journey makes all the difference. Enjoy it.
No session is perfect. There are always future opportunities and new and different ways of achieving something.
What might work for one coach may be a total disaster for another. But by giving something a go, you are succeeding because you will know more now than you did the day before.
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Hannah Wright
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