What Did You Get Better at Today?

What Did You Get Better at Today?

So did you get better today or did you just do what you always do? The same thing. The same way. Nothing new.

As coaches we ask this question of ourselves everyday. The nature of our business requires that we continually deliver on the promises that we make to our clients, and so in turn we ask our clients this same question.

The athletes and teams that we work with practice in addition to the time we spend training them, and we ask this question of them and their work ethic during their sport practices, and even about their academic pursuits.

As a coach, did we coach our teams to do everything that we want them to do or did we just allow stuff to happen? Did anything happen in a workout, practice or a game, or did we read something or watch a video that can help make us better coaches?

If you're a player, did you work as hard as you can to make sure you are as good as you can be? Did you work hard during conditioning or did you just coast through, happy you didn't finish sprints at the back of the pack? Did you really work your hardest during the drills and skills portion of practice, or did you just go through the motions?

What about school? How much did you learn? Did you pay attention in class? If you play an instrument, did you practice with a purpose, or did you just do it to get it done?

There are myriad ways for coaches and players to improve, and these opportunities are not limited to the time spent on the field, the court, the pitch. Watch film, watch a game online or on TV, go to other games and watch what players - older or younger than you - do. Go online and find a new drill for your team or a new way to practice your skill.

We recognize that athletes constantly work on their own in order to improve, but when was the last time you heard the same thing said about a coach? I always hear players talk about their motivation to do extra work because they know their competition is always working to get better. Coaches have this same obligation to constantly work to improve.

So whether you are a coach or a player, you need to work to get better, every day.