“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
― Theodore Roosevelt
You will never be wrong (or right) if you never engage life. Competition involves risk of loss - ego, status, money, injury. But it also affords opportunity and the possibility of growth.
Sport challenges us to achieve mastery, maintain curiosity, overcome adversity, and reflect upon both success and failure. We become problem solvers, identifying our own and others strengths and weaknesses. Successful players and coaches learn to listen and share, that great problems require not the loudest voice but the most insightful.
The Socratic method encourages us to "skin the onion." Socratic teaching seeks deep and disciplined inquiry into thorny questions. Academic research suggests that Case Method Teaching, widely used in other disciplines, has broader applicability to sport. In other words, discussing difficult management problems can improve coaches' problem-solving skills.
Sport entitles us to ask questions, "can we do it better and if so, how?" This might relate to playing strategy, coaching philosophy (a happy medium exists between none and encyclopedic), best teaching methods, injury prevention, motivation, sport psychology and many other areas.
Answers arise necessarily from curiosity and questioning. Are you ready to ask yourself the hard questions challenging your process?
