"I ask myself if I am putting myself in a good position to succeed: Did I eliminate distractions? Did I prepare? Did I practice? Did I produce? Did I honestly self‐evaluate my performance and see where there was room for improvement? Did I see the challenge correctly? Did I do my research before I shared my response? Did I reach out to others that might have gone through this situation to share their experiences?" - Clint Hurdle in "Hurdle-isms"
Putting players and teams in a position to succeed defines coaching. Coaching it teaching...and curiosity about our limitations. In his excellent book, Hurdle lays out worthy questions.
Did I eliminate distractions?
Computers do not multitask. They process faster than people, who cannot switch attention with the same speed and accuracy.
Focus separates the best. Focus allows attention to detail and execution. Whatever your responsibility in the moment, focus completely.
Did I prepare?
Preparation is physical and mental. Study the game. Preparation means refining skills, maximizing athleticism, and taking care of your body with hydration, rest, nutrition, sleep, and more. Mindfulness is an important part of preparation for many elite athletes.
Did I practice?
Practice means working in advance to be capable of executing the tasks expected of you. Becoming a defensive guard within modern basketball asks the equivalent of Rocky Balboa doing chicken chasing.
Were we innovative in building skill and athleticism?
Building in constraints (conditions) such as time, makes, or sequences ups the difficulty.
Did I produce?
Players produce in different ways. Scorers score, rebounders rebound. Players should ask did I impact winning and how? Did I make my teammates better - by communicating, by doing the dirty work, by helping the team finish plays?
Did I honestly evaluate my performance...
Each of us knows when we've shown high performance or fallen short. Nobody relishes saying, "I was bad." But we've all been there. Win or learn. Growing from mistakes separates long term success. The success equation is:
ACHIEVEMENT = PERFORMANCE x TIME
Highest achievement means exceptional performance over extended time.
Did I see the challenge correctly?
Success means knowing the task and executing it. Giving our best doesn't guarantee success. The eighth best poker player in the world may get her head handed to her if her opponents are one through seven. Of course, luck does play a role in that situation.
Did I do my research?
Research varies with task at hand. Coaches may need to study tape, player development, psychology, exercise physiology. Studying people and how our body language (hand movements, eye contact, body position) influences how others see us also matters. Research is unbounded and top coaches are curious and open.
In my sixties, I took the free Coursera.org course, "Learning how to learn," because learning helps craft our edge.
Did I reach out to others?
Sean McVay, coach of the Rams explained, "Everyone benefits from coaching." I've shared before how Harvard surgeon Atul Gawande hired a senior surgeon to review his technique. He wrote about this in "The Coach in the Operating Room." Another core belief states, "Mentoring is the only shortcut to excellence."
Lagniappe. When a coach says, "You can't teach me anything," they're saying nothing about us and everything about themselves. Abraham Lincoln said, "I will prepare and someday my chance will come."
Via ChatGPT Plus: Here are the big takeaways from Atul Gawande’s “A Coach in the Operating Room” (his New Yorker piece about inviting a senior surgeon to coach him):
Core ideas
-
Even experts plateau. Skill doesn’t automatically keep improving with experience; deliberate feedback restarts growth.
-
A coach supplies an external eye. You can’t see your own blind spots—tiny posture, setup, or timing issues that cascade into bigger problems.
-
Feedback is specific and observable. Notes like “raise your elbow,” “reposition the drape,” “slow your first three stitches,” or “move the monitor here” change performance immediately.
-
Coaching isn’t remediation. It’s a performance tool for the already competent (as in music and sports), not a fix for incompetence.
-
Structure beats vibes. Pre-agreed roles (coach observes, asks questions, offers concrete cues after the case) keep it safe, focused, and ego-proof.
-
Results compound. Small improvements in setup, economy of motion, and team communication add up to cleaner, steadier operations.
-
Cultural hurdle > technical hurdle. The biggest barrier is professional pride; once you allow another expert in, improvement follows.
How Gawande worked with his coach
-
Chose a trusted, highly experienced surgeon (not his boss) to watch cases.
-
Asked for micro-level notes on technique, setup, and communication—things colleagues normally don’t say aloud.
-
Met after cases to translate notes into one or two changes for the next operation (not a dozen).
-
Kept it ongoing, not one-and-done—performance is perishable.
Translated for any high-skill field (e.g., coaching volleyball)
-
Pick the right coach: someone you respect who’ll be frank and specific.
-
Film or live-observe: agree on 2–3 focus areas (setup, first actions, communication).
-
Make feedback actionable: verbs + location (“lower platform angle on float serve receive,” “call seam early”).
-
Iterate: one change per session, measured in the next rep/match.
-
Normalize it: “Pros have coaches” reduces ego threat and makes feedback routine.
Com
