By John Lubitz
(December 7, 2022)

I have been an assistant coach for various activities since I began my teaching career nine years ago. I have learned many things from head coaches and other assistant coaches that have made me a better coach now than I was when I started. I have also learned things that I do not think are helpful for assistant coaches. I would like to share how I feel head coaches can help their assistants be the best version of themselves. Most of what I am sharing comes from personal experience but a good deal also comes from books on the matter.

Head coaches are tasked with empowering their assistants to become fully invested in the program. When your assistants are all-in, they will buy into your way of thinking, increase their efficiency, feel influenced to accomplish more than they thought they could, and give them more reasons why they should stay within the organization.

What is the head coach’s philosophy?

The first thing an assistant coach needs to know is why one should invest his or her energy into an organization. Most coaches start coaching because they had a great experience as an athlete or because they love the sport. However, many will leave after a time because their lives get too busy or they do not enjoy coaching the sport as much as they did when playing the sport.

How does a head coach retain assistants?

It has to start with the philosophy of the head coach and, therefore, the team. Some teams have their mission statements written down or posted on locker room walls while others state it in different ways every day in front of the athletes. If the team does not have any sort of official mission statement, coaches will figure out the team’s goals by observing and listening to the leader. Every team and the head coach has some sort of overarching ideal. Getting assistant coaches to buy into that ideal is necessary if you want a well-run team.

The head coach needs to communicate frequently and honestly with their assistants just like they should with their athletes. Every line of communication should start and end with the mission statement in mind. In the book, The Culture Code, Coyle (2018) stated that all well-run organizations should revolve around these three statements:

• Work hard
• Be nice
• Do the right thing

These words are easy to remember, short and can be referred to in almost any situation. If an athlete misses practice for a legitimate reason and does not communicate with a coach beforehand, the head coach can ask the athlete if he or she felt that was the right thing to do. Having a mission statement like this one will also make it much easier for a head coach to give responsibilities to assistant coaches and trust that it will be done with the program’s philosophy in mind. When everyone on staff is on board with what the head coach is trying to accomplish, great things will happen.

Is this worth my time?

All coaches should feel that their time is valuable. Adults have busy lives. After stressing about making a living, managing a family, trying to stay healthy, getting enough sleep, or maintaining a house or finances, people want to spend what time is left on things they feel are worth it. I believe that people in general feel more valued within an organization when they believe they have a purpose in it. Each assistant coach should be given clear expectations regarding what their role is at any given time. Head coaches also should not delegate duties to their assistants. The word delegate – from the Oxford dictionary: entrust to another person, typically to one who is less senior than oneself – implies that the task given is something that the head coach simply does not want to do or he or she feels above it. Rather, the head coach should empower one’s assistants to take on responsibility.

Ambitious coaches will likely want to take on more responsibilities because they want to prove themselves. Good head coaches will not only hand out responsibilities to their assistants, but they will also help them in those tasks until the assistants have them in hand. For example, if an assistant coach asks to take on the responsibility of maintaining the team’s equipment, then I believe the head coach should, first, be very specific with what one expects. Then, the assistant coach needs to be shown how to do the job in great detail. The same coach also needs to understand that more time will be required outside of his or her normal coaching duties to do the job well. After doing a walk-through of the tasks that go into the responsibilities, the head coach needs to be willing to hand the metaphorical keys of the car to the assistant coach. Finally, the leader should allow the assistant to drive the car. Mistakes will be made, but a good head coach allows one to make corrections and grow. Good assistant coaches understand that the responsibilities are theirs and they own it. They know the saying, “I don’t care how rough the sea is, just bring the ship in.” Determined assistant coaches understand that bumps in the road will only help them grow and they like the challenge. They are helping the head coach and the team because it is a worthwhile experience. They have a purpose.

Do I have an influence on the organization?

People in general like to know that their hard work is making an impact. Assistant coaches invite their friends and family to games because they want to show that they had a part in manufacturing the product on the field. Coaches want to be able to say that they helped that athlete with their jump shot and that’s why they made the basket in the final seconds. The head coach, who wants his or her assistant coaches to reach a higher potential, will allow one’s coaching staff to feel invaluable to the organization. I believe these are the most important things a head coach can do to facilitate growth and buy-in for their assistant coaches:

• Allow them to speak their mind openly and safely. During team meetings or breaks in practice, staff should be able to openly discuss what went well and what they can improve. Staff members should feel comfortable knowing that they can say whatever they want as long as there is nothing derogatory toward another coach.
• Allow time for every staff member involved to share thoughts. Team leaders should understand that assistant coaches are investing time into the program. Their opinions need to not only be heard but valued. The best thing that a head coach ever did for me was called a play that I predicted to succeed. It was a big game in my first year with the team. The play scored for us and the head coach gave me all the credit in front of the team. Talk about a powerful experience for a young coach!
• Allow them a chance to take on responsibility if they ask for it. I feel that if you have coaches on staff that ask to do something, why not empower them to do it? If it is something the head coach likes to do, then he or she can at least allow the assistant coach to aid in the task or let them have a say.
• Allow them to take the wheel and drive. Let an assistant coach run a portion of practice, organize a team meeting, speak to the media, or call a game for a quarter or two. If the head coach is really about growing one’s program, he or she needs to be comfortable sharing the load. That includes sharing the spotlight. Assistant coaches will look back on those times they were allowed to run things very fondly and think that was an experience that helped them become better coaches.

In conclusion, a good head coach knows that stellar assistants will help the organization in more ways than they could do on their own. Keeping good assistant coaches can be a challenge especially if they have head coaching ambitions. However, if a head coach empowers one’s own coaches, he or she will always stand in your corner even if they are no longer on your staff.

Reference

Coyle, D. (2018). The culture code: The secrets of highly successful groups. Bantam Books: New York.