Welcome to Coach Notes!
This blog is for coaches who care deeply—not just about winning games but about building strong leaders, resilient athletes, and unforgettable teams.
Each post in Coach Notes is designed to give you practical tools, inspiring stories, and fresh insights you can apply right away, whether you’re on the field, in the locker room, or leading a team of any kind.
Below, you’ll find an archive of every post in Coach Notes, organized by date, and a tag cloud of the top topics. Whether you’re looking for a quick team-building idea, a pep talk before the big game, or a reminder of why you coach—there’s something here for you.
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2024
- Dec 9, 2024 How to Talk to Your Child After the Game
- Dec 1, 2024 Three Ways to Gain Credibility with Your Athletes
- Nov 8, 2024 The Psychology of Pregame Preparation
- Nov 6, 2024 Winning the Long Game: The Power of Respect, Relationships, and Readiness
- Oct 7, 2024 My Coach Backpack
- Aug 5, 2024 The Power of Consistency
- Jul 15, 2024 The Pendulum of Expectations in Youth Sports
- Jul 8, 2024 Develop Your Coaching Philosophy
- May 6, 2024 Understand the Philosophy of the Organization
- Apr 8, 2024 The Quiet Battle: Navigating Coach Burnout
- Jan 26, 2024 The Power of Mental Reps: Elevating Your Team's Performance
- Jan 20, 2024 Navigating Through Tragedy as a Team
- Jan 15, 2024 Handling Pressure: Techniques for High-Stakes Competitions
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2023
- Dec 18, 2023 The Art of Effective Communication in Coaching
- Dec 11, 2023 Winter Break Essentials for Coaches to Recharge and Grow
- Nov 6, 2023 Mid-Season Parent Participation Practice
- Nov 1, 2023 Visual Victory: Unlocking the Power of Visualization in Sports
- Oct 27, 2023 How to Keep Your Teammates Accountable
- Oct 12, 2023 Rebuilding Confidence Post-Injury
- Oct 2, 2023 Mastering the Art of the Pre-Game Ritual: A Guide for Athletes
- Sep 28, 2023 Self-Talk Conversation
- Jul 27, 2023 Mental Toughness for Young Athletes
- Jul 18, 2023 You Hit Like a Girl
- Jul 12, 2023 Team Synergy: Cultivating Teamwork and Communication in Sports
- Jul 3, 2023 The Top 12 Questions from Aspiring Mental Performance Coaches
- Jun 2, 2023 Developing Mental Strength and Resilience in Youth Athletes
- Jun 1, 2023 Mental Toughness Training Examples
- Jun 1, 2023 Sample Visualization Exercises
- Jun 1, 2023 Sample Competitive Drills
- Jun 1, 2023 Sample Decision-Making Drills
- Jun 1, 2023 Sample Endurance Drills
- May 30, 2023 Empowering Young Athletes
- May 25, 2023 Beyond Talent: The Crucial Role of Character in Athlete Recruitment
- May 12, 2023 Emphasizing the Importance of Failure
- May 4, 2023 Game On: Crafting Engaging Practices for Youth Athletes to Maximize Fun and Learning
- May 2, 2023 Grace Under Pressure: Effective Stress Management in Sports
- Apr 25, 2023 Creating a Positive Team Culture: Defining, Reinforcing, and Celebrating Team Values
- Mar 9, 2023 In the Zone: Mastering Focus and Concentration
- Feb 22, 2023 How Athletes Can Use the Power of Breath to Improve Performance
- Feb 13, 2023 Activity: Monster Draw
- Feb 12, 2023 Speak TO the Athlete, not AT the athlete
- Feb 1, 2023 The Psychology of Coaching: Understanding Motivation, Focus, and Resilience
- Feb 1, 2023 the present of presence
- Jan 23, 2023 the echoes of a coach's voice
- Jan 16, 2023 Harnessing the Champion's Mindset: The Power of Positive Self-Talk in Sports
- Jan 11, 2023 Shaping Tomorrow's Champions
- Jan 11, 2023 Empowering Athletes to Take Ownership of Their Growth
- Jan 3, 2023 Inspiring Athletes through Coaches' Continuous Learning
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2022
- Dec 22, 2022 The Flow Factor: Unlocking the Hidden Potential of Young Athletes
- Dec 19, 2022 Recomended books to read in 2023
- Dec 16, 2022 How can we teach kids about emotional intelligence? (Emotional Intelligence part 2)
- Dec 9, 2022 Why does emotional intelligence matter? (Emotional Intelligence part 1)
- Dec 9, 2022 Five Ways to Help a Student-Athlete Develop Self-Efficacy
- Nov 21, 2022 Taking Ownership of Your Sport Experience
- Nov 14, 2022 I learned it from watching you!
- Nov 10, 2022 Time Out or Pause?
- Nov 3, 2022 Creating a learning environment
- Oct 4, 2022 The Promises of Coach John Wooden
- Oct 3, 2022 Focusing on the Process, Not Just the Outcome
- Sep 19, 2022 Every Child Just Wants to be Seen
- Sep 18, 2022 Activity: Hero, Hardship, Highlight
- Sep 16, 2022 To Scold or Mold
- Sep 14, 2022 The Leadership of Alice and Dorothy
- Aug 15, 2022 Thirty years of coaching: Two Paths
- Apr 4, 2022 The Zipper Phenomena
- Mar 1, 2022 Freedom of Speech and the Social Media Scrub
- Feb 28, 2022 Perspective is Everything
- Feb 25, 2022 Coach the species, not the sport
- Feb 15, 2022 Normalizing Championship Reps
- Feb 7, 2022 The Gift of Struggle
- Feb 1, 2022 The Winning Habits of Elite Performers (full replay)
- Jan 17, 2022 How to be a great sports parent (full replay)
- Jan 3, 2022 Establishing the Mental Game in Your Program (full replay)
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2021
- Oct 4, 2021 Team Building Activities for Athletes (full replay)
- Sep 13, 2021 Girl Push-ups
- May 5, 2021 your presence is your present
- Apr 26, 2021 why we coach
- Apr 23, 2021 what makes a great coach?
- Apr 19, 2021 The voice of a coach echoes for a lifetime
- Apr 17, 2021 a whisper of inspiration
- Apr 13, 2021 decisions, distractions, and disappointments
- Apr 8, 2021 the teacher that changed my life
- Apr 7, 2021 empowering athletes to express identity 🧦 🧦
- Mar 20, 2021 rules without relationship breeds rebellion
- Mar 16, 2021 a teaching technique for coaches from Mr. Rogers
- Mar 9, 2021 a small way to make a big difference 📩
- Feb 10, 2021 spartans and mental toughness
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2020
- Sep 8, 2020 on being late and running laps
- Sep 2, 2020 no rewards, only consequences
- Aug 27, 2020 first speech in front of your new team
- Aug 14, 2020 on being bigger on the inside
- Aug 4, 2020 on sideline reps
- Jul 2, 2020 on the mental game 💪🏆
- Jun 15, 2020 Post-Pandemic Culture (re)Building (Full Replay)
- Mar 9, 2020 From Team-Building to Person Building: How to Continue Coaching During COVID-19
- Feb 17, 2020 Winning with a Mediocre Team
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2019
- Dec 10, 2019 Book List for 2019
- Aug 26, 2019 my senior athlete wants to quit
- Aug 11, 2019 Meditation for Athletes
- Aug 6, 2019 Activity: Legacy Letters
- Jul 23, 2019 "Off-Season" or "Prep-Season"?
- Jul 22, 2019 Control What You Can in the Moments You Own
- Jul 16, 2019 Motivation Versus Inspiration
- Jul 13, 2019 Winning and Losing, According to John Wooden
- Jul 11, 2019 The Resilient Athlete
- Jun 18, 2019 Activity: Skittles and Sprints
- Jun 14, 2019 Control Your Emotions, Coach
- Jun 8, 2019 Most Parents are wrong about Sport Specialization.
- Apr 24, 2019 The Choices That Make Us
- Apr 11, 2019 I Just Want to Be Seen
- Apr 2, 2019 Success is in the Details
- Mar 13, 2019 The Double Defeat: Can you lose twice in one competition?
- Mar 6, 2019 Belief and Sharing a Vision
- Feb 26, 2019 Starve the Anxiety: A Technique on How to Reduce Performance Anxiety
- Feb 22, 2019 The Art of Yelling in Youth Sports
- Jan 17, 2019 Meeting Your New Team
- Jan 8, 2019 The Art of the Handshake
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2018
- Dec 2, 2018 When Talent and Character Intersect - Jalen Hurts
- Nov 8, 2018 Abusive Coaching
- Oct 18, 2018 Family, First
- Sep 16, 2018 Winning and Losing
- Sep 14, 2018 A Father's Love
- Aug 23, 2018 Cheering for the Other Team
- Aug 16, 2018 Setting Expectations with Parents
- Aug 11, 2018 Activity: You, Me, We
- Aug 6, 2018 The Importance of Knowing What Your Athletes Need
- Jul 13, 2018 Once a Coach, Always a Coach
- Jun 26, 2018 Athlete Motivation
- Jun 21, 2018 Question: How can I get my 14-year-old to not be so critical?
- May 24, 2018 Conversation with Coach
- May 15, 2018 How to Connect to Athletes
- May 10, 2018 Non-Verbal Communication and Recruiters
- Feb 22, 2018 Taking My Shot
- Jan 31, 2018 The Double Defeat
- Jan 17, 2018 Attention to Detail
- Jan 10, 2018 What to say on the first day of practice
- Jan 3, 2018 Take Control of Your Destiny
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2017
- Dec 28, 2017 The Greatest Teacher, Failure is.
- Dec 13, 2017 Opportunity is NOWHERE
- Nov 30, 2017 To Scold or to Mold…
- Nov 23, 2017 The Number One Gift You Can Give...
- Nov 15, 2017 Why I left IMG Academy
- Oct 23, 2017 The Whisper of Inspiration
- Oct 16, 2017 Kids are not mini-adults
- Oct 3, 2017 Empowering Children to Find Courage
- Sep 4, 2017 A Coach's Voice
- Aug 26, 2017 Yelling vs Coaching
- Aug 20, 2017 Confidence beats Complexity
- Aug 14, 2017 Increase Emotional Intelligence with Intentional Interruptions
- Jul 31, 2017 The Zipper Phenomena: Building Character in 30 Seconds.
- Jul 9, 2017 The Captain Class: The Hidden Force That Creates the World's Greatest Teams
- Apr 9, 2017 Coach the Species, not the Sport
- Mar 26, 2017 Education and Discipline
- Mar 18, 2017 The Power of Belief
- Feb 18, 2017 Activity: Transformers and Blindfolds
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2016
- Nov 26, 2016 How to Intentionally Create Leaders
- Oct 26, 2016 How Getting Lost Helped Me to be a Better Coach
- Oct 9, 2016 Five Communication Tips for Coaches
- Oct 2, 2016 The Secret Ingredient of Youth Sport Success
- Aug 12, 2016 Talent Gets You Noticed, Character Gets You Recruited
- Jul 31, 2016 First Day of Practice
- Jul 19, 2016 How catching a Pokemon can help you win more games.
- Jun 4, 2016 First Impression as a Coach
- May 29, 2016 What Are you Reading? My 2016 list
- May 8, 2016 "The New Coach" - Sweep the Shed (5 of 5)
- May 1, 2016 "The New Coach" - Think like a Teacher (4 of 5)
- Apr 23, 2016 "The New Coach" - Defining Success (3 of 5)
- Apr 17, 2016 "The New Coach" - Setting Expectations (2 of 5)
- Apr 10, 2016 "The New Coach" - Getting Organized (1 of 5)
- Apr 5, 2016 Initial Email to Parents (Template)
- Apr 3, 2016 Learning Leadership at a Young Age
- Mar 13, 2016 How to Build Confidence as an Athlete
- Mar 2, 2016 The Difference Between Price and Cost
- Feb 29, 2016 The Art of the Post Game Conversation
- Feb 28, 2016 Fear and Faith
- Feb 21, 2016 The #1 Way to Influence Your Athletes
- Jan 16, 2016 Fishing for Influence
- Jan 11, 2016 More than a Title to be Influential
- Jan 7, 2016 John Wooden on Chasing Your Destiny
- Jan 4, 2016 A Role for Every Player
- Jan 2, 2016 Losing Twice in one Game
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2015
- Dec 30, 2015 3 Reasons to Encourage Playing Multiple Sports
- Dec 16, 2015 Where is the sun?
- Nov 30, 2015 Simple Basketball
- Nov 26, 2015 The Simple Playbook
- Nov 26, 2015 If.
- Nov 12, 2015 Press Break or Cupcakes?
- Oct 28, 2015 How to Create the Ultimate Teammate
- Oct 22, 2015 Getting the Parents Involved in Practice
- Oct 14, 2015 Learning about your new team
- Oct 8, 2015 Playing in the Absence of Fear
- Oct 1, 2015 Mental Toughness: Defined.
- Sep 24, 2015 Dear Coach, I want to quit.
- Sep 17, 2015 Intentional Growth
- Sep 10, 2015 The Difference Between Winning and Losing
- Sep 3, 2015 Not everyone gets a trophy
- Aug 29, 2015 5 Ways to Increase Coach-to-Athlete Communication
- Aug 23, 2015 There isn't more to life than this...
- Aug 20, 2015 Top 10 reasons why kids quit organized youth sports
- Aug 16, 2015 When you’re up against a trouble
- Aug 13, 2015 What is Wrong with Youth Sports?
- Aug 9, 2015 Invictus, aka "I am the captain of my soul" [poem]
- Aug 8, 2015 Question for you...
- Aug 2, 2015 Don't Quit
- Jul 30, 2015 Hall of Fame inductee John Smoltz
- Jul 26, 2015 The Cookie Thief
- Jul 22, 2015 What if Your Teammates Don't Like You?
- Jul 19, 2015 The Victor
- Jul 16, 2015 How to Increase Concentration
- Jul 12, 2015 The Road Ahead or The Road Behind
- Jul 9, 2015 The Power of Belief
- Jul 2, 2015 How to Create Confidence on Game Day
- Jun 25, 2015 The Art of Yelling in Youth Sports
- Jun 18, 2015 Three Rules to Being a Great Athlete
- Jun 11, 2015 Changing the Game Project
- Jun 4, 2015 Mental Toughness, defined
- May 28, 2015 Five Communication Tips for Coaches
- May 21, 2015 Yes, I do play my favorites
- May 14, 2015 Parental Communication After a Loss
- May 12, 2015 3 Tips For Creating Sports Confidence
- Apr 30, 2015 Mental Toughness, defined
- Apr 23, 2015 Sportsmanship is not dead
- Apr 16, 2015 How to Create a Mistake Recovery Routine
- Apr 9, 2015 When should a youth athlete specialize?
- Apr 2, 2015 How to Develop Mental Toughness in an Athlete
- Mar 26, 2015 Introduction to Coach Notes
- Mar 9, 2015 If you think you are beaten, you are.
- Feb 20, 2015 Winning Youth Coaching Podcast
- Jan 16, 2015 The Easy Goal Setting Process
- Jan 9, 2015 An Argument Against Single-Sport Athletes
- Jan 9, 2015 Mental Toughness Book List
- Jan 5, 2015 3 Reasons Your Child Should Play Multiple Sports
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2014
- Oct 23, 2014 The Importance of Self Talk
- Oct 20, 2014 Catching Kayla
- May 24, 2014 A Life Without Questions
- May 8, 2014 A story of Anger and Forgiveness
- Apr 9, 2014 Build a Wall of Success
- Apr 4, 2014 If you think you are beaten…
- Jan 12, 2014 What is your “building” made of?
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2013
- Dec 21, 2013 An Eagle who Believed he was a Chicken
- Oct 23, 2013 Thinking [poem]
- Oct 10, 2013 10 Things I wish my athletes would do!
- Oct 5, 2013 Is the TV on?
- Sep 27, 2013 Don't judge a book by its cover.
- Sep 24, 2013 All of Life is Sales
- May 5, 2013 Should you wait to lose weight?
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2012
- Apr 3, 2012 Favorite Music, April 2012
- Mar 30, 2012 The Angry Boy and a Box of Nails
- Mar 3, 2012 Favorite Songs-March 2012
- Feb 28, 2012 Athletes are the last stronghold of discipline we have on our campuses today
- Feb 2, 2012 Favorite Songs-February 2012
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2011
- Oct 30, 2011 2 Great articles and a Video worth your time
- Oct 28, 2011 Top 5 Fitness Myths
- Jul 19, 2011 David McClain, Weight Loss Journey
- Jun 27, 2011 Your Two Week Nutrition Plan for Crazy Weight Loss
- Jun 23, 2011 My Reality Show Pitch
- Jun 16, 2011 Jamie Oliver's TED award speech
- May 10, 2011 Mindbody Software for Online Scheduling
- Mar 19, 2011 Tips for Personal Trainers and Coaches
- Feb 21, 2011 Crunches
- Feb 17, 2011 The Commercial Workout
- Feb 10, 2011 Email and Calendar for Trainers and Coaches
- Feb 9, 2011 The Truth about Nutrition and Health
- Feb 3, 2011 Writing Thank you notes
- Feb 2, 2011 The surprising truth about what motivates us
- Feb 1, 2011 Old Man, Boy, Donkey
- Feb 1, 2011 Every Woman's Favorite Workout
- Jan 29, 2011 Jan 24-28: Weekly Wrap Up
- Jan 25, 2011 Wall Sits: FB Challenge
- Jan 24, 2011 [video] Jack LaLanne dies at age 96
- Jan 21, 2011 Make a Bok Choy Salad
- Jan 18, 2011 MY thoughts on YOUR weight loss
- Jan 13, 2011 What is a BOSU Ball?
- Jan 13, 2011 The Proper Warm Up
- Jan 10, 2011 Supplements and Weightloss
- Jan 7, 2011 A Lifestyle of Weight-loss
- Jan 4, 2011 Online Group Coaching
- Jan 3, 2011 Standing Core Blaster
- Jan 2, 2011 The #1 Weightloss Inhibitor
- Jan 1, 2011 This is a post about me
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2010
- Dec 31, 2010 Happy New Rear! -Free Running App
- Dec 26, 2010 Private Online Coaching
- Dec 21, 2010 First Steps to Weight Loss
- Dec 19, 2010 Merry Fitness and a Happy New Rear!
- Dec 15, 2010 Self talk and a black eye
- Dec 8, 2010 YURU Fitness Professional
- Nov 16, 2010 Will Smith: Running and Reading
- Nov 11, 2010 Working out is not for quitters
- Nov 2, 2010 Moving to the California Central Coast
- Oct 22, 2010 Molding Men
- Oct 22, 2010 You are going back to the gym, now what?
- Sep 27, 2010 26point2miles: A marathon journey by a non-runner
- Sep 22, 2010 Know your limits and don't test them!
- Sep 20, 2010 I Can’t Believe its not Butter: the lies in it’s advertising campaign
- Sep 16, 2010 Friend or Enemy?
- Sep 10, 2010 Throw out the scale or throw out calorie counting?
- Sep 4, 2010 Add a Side of Exercise!
- Sep 3, 2010 In the beginning…
- Aug 28, 2010 From a Diet Mentality to a Healthy Change
- Aug 14, 2010 Carbohydrates: Simple vs. Complex
- Aug 10, 2010 “Trying” to Lose Weight
- Jul 22, 2010 Good food choices
- Jul 20, 2010 Post Workout Nutrition
- Jul 19, 2010 Exercise vs. Nutrition
- Jul 16, 2010 Building Sustainable Fitness
- Jul 15, 2010 Make yourself a priority!
- Jul 9, 2010 Habits and your weight loss
- Jun 14, 2010 Secrets of success in 8 words, 3 minutes
- Jun 8, 2010 Will Smith wisdom, part two
- Jun 7, 2010 Will Smith wisdom, part one
- Jun 3, 2010 Sleep: How to get some
- Jun 2, 2010 Exercise and Aging
- May 30, 2010 You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take
- May 21, 2010 Will Power
- May 18, 2010 Don’t be afraid of coffee!
- May 17, 2010 Interview: “Who to know in the No” Part Two
- May 16, 2010 Interview: “Who to know in the No” Part One
- Apr 30, 2010 Finding Happiness
- Apr 28, 2010 1/2 of Americans are on Meds
- Apr 22, 2010 Overweight or Unhealthy?
- Feb 27, 2010 Going back to the gym and don't know where to start...
- Feb 24, 2010 100 Pushups by the end of the day
- Feb 22, 2010 6 Tips to a positive Life
- Feb 21, 2010 Availability + Adaptability = SUCCESS
- Feb 19, 2010 Building a Winning Team
- Feb 14, 2010 Valentine’s Day Fitness date?
- Feb 6, 2010 Bootcamp in Fresno, Ca-Leathal Energy Fitness Camps
- Feb 1, 2010 Accountability. Grab a partner…
- Jan 25, 2010 Breakfast foods that will help you burn calories!
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2009
- Nov 10, 2009 A Championship Game
- Oct 10, 2009 Rules: Golden vs. Platinum
- Sep 24, 2009 What makes one guy a champion and the other one not?
- Jul 18, 2009 Graduation shouldn't stop you from learning!
- Apr 27, 2009 Your Poise as a coach in pressure situations
- Apr 23, 2009 Did you want to be like your coach?
- Apr 21, 2009 Playing v Coaching
- Apr 14, 2009 The Manning Brothers will Coach a 1993 Rivalry Game
- Mar 29, 2009 Motivation through Fear