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Hey everyone, and welcome back to my column! This week, I’ll be talking about a very common aspect of sports: coaches. Every team or athlete has some kind of coach. 

Whether it’s the girls volleyball team, or a singular track star, every athlete has that figure who guides practice and prepares them for competition. A coach could range anywhere from a parent to a personal trainer. 

Usually, coaches not only help an athlete get better, but they also sign them up for events, make the lineup and determine what position an athlete holds. Basically, having a good dynamic and relationship with your coach is a vital part of playing a sport. 

But not all athlete-coach relationships are the same. A lot of times, athletes struggle agreeing with a coach on the position they’re in or who they put out on the field. This not only causes turmoil, but it can also lead to a lack of effort or decreased love for the sport. If you want to excel in your sport, it’s important to be able to talk to and grow with your coach.

Here are some tips to help your relationship, fix your relationship or to speak up for yourself within the athlete-coach dynamic.

1. Make yourself known. 

If you are new to the team or to the coach, be sure to make a name for yourself in their brain. Coaches care about winning. Go up to your coach after practice and ask them questions like “What can I do better? How can I improve? What can I do to make the team better?” These questions not only show your coach you are willing to put in effort, but they also show that you care about the sport and the team (which can be more valuable to a coach than any sort of hidden potential.)

1. Be able to admit fault. 

Even though you might think you are always right, it’s important to show a level of humbleness to your coach. A really bad habit that many athletes find themselves doing at times can be thinking that they’ve been put down or demoted due to a personal bias or issue the coach has. It’s important to remember that even when they make a questionable decision, your coach may have other things in mind, things that haven’t yet been revealed to you. If you can be open to changing the way you play your sport, or be open to working hard, success will ultimately come. 

1. Use your voice.

Advocating for yourself is the number one way to move forward in a sporting environment. If you do feel like your coach has unfairly demoted you, or that you are being treated unfairly compared your teammates, you need to speak up. Many athletes fall into a habit of going off on or screaming at a coach, but if you respectfully come up with a list of questions or concerns, your coach is way more likely to give constructive feedback, and potentially even change their thinking, than if you were to come in right away ready to show them who’s boss.

Ultimately, you know yourself best. In some situations, coaches can completely ruin a sport for someone and the issues can go deeper than anything I’ve covered so far. Make sure to always look out for your best interests and prioritize your well-being. 

That’s all I have for this edition of Kaylee’s Korner. Feel free to fill out my questionnaire for questions or topics you want me to cover. Thanks for reading and I hope to see you (read this) next time.