To be sure, spring is in the air, and player are getting back into the swing of off ice training. Body has been rested for a bit, and not it is time to repair and rebuild. Spring is after all a season of renewal.
But in order to renew, sometime first we need the serious reality check. This go for player, coaches and teams.
For the player it is simple, but painful honest process. Can you evaluate youself without completely bullshitting youself? That is the biggest issue. So many of you not even honest with youself in evaluating you ability that you can not realistically establish reachable goals for the future.
So if you cant do honest assessment, how about you ask someone else to do one. How about you ask for real honesty and do not get mad at when you might find out. That is the sign of the true player who want to grow as the person and improve as the player.
For the coaches, it is a little simpler. There are a few way to measure you reality. I would send a simple multiple choice questionnaire to my players and ask several question to measure my performance as a coach. No player identification on the questionnaire, and have you captain give you the results.
Then I would call every other coach and owner in my league and ask them how they thought I performed. I would ask them to offer suggestion on how I can get better. No better way to learn than from you peers.
I would also then take that information and discuss it with a coach who may be my mentor at a higher level. This will help you become a better coach no question.
Owners, should talk to the coaches and the players. Talk to the billet parents, and fans. Ask for the honest assessment, and no sugar coat. There is always something to improve on whether it be better printed game program or more toilet paper in the restroom. Success is in the details.
Reality check is not easy thing to do, but need to be done every year. No one is perfect, and when we stop learning or wanting to improve, we can only start to decline.
Coach
