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Outdoor Season is upon us!
Opening this week: Monday--Vella Park(Niles varsity field) Tuesday--Berrien Springs(Indoor this week due to the baseball tournament) Wednesday--Coloma(Varsity Field) Thursday—Dollhouse Contact us immediately with questions! Weather: if you are questioning weather, we will post on each day’s individual group page by 2:00 on the day of if we will be inside or outside. If possible we always stay outside in rain, but if storms we have to move back inside to the Dollhouse! Thank you! We are all looking forward to a GREAT summer! If you are wait listed, pay attention to the groups. That’s where the openings are posted! You need to claim spots when they open!
 Core Values are the foundation of team culture by Coach Amber Core values are the foundation of what you do and why you do it. For a team, they are anchoring principles that ground you and guide you toward collaborative success. Team values serve as the essence of what your program stands for and they are expected to be shared by everyone. But how? Where do you start? Developing and communicating core values begins and ends with the coaching staff. However, because core values are central to team success and character development, it is vital to involve your team in determining them, making them visible, emphasizing them, and using them as a guide for your program’s daily decisions and actions. Each year, your team has new faces and new minds. A good tip is to have a few non-negotiables that do not alter year to year. Then after determining your teams, have a transparent chat about what your goals are and the best way to achieve them with the mental and physical talent your new squad possesses. At the Dollhouse, this is no exception. When DD was coming to fruition, the first thought was that KIDS ARE FIRST. For us, it is not just about educating proper softball skill but developing real connections on a deeper level which will lead to empowered character development. We are not churning out hardware hunting softball warriors but future business leaders, moms, friends, team mates, and more. Those titles will define us forever and leave a lasting legacy not how hard we can throw a softball. We are proud to say we are helping to grow a village of little lady warriors, we just happen to speak "softball" to do it. Even at the tater tot age levels, these practices can be implemented! Keep it simple and age appropriate. Our weekly leadership lessons lately have honed in on positive affirmations and how they can influence our actions.  I WILL - Changing our mindset from I hope, I Wish, I Dream - Instead to I WILL..... My little lady leadership class is finishing up their lessons and we have been working hard on POSITIVE MINDSETS & ACCOUNTABILITY. I want to point out that these little ladies are between the ages of 9 and 14! Even at the tater tot levels, we can introduce core values and begin building a foundation of empowered team mates. The power of the mind can set us in the right direction. As we wrapped up our last big homework for the next 2 weeks, I challenged them to start each day with completing their "I WILL" sentence and then holding themselves accountable for reaching the goal.    Work Hard!! Play Harder!!
By Coach Mark 5:30- 7:00pm groups Softball is a game. Sometimes we lose sight of that, it is easy to do and frequently happens. Games are played. And those who truly excel at any type of game are said to “Play the game well.” I didn’t think about it quite like that 20 years ago, it was all about winning and world domination. Then I became a coach. Not just any coach, my first teams were under the age of 10, one that required adjustment and realignment to how I saw the game. Constantly remind yourself this one thing…..IT’S A GAME! If you want to be good at it, you have to work: Time, effort, sacrifice, all very very important things in order to become good. It takes HARD WORK! HARD WORK! HARD WORK! The harder and longer you work at honing your craft, the easier it becomes to compete. We all hear about that. BUT, what we don’t hear enough that should go along with it is HAVE FUN! It shouldn’t matter if you are 8, 18, or 48 HAVE FUN! A perfect example is Chicago Cubs Infielder Javier Baez. Clearly one of the most exciting defensive players in Major League baseball, El Mago (The Magician) is frequently smiling, dancing, laughing while in the field. To some it is a sign of arrogance or cockiness, but if you really look at it he is HAVING FUN! Yes, he has worked very very hard to make it to the highest level of the game, yes he is very gifted. When you work hard and do it the right way the game slows down, it becomes easier, it allows you to have fun!! Why am I rambling on about this? Well, my older group of ladies last night kind of had to learn a little about Work Hard, Play Harder. Anyone who knows me will agree, I love this game. I can be seen jumping up and down and hooting and hollering during games. At practice and lessons I am just as animated…..if not more. And just like the 8-10 year old kids I teach, this 48 year old kid likes to have fun too. Last night was one of those nights. The lesson was just as intense as the week before, it’s just that everyone had the giggles so I made the lesson fun too. We worked hard last night, we learned a couple of new things, but we had fun. There are times where having fun needs to take a break and maximum focus and effort are required. Specifically when player safety is involved or if the team has strayed off course and forgot the purpose of being there. It’s the balance of things. But also COACHES never, ever forget that we are teaching a game and there are also times where it should be fun. My goal is to get players to that point where they have worked so hard that when it is time to play that they embrace the game and have fun. Group Notes: Group 1 - We continued to build on the new mantra of Catch It, Hold It, Show It, Throw It!! We did ground work as well as flat glove work while mixing in those 4 key steps. These ladies are really coming along nicely and I can’t wait to keep adding elements to our lessons. Group 2 - We also built on Catch It, Hold It, Show It, Throw It. But while warming up I realized we needed to work on release follow through so added another element to it and they all saw improvement. I am starting to ingrain into their mindset that we need to turn those 4 steps into one fluid motion. Next week we will isolate them and try to mold it. Impossible practices are FUN By Amber Layman 7:00pm - 8:30p, groups Quite honestly, I see the most growth out of kids I coach when THEY ARE NOT PRACTICING. Weird concept right? We can get the most out of our kids when there is no pressure to be perfect, win the game, outwit, outlast, outplay our teammates for that starting rotation spot. When we coaches aren't looking, we get a glimpse of how fearless our kids are during their "schoolyard pickup play" before practice, on social media, or in between games. Kids are making up these cock-a-mamee games and will GO HARD to win simply for bragging rights of "trick shots" into the garbage cans off the dugout wall, #24's helmet, and a spin move volleyball hike into the trashcan! TAKE THAT FEARLESS SPIRIT AND IMPLEMENT IT INTO PRACTICE. Create an impossible practice where kids spend time creating their own ESPN web gems. - Dive for the ball and throw from your knees, back, butt - Snowcone catches on and over the fence - Throwing on the run We can't leave a game thinking to ourselves "if only she laid out, if only she was 2 inches taller to climb the fence, if only". Your kids will do it if you give them the opportunity to be FEARLESS. Impossible practices were always the highlight of the week when I was coaching a team full time. I set aside 20 minutes each week to create a web gem. While the kids loved the break up of routine, I loved that I disguised practice time with a game. More importantly, I was creating an environment of FAILURE and the kids ate it up like candy. We performed non stop drills designed to fail 99.9% of the time. How can we expect our kids to be fearless and run into the battle without arming them with the tools to win the war even if there is only a 1 in a million chance they will win? You'll thank yourself and your team will explode with competitive learning mindset if you introduce an Impossible Practice mindset! To get some inspiration, Click here to view the top catches on the 2018 Womens College World Series www.ncaa.com/video/softball/2018-06-06/di-softball-2018-wcws-top-plays During our Defense Academy for the older age groups, we progressively add harder defensive drills each week. As we near the end of our academy, I introduced Impossible practice drills and the KIDS HAD A BALL. I have never seen them so determined to try, execute, and consistently master a drill as I have with the introduction of throwing on the run. I didn't even get to our leadership teachings of the week because cohort trainees were laser focused on drills. They laughed, they shouted, they coached each other, and so much more. I sacrificed my own practice plan because I realized the drill itself had its own built in leadership module. I am so looking forward to the last few weeks of Defense Academy to wrap up a wonderful 10 weeks of building Women Warriors! ~Amber A new month calls for new hitting drills! Most of us are just a month out from regular season at all levels ( high school, rec league, travel kickoff) which means we want to really focus on proper contact and ensuring that our Bats stay in the zone through extension. Bad habits can creep in very slowly and wreak havoc if we don't keep a careful watch. We coaches take the time to build a structured a practice with routine drills however it doesn't take long before complacency and leak in. When this happens, the kids no longer focus on the drill but rather rush through and don't put in the focus needed. We recognize this and have created a curriculum of disruption this month! ***insert evil cackle*** Our hitting drills in February are designed to disrupt complacency and enhance focus to proper mechanics.   Practice Makes Perfect??? - written by Coach Mark (5:30 - 7:00pm groups) “Practice Makes Perfect”. We hear it all of the time. Whether it’s Sports, or Musical Instruments, Painting, or Cooking. It is one of those phrases that are thrown around in an attempt to push someone to be better by doing something over and over……...and over again. But, if you step back and think about it, take a really close look, the game of softball and baseball will NEVER be perfect. The game is set up around failure. In the long history of baseball the best hitter in the Major Leagues had only a .406 batting average. That means he FAILED to get a hit 60% of the time! In school a 40% would = an F. A pitcher who hurls a perfect game, I am willing to bet, was far from perfect. IF he was perfect it would have been all strikes and no balls along with the no hits. Both of those examples are fantastic performances and nothing to scoff at, but what I am truly getting at is simple. DON’T STRIVE FOR PERFECTION, STRIVE TO CONTINUOUSLY GET BETTER!! Continuous Improvement is what every ball player should strive for. There is no such thing as a perfect player, or person for that matter. I mentioned to the girls in my Defense Academy groups last night, after mixing in new drills and skills, that it is OK to stumble with new things. It’s part of the game!! Take what the game gives you, learn from it, and find a way to improve upon the previous outcomes. Every single player I have ever coached in my 15 years has had something to improve on. It is our jobs as coaches to find those things, become better coaches by finding the drills necessary to help the player fix those things……...then move onto the next thing to fix. In fact, every coach should strive for Continuous Improvement as well!! Example: Last week I helped Coach Amber with one of her Defense groups. She has a different angle on developing skills than I have historically done. BUT I learned something by helping her and seeing how the drills she was using impacted the players. So, this week I modified a couple of those drills to meet the ages of my girls, and integrated them into the things we were already working on. I learned something new and improved upon what we were working on…… So, with that I say, practice does NOT make perfect. BUT, continuing to improve and then moving onto the next thing to improve will make for a better player because the game of softball cannot be perfected. Group Notes: Group 1 - Another new friend came to work out last night. She was nervous and was a bit emotional. BUT the other girls all came in and showed true teamwork, lifted her up, and got her engaged. We had a great night!! Worked with the flat gloves, a new drill rolling the ball to each other to focus on eye/hand coordination, and learned how to “Show the Secret” when we throw. GREAT JOB LADIES Group 2 - We also introduces “Show The Secret” form when throwing. We did more flat glove work and also started the ball rolling drill to begin the foundation of not only watching the ball in but integrating the proper throwing posture. As if that wasn’t enough, we started working on the drop-step!! A lot of new things but you all worked hard and are doing great!!  Competitive Learning: Give & Receive- written by Coach Amber (7:00pm - 8:45pm) Seems a bit ironic that the the more we coach the harder the job can become. It is a testament to the learning styles of our youth today. The world is different for them. Our education system revolves around technology and lacks the kinesthetic problem solving elbow grease it once had. Our kids are geniuses and could probably solve world peace at the click of a button. But in the world of physical sports, there is not technology that they can use to problem solve. We need to adapt! Coaches need to tap into the learning styles of our youth to get the best out of them. And Coaches, we need to be open to learning as well. Drills are drills and stand the testament of time but the articulation of drills can fall short in interpretation from our youth cohorts. Just as we expect our team to learn and grow, we must also hold ourselves accountable to do the same. Attend a coaches clinic, listen to a podcast, reach out to area college coaches and request a chat. Coaches- Competitive Learning drives success While attending the NFCA coaching clinic in December, there was one phrase that hit me to the core. “COMPETITIVE LEARNING”, create a team culture of competitive learning. Learning something new or achieving a task that once seemed daunting can lead to infectious success. WOW what a statement. Often times team practices can turn into monotonous drill time. Kids can lack passion, effort, and can quickly drift into bad habit zone. Fix this by turning your drills into learning competitions. Find a weakness and figure out a way to jazz up a drill you already do in practice. After 3 weeks, I started to see how our “dailies” were slumping off into bad habit zone. The kids could articulate what they were doing wrong but couldn’t seem to make the adjustment towards achieving proper technique. Time to ramp up and instill some competitive learning. We took our daily drills and added visual aids to reinforce proper technique. Coaches remember in order to maximize effective skill progressions through catering to your athlete’s learning style! Many of our kids today are visual learners so figure out a way to bring that into practice!
You can think of a million little things that will inspire the kids! In the end, this will breed self driven team skill progression. Kids will know exactly what to work on, how to work on it, and define success. Basically you have just created mini coaches! We took the pitching plates and used as visual aides. Kids had to start in athletic position and push through the red zone before transitioning the ball into a throwing stance. Remember to move the plate for forehands and backhands and continue to push through the zone to enforce skill progression. We worked in partners and rolled the balls towards our partners. This drill set us up for later group succession when we convened and hit balls to the kids. Here’s the break down and visual:  LEADERSHIP LESSON OF THE WEEK - Give & Receive A few weeks ago I gave the kids a homework assignment. It is easy for them to say what they “want or need” but they have a hard to time understanding what they will “give & receive” in order to achieve the goal. So they were sent home with “TRUTH CARDS”. The assignment was simple
The purpose and intent of this lesson was self assessment as well as engaging our teammates to understand the “gives and receives” of success. Exchange a card with a teammate- if the team mate sees you are having a bad day, not engaged, or falling into bad patterns; she will use the truth card to fire you back up! This is an easy and fun way for kids to start developing deeper mentally driven relationships with each other. Call it code words, buzz words, whatever you like. These phrases are meaningful to the recipient and openly sharing your strengths and weaknesses with your team can hold you all accountable for keeping the ship afloat. I can’t wait to see the kids start to use these phrases in the coming weeks!  NO GLOVE REQUIRED- written by Coach Mark (5:30pm - 7:00pm) As I mentioned last week, I came to a pretty clear realization that we needed to do some work on our basic catching and ball transfer skills. I have been using the flat gloves with my weekly Field & Hit lesson group for several weeks now and the results have been awesome. They would use them each lesson if I would let them!! When I told the defense girls last night that they would be using the flat gloves they were a bit shocked. A couple even questioned how…...but once Amber showed them the drill it made sense. That got me thinking and this little blog is the result. Baseball was invented in 1839 by Abner Doubleday in Cooperstown, New York (The home of the Baseball Hall Of Fame). Although much has changed with the game….and now there is softball too…...the basic rules for the most part have not. It wasn’t until 1870 when a catcher named Doug Allison crafted a padded fingerless glove to protect his injured hand.  That means that for over 20 years baseball teams played without gloves! They still caught the ball, made the plays, and the game went along just fine. In some countries that are far less fortunate than we are the game is played with whatever equipment they can get their hands on…...often without gloves. My point to all of this is pretty simple-Sometimes gloves (extra equipment) can get in the way. The size of them nowadays has reached proportions that some need their own mailing address. As Coach Trish has said many times when speaking about bats, this holds true with gloves as well…….It’s not the arrow, it’s the Indian. In this case, it’s not the glove but the hand in it and the brain driving it all. Group notes: - Group 1 Growing, growing, growing!! That’s what it is all about!! We continued working on proper throwing mechanics, ready-ready stance to field the ball, and no glove catching work. Keep digging ladies, good things are coming!! -Group 2 Thank you to Coach Amber for stopping by to help out!! We implemented the flat gloves last night to work on our eye-hand coordination for catching and they did great. Zig-Zag drill station was focused on taking the proper angle to the ball and brought Zippy The Zebra in to serve as First Baseman……..Good work ladies! Have a great week, see you all next Wednesday, and remember……..DEFENSE WINS BALL GAMES!! Coach Mark Stay the course & Fix the Details- written by Coach Amber (7:00pm - 8:45pm) Last week we highlighted that as we grow in knowledge we often forget the basics or foundational aspects of any given task. We sabotage ourselves and our team when we don't pay attention and nurture the fundamental mechanics of the game. Coaches get frustrated with not seeing the INSTANT skill progression that they expect and begin to complicate drills, add “the next best thing” in equipment, or stray from the problem to focus on STRENGTHENING THEIR STRENGTHS. Coaches- Stay the course! Reinforcing proper mechanics and build muscle memory before trying to complicate your skill progression efforts with fancy drills and often unneeded “trendy equipment”. Follow your instincts and trust the journey! The best way to accomplish this is to add small drills to your everyday warm-up. Create a routine practice plan with Block scheduling. Carefully craft a schedule that meets your team’s skill progressions needs by blocking out time for warm up, skill progression drills, and live action. Don't know how? Just ask- we have plenty or templates to help or let us help you design your own! Too often I drive by fields where teams are practicing and I see 1 kid working and the rest waiting in line or waiting their turn to perform a drill. OR the dreaded age old 45 minutes dedicated to coach hitting a ball anywhere in the field and then stopping practice to “preach about mistakes”. In that 45 minute time frame, the kids have touched the ball 10 times or less. If you would have dedicated 10 minutes on the front end of practice for drill stations, partner drills, or “dailies” as we call them; you have primed your team to be more successful by isolating your problem points with fundamental drills. And during that 10 minute “daily” drill, kids have now touched the ball close to 30 times! Exponentially increasing the good muscle memory and DETAIL WORK over 45 minutes of standing around and kicking dirt. LEADERSHIP LESSON OF THE WEEK - It’s all in the details   If the builder (yourself, your team, your coaching approach) had known the consequences, he would have demanded excellence from himself.
SOFTBALL , CLASSROOMS, FRIENDS, WORKLIFE- is not that different! We go about our business, working as we see fit. Some with passion, some without caring. Some with excellence, some with low standards. Some with diligence, some without effort. We are all in the process of building our own lives. If you’re not happy with what you see, perhaps it’s a direct consequence of what you’ve been building over the years. #detailsmatter  SLOW DOWN TO GO FAST- written by Coach Mark (5:30pm - 7:00pm) Last night the D-Troopers and I, with the help of my daughter Taylor (Get well soon Mattie!!), rolled up our sleeves and got to work! There is a phrase I have used quite a bit during my time at Dugout Dolls when working with players that sounds kinda funny and at first doesn’t make much sense, but when you take a minute and think, comes out loud and clear……...SLOW DOWN TO GO FAST!! Coaches/Parents, how many times have you thought to yourself that the kids are simply "going through the motions?". You have taken the time to design a drill which will help with team weaknesses however you aren't getting the production out of it like you had hoped. Step back and emphasize that the point of drill work in not to be the first one done but rather to enforce good habits and proper muscle memory. To help reinforce skill progression, start embracing the thought of "SKILLS BEFORE SPEED". Taylor said it first when I was explaining to the girls that the purpose of the Zig-Zag drill isn’t about how fast to get through it but rather how smoothly and accurately we perform. You see, it does no good to go after something with your hair on fire blasting through it as fast as you can. That is when mistakes can, and often do, happen. We are starting our lessons from the foundation of the game for a reason. If you create the muscle memory of proper throwing, fielding, and footwork you create muscle memory. And, just like tying your shoes, it becomes so easy that you don’t even think about it……...and that allows you to attack the game differently.
By slowing ourselves down at this point in our lessons and focusing on creating our consistent movements and actions, I guarantee you that in the end, each and every one of the D-Troopers will be able to attack the Zig-Zag faster and more accurately than they did last night!! Group notes: - Group 1 was a little smaller but that doesn’t mean we didn’t have fun and worked hard. We began working on footwork, learned the “alligator” position of ready ready, fielded some grounders, continued to work on throwing mechanics (thank you very much!), and started a new drill to focus on catching the ball. So much good stuff coming from the girls, I am proud of them all!! -Group 2 was eight girls strong and we did similar things as Group 1 but got the Minions out (yellow cones) and did what I called the Zig-Zag agility drill. It stresses head-up movement, side steps, and backward movement as well. For being the first time through the drill I am very pleased with the effort and focus the girls put in!! We did identify that we have a bunch of work to do with catching……...and Coach Mark has a plan for next week!! Slowing things down now and paying attention to detail(s) will pay off in the end with being faster, more accurate, and balanced defensive players!! Have a great week, see you all next Wednesday, and remember……..DEFENSE WINS BALL GAMES!! Coach Mark  Simple isn't always easy- written by Coach Amber (7:00pm - 8:45pm) Simple is often erroneously mistaken for easy. As we grow in knowledge we often forget the basics or foundational aspects of any given task. We think in order to be "the best" we need to challenge ourselves with hard and complicated tasks. We sabotage ourselves and our team when we don't pay attention and nurture the fundamental mechanics of the game. It is probably a pretty odd sight to see our defense clinic ladies on the ground rolling balls. WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE WE DOING THIS FOR?!? cried one of our clinic participants. I replied with, getting back to the roots of success by reinforcing proper mechanics through isolation drills. Such a simple 2 minute warm up drill highlighted one of the most glaring weaknesses in our players as they come up through the game - they don't know how to properly perform basic drills. Did you know that Team USA spends the first 5 minutes of every practice rolling balls to each other , from their knees, without ever using a glove? Coaches- set the tone by reinforcing the foundation fundamentals In week 1 we explored adding fundamental drills to our warm-up in order to maximize practice efficiencies. By doing so, we are also reinforcing proper mechanics and building our muscle memory. The best way to accomplish this is by taking away the distracting variables and isolating muscle/mind movements. From here you reintroduce variables in stages- we literally work from the ground up.
Spending the time on the front end to establish routine and disciplined mindset will open the doors for more effective practices with less mistakes. This will translate to game mode nicely. A well prepared athlete both physically and mentally will stand RESOLUTE in spite of the storm. Bringing us back to the theme of this years defense cohort “ The Anchor holds, in spite of the storm”   LEADERSHIP LESSON OF THE WEEK - Be an influencer Mindset and body language influence our demeanor and other's perspectives. The kids were challenged to think about what they have to offer rather than what’s in it for me.  How is your body language and attitude influencing your interactions and performance? Body language: Be open to receiving messages by changing your body language
When standing in line waiting for drills - ARE YOU PRESENT?
 Different Is A Good Thing- written by Coach Mark (5:30pm - 7:00pm) New things are scary period. It doesn’t matter if you are 8 or 48 new things can make a person nervous; a new job, a new house, a new school or a new team. It is human nature to be emotional when facing something new. Let’s think about this in the realm of softball (or any team sport for that matter). Every player on a team is different, and as a coach that is awesome. 12 players who do/act/think exactly the same can create an environment of complacency. But for many players being different is not so awesome. Some players are fast and can run bases like a race car while others are strong and hit the ball a country mile. Some have strong arms while others don’t. This is the case EVERYWHERE…….even on major league baseball teams everyone is different and has abilities that are better than others. What we need to embrace is -IT IS OK TO BE DIFFERENT! Great teams are a mix of players with abilities that are different but, when combined, do amazing things. As we begin our short 10 week journey together learning the world of softball defense the biggest thing that we all need to remember is that every single player has a different level of experience. Our goal, as coaches, is to make these players better than they were then when we started. Players that have an easier time at a certain drill will be encouraged to help those who have to work a little harder…...that creates leadership…….and also creates teamwork! As parents we need to continue to be positive reinforcements for what these young ladies are doing every week. It’s not easy. If it was, everyone would be doing it. Emotions are going to flow freely every week. Some will be excitement, joy, and even frustration and some tears…….IT IS OK!! As a coach it is our job to help ease the frustration and tears, and mold them into positivist and motivation. As I told a couple of players in our first session who showed frustration. Carry yourself with PRIDE, POISE, and most importantly, CONFIDENCE. Your teammates will help with the rest, because that is what they do, work together. Have a great week, I can’t wait to see you all next week, and remember………. DEFENSE WINS BALL GAMES!!! Coach Mark
 The Key to Success is You- written by Coach Amber (7pm - 9:00pm) We kicked off week 1 by introducing routine drills and expectations moving forward. Our older groups will explore building mechanics through isolation drills while also balancing leadership development. Each week we will build our skill set through adding upon our isolation drills with challenging movements and standard equipment. Coaches- set the tone by establishing a DAILY ROUTINE. Kids should show up to practice and WORK. Developing a "daily routine" can help create an effective and efficient work environment. Week 1 was spent on teaching what our daily warm up would like in order to engage our muscles and start creating good muscle memory/habits moving forward. Each week kids will spend no more than 2 minutes on each drill as a warm-up. This action will engage our brain to be focused and on point. Do you feel like a broken record during practice? Saying the same thing OVER AND OVER? This is because we haven't allowed our brains time to create good muscle memory. We need to isolate basic movements and give them time to develop proper muscle memory. No longer will you spend 30 minutes reteaching or reexplaining simple mistakes during practice- you can now move on to challenging drills and live action play with the time you are saving! Spend the time to teach and establish this routine from the beginning. These drills should take no more than 5 to 8 minutes of practice time. Our dailies for Defense clinic are shown below: - Glove control: getting into athletic position, with glove OUT FRONT, and eyes behind our glove - Footwork: approach to athletic position - Body Balance: engaging our legs / body posture for proper throwing mechanics that will provide power, accuracy, and stamina in the long run Add these into your pre-practice warm-up of dynamic stretches and throwing progressions. Within the first 15 minutes of practice you have now fully warmed up your muscles, engaged your brain, and created a focused and ready to compete athlete. 
- EMPOWER YOUR PLAYERS TO SPEAK This probably sounds like a crazy idea but I'm telling you it is the KEY TO UNLOCKING powerful, competitive, and more engaged teams. Create a culture of self assessment, team engagement, and accountability by allowing your players to take the lead. Kids should be empowered and confident to speak up when things are good and bad. They should feel comfortable with asking questions, calling out errors, and shouting out praises. Teach them how to do this in a positive tone and confident manner. EXAMPLES: 1. Work drills in partner stations - routinely ask kids if their partner was doing the drill correctly as described. If not, ask them if they told their partner they were doing it wrong. Did they help them correct it- why or why not? This exercise in "call-out" errors will help them feel comfortable in "coaching each other". Coaches can't be in all places at once, having trust in our players to act as "kid coaches" can ensure teachings are being done properly. 2. Circle up time- at the end of each drill or at the end of each practice, circle up together and ask them to "call-out" 3 things that we need to improve on and "shout-out" 3 things we did well. ACCOUNTABILITY and self assessment is the name of the game. Put the power in their hands. Before you know it, they will be coming to you with practice ideas for areas of improvement. EMBRACE IT - let them take the lead. When kids feel like they are part of the process, you can begin to unlock their inner warrior. We began this during our week 1 walk through and it was a struggle. However at the end of the 45 minute session, KIDS WERE TALKING. It was surprisingly easy for them once they had the confidence to speak up. It was a beautiful sight to witness kids taking accountability for their mistakes while also balancing teaching the drill to others. LEADERSHIP LESSON OF THE WEEK - What is the Key to success?   We introduced the idea of "Success"
- What does it mean? - How do we define it? Homework was assigned and will be discussed next week during "journal time" COACHES- introduce MENTAL conditioning to your practice plans. We often focus on the physical skill development of the athlete but fail to develop the mental side of the game. Coach Mark's weekly note addresses emotion. What a fitting topic! If you want your players to be gritty, determined, and keep their head in the games at all times; ask yourself this- DID YOU GO OVER THAT AT PRACTICE? Do not expect your kids to know "how" to do something to your expectation level if you didn't teach it. - Read a quote a practice, - Read a book, - Listen to a podcast, - Pass out "incentives" ( This week the kids received a key with the letter "U": the Key to success is U!) - Go over Batter's box routines Mental conditioning does not have to be extravagant. Start small, start simple, but START SOMEWHERE. |
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