It may seem like a cliche to talk about the importance of communication in relationships, but effective communication is perhaps nowhere as necessary as between members of a coaching team. Or as very common in our sport, coaches on different levels like national and club level.
When two members of a coaching staff have different game plans for the same athlete, it’s like they’re pulling on opposite ends of the same rope: They’re very unlikely to make any progress. They would be further ahead if ideas were exchanged ahead of time, agreed upon, and then acted upon with a solid implementation plan in place. Easier said than done? Let’s evaluate.
What are the obstacles to good communication between members of a coaching staff? For starters, a busy schedule can be a huge factor. Working with many athletes can mean that it’s difficult to spend all of the required time with each athlete on the team, let alone to meet with other coaches in order to communicate your plans for each athlete to them. Distance is another obvious and very significant hurdle. If one member of the staff often travels with the team, it can be difficult, to say the least, for them to keep passing along all the information to the coaches back at the home dojo during a busy tournament. Finally, there is the issue of immediacy of communications. If your colleague isn’t right there with you as you review video, it’s likely that at least some of what you want to convey will be lost into the ether. If communication is key, how do we maintain it in the face obstacles that coaching teams deal with regularly?
It could be as simple as Athlete Analyzer’s newest feature: Playlist, which allows multiple users to create a “playlist” of match video clips in sequential order. Each playlist created can be named, and shared to the coaching staff and the athlete. Coaches and athletes can view the progression of video clips, add comments, and review as needed. Use playlists to create highlights of the athletes' strengths and weaknesses. Use it to plan what to work on next and make sure everyone around an athlete are on the same track.
Playlist is video review boiled-down to its most essential details, giving you the laser-focus required to really zero-in on the minutiae of each and every technique. If a picture is worth a thousand words, Playlist is worth a million. This feature handily reaches right over the issues of distance, busy schedules, and lack of immediacy, bridging all the communication lags and gaps that the coaching lifestyle naturally entails.
All you have to bring to the equation is a wifi connection, and your coaching skills.