Having coaches and having mentors are important to have when you are developing as a player and person. They lead you down a path to help you to grow and to mature. They have the ability to see you from an outside perspective to help you on your journey. While they are there to help you, we cannot lose sight that we must help ourselves as well.
The way we can help ourselves is to become our own coach. This is something that I grew conscious of when I first got to college. I first started to realize this concept when moving to Nevada and living away from home. It was the first time I was on my own and, in a sense, make my own decisions. These could range from the foods I ate, the people I hung out with, the times I slept, whether or not I do my homework or go to class, and so forth. Everything in my life was now my decision.
The biggest reason I believe becoming your own coach is vital is because it instills confidence in yourself which carries into competition. Since everything was now my decision, I felt a sense of control. This feeling of control gave me confidence. All my life, I would do what coaches would tell me to do as players should. Each and every coach helped me by telling and showing me which decisions to make in various situations. I would not have gotten far without them. With that said, having coaches coupled with being my own coach has helped me to really succeed.
Have you ever noticed players that excel in practice, but fail to produce in the game? Those players are completely capable of excelling in games, but they are only doing it because their coach tells them to. They must take a conscious effort to make decisions for themselves. How they translate it to the game will be up to each individual, but the confidence they will gain will help them to excel in the game.
Becoming your own coach is vital because you are the one in the batter’s box. You are the one on the mound. You are the one on base. You are the one on the field with the ground ball coming toward you. It is your decisions that will impact the outcome for yourself and your team.
How do you become your own coach? Here are three things to implement:
Wonder Why
Wonder why your coach is telling you to do something whether it is to field the ball out in front of you, to be aggressive on the bases, or to drive the ball to the right side of the field. If you understand why you are told to do something, you now have an intent. The intent will help you to make better decisions such as swinging at a pitch that will allow you to get the job done. Once you understand that intent, your coach does not have to constantly remind you the next time you are in the same situation. You start to think for yourself.
Practice in Practice and Games
This may take a while to get down, but the more you practice it the better you become. This is important because it will ultimately make you a better player. Your coach will not have to remind you to stay down on a ground ball or to take a hard turn around first base. The reason you must practice it in practice and games is because you will have to consciously think about it. Once you practice it over and over again, it will be second nature. Once it is second nature, you will be able to translate that into the games much easier since it will be a habit.
Accept Failure
Failure is a huge part of baseball. If you are not used to failure, you may not last very long. This is also true for making your own decisions and being your own coach. You will make the wrong choice and it is apart of the learning process. Your coach can give you feedback on the decision you make and you are also able to see for yourself on what decision to make the next time. An example would be you get a base hit to left field and he takes his time getting the ball in so you try to take second base, but get thrown out. Was that that a good decision? It could be. If you are a faster player when there is two outs, you did not hesitate, and you weren’t a crucial run, I would be happy as a coach because now I can see that you are thinking and being aggressive. You were trying to get into scoring position for your teammate to drive you in.
Becoming your own coach is important to becoming a great ball player. Your coaches will help to shape you, but you are your best coach. It will instill confidence in yourself while helping you to improve your decision making skills to help your team win.
