Friday, October 29, 2010

Discipline in Black and White

I met with Coach Vern Simmons from St. Paul Johnson High School last week. During our almost two hour visit, one of the best things Coach Simmons said to me was that discipline is black and white - there is no grey. This is something I really needed to hear, and love the idea of.

The bottom line, Coach Simmons said, is either the player did it or he didn't. He closed out or he didn't. He sprinted or he didn't. He is playing hard or he isn't. He is being respectful or he isn't. He is being a good teammate or he isn't. There is no gray area here, it's a all or nothing type thing. I think when you approach discipline in this way, it becomes more effective. It also gets you away form falling into choosing certainty over clarity. As a coach you want to be certain he isn't playing hard before you get on him, but the truth is if you think he isn't playing hard he's probably is not.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Discipline is one of the most important things we can instill in our young charges.

Most people think of discipline as punishment. It is not.

Discipline is knowing what to do. How to do it. When to do it. AND doing it that way EVERY TIME!

It truly is black and white and not grey.