
- Negative Reinforcement. One potential indicator of a bad coach is someone who prefers giving negative over positive reinforcement.
- Winning is Everything. We’ve all come across the coach who has to win at any cost. ...
- They Let Kids Argue. Another indicator of a bad coach is letting players bicker with one another. ...
- Disrespectful. Coaches shouldn’t call players out in front of the rest of the team. ...
- Too Casual. I prefer taking a more relaxed approach to coaching as I believe it offers a better opportunity to bond with players and create fun and inviting environments.
- They Make Promises. A bad coach makes promises they can’t keep. It doesn’t look good and it hurts their credibility with players.
- Make Kids Specialize. If you ever come across a youth coach that requires players to only play the sport they’re coaching, run for the hills.
- Drill Sergeant Mentality. An indicator of a bad coach is one with a drill sergeant mentality. ...
- Kids Play in the Same Position. For the younger kids, it’s important everyone gets a chance to try the positions they would like to play.
- Players Go Home Unhappy. Lastly, you might have a bad coach on your hands if your child comes home in bad moods. ...
- Bad Coaches Play Favorites. ...
- Bad Coaches Only Praise the Team When They Win. ...
- Bad Coaches Belittle Players Instead of Correcting Them. ...
- Bad Coaches Make Bench Players Feel Unimportant. ...
- Bad Coaches Don't Make Adjustments Between Losses. ...
- Lousy Coaches Are Overly Concerned About Players Liking Them.
How can you tell if a coach is a good coach?
They are only there because their kid wants to play that sport, so they volunteered to coach. One guaranteed tell about whether your kid is playing for a bad coach is how much they yell and scream during games and even practice. Great coaches, professional coaches, don't yell at their players constantly during games and practice.
How do you know if your kid is playing for bad coaches?
One guaranteed tell about whether your kid is playing for a bad coach is how much they yell and scream during games and even practice. Great coaches, professional coaches, don't yell at their players constantly during games and practice.
What makes a bad football coach?
One potential indicator of a bad coach is someone who prefers giving negative over positive reinforcement. Negative reinforcement isn’t the end of the world but it’s more effective with older players who can take constructive criticism and apply it to themselves.
Do you have a bad coach on your hands?
Kids should have the opportunity to play all the positions in youth sports. While many coaches give players this opportunity, a bad coach may only play their best players, when development should be the main concern. Lastly, you might have a bad coach on your hands if your child comes home in bad moods.

What to do if you have a bad coach?
6 ways to deal with a negative coachAsk yourself if there is any truth in what they say. ... Fight negativity with positivity. ... Attend practices and games. ... Help your child focus on the right things. ... Confront carefully. ... Move on or endure.
What coaches should not do?
The Top Five Things a Coach Should Not DoPointing out technical or strategic mistakes of students by telling them what they did wrong. ... Getting emotional or confrontational with students. ... Over coaching. ... Getting stuck on a certain dogmatic system of coaching. ... Teaching everyone the same way.
How a coach can ruin a sport for you?
Often, it forms a loop. First, a coach forms an expectation, which influences their treatment of athletes, including the type and frequency of the feedback they receive. This, then, can affect athlete performance, rate of learning, their sense of self, and motivation.
How do you know when to change your coach?
Valid Reasons for Switching CoachesThey lack professionalism. If you are paying your coach, it is their job to treat you like a client and coach you like a professional. ... They don't listen to you. Good coaches will listen to you. ... The programming lacks individuality.
What does bad coaching look like?
They create an extremely unsafe learning environment for their athletes. They use fear, humiliation and demeaning, disrespectful behaviors as “teaching” tools. They are emotionally and sometimes (indirectly) physically abusive. They directly and indirectly pressure athletes to continue to play when injured.
What makes a poor coach?
Similar to resisting change, a bad coach does not make it a priority to improve their craft. They do not value personal or professional development. They are quick to blame others for their lack of success instead of looking within themselves to make changes. A good coach is consistently learning, growing and evolving.
Why do coaches not play good players?
Ability and understanding Aside from early youth sports, players should expect not to play as much as a higher skilled teammate. Coaches are often under challenging decisions of placing a player in the game to give them more time versus playing the athletes they need to win. The result is a benched player.
Is my coach abusive?
Controlling behavior (For example, saying “You can/not go to prom.” or “Eat this not that.”) Angry and/or violent outbursts. Grooming behaviors tailored to both children and parents. Not being able to talk to (or accurately heard by) your coach about mental or physical health.
Do coaches have favorite players?
In the coaching profession you often hear many complaints. In basketball, one complaint that particularly sticks out is playing favorites. Do coaches play favorites? Yes they do.
How do you break up with a coach?
“Be honest and up front about why you're leaving and remember it's a very small community. You will have to see this coach and your former teammates all the time. It's better to have an uncomfortable conversation that's the truth than lie to try to save feelings or make it less uncomfortable for yourself.
How do I drop my coach?
You should give your coach reasons why you want to quit....Let them know how you might consider staying.You might say, "I will be honest. ... You can say, "I need more time to study so that my grades do not slip. ... If you have a "bully coach," it may be best not to tell them that they are the problem.
What to do when you get a new coach?
When a new coach is hired, take your time and keep all comments positive. If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. #9- When coaches leave a job, it's never personal with the players, don't feel like it's your fault or that you could have done something different.
Why would a coach not play a good player?
Other typical reasons to have a player sit out the game is illness or injury. Many coaches take extensive training specifically to know the signs of injury and how to respond. There are liability concerns with allowing an athlete to play with an injury.
Is my coach abusive?
Controlling behavior (For example, saying “You can/not go to prom.” or “Eat this not that.”) Angry and/or violent outbursts. Grooming behaviors tailored to both children and parents. Not being able to talk to (or accurately heard by) your coach about mental or physical health.
How should a coach treat his players?
They must accept, support, and respect their athletes as well as the people around them. They must realize that being a role model is a 24/7 job. Approachable and interested coaches will attract players, both those interested in a relationship and those who don't know if they want one.
Why do coaches stop coaching?
Why do Coaches Quit? Coaches, like players and officials, are either not putting their hand up, to begin with due to lack of willingness to “deal with” parents OR are quitting due to frustrations of the problems they had “dealt” with over their coaching careers.
What do terrible coaches tell swimmers?
Terrible coaches “Tell and Yell” – they don’t listen to their swimmers or learn from them. They stand at the end of the pool – drinking coffee or talking on their phones or talking with other people instead of focusing on helping every swimmer in their program be all they can be. They yell times, they tell swimmers about technique and skills and streamlining – but they don’t connect with swimmers – they don’t work with them – they don’t empower swimmers to take ownership or responsibility for their own workouts. Instead of walking up and down the pool looking for opportunities to help swimmers improve, they stand still with one leg on the blocks yelling instructions and telling swimmers what they’re doing wrong.
How to coach swimmers?
But they can change – and they can become an outstanding coach – if they remember the three key coaching concepts: 1 Listen – to your swimmers. Take time to understand them and what’s motivating them to swim. 2 Learn – be uncompromisingly committed to learning, to change, to improvement, to getting better at coaching. 3 Love – love what you do – do what you love and express that love through every aspect of your coaching – everyday.
How to get better at swimming coaching?
Listen – to your swimmers. Take time to understand them and what’s motivating them to swim. Learn – be uncompromisingly committed to learning, to change, to improvement, to getting better at coaching. Love – love what you do – do what you love and express that love through every aspect of your coaching – everyday.
How do you know if your kid is playing for a bad coach?
One guaranteed tell about whether your kid is playing for a bad coach is how much they yell and scream during games and even practice. Great coaches, professional coaches, don't yell at their players constantly during games and practice. They may do it OCCASIONALLY to get their attention if necessary, but it is not the norm. Bad coaches yell a lot to compensate for their lack of coaching skills.
What does a good coach do?
Good coaches take responsibility for their team’s failures and give their team and athletes full responsibility for successes. Bad coaches blame their athletes for losses and take the credit for the team’s successes. You’re NOT a good coach when you play “head games” with your athletes.
Why are coaches so negligent?
Too many coaches are negligent in their role as a coach and corrupt in their interactions with their athletes because they are driven by their own needs and their personal politics within the community. A number of coaches coach mainly so that their kid gets to play!
How do coaches earn respect?
Good coaches earn their respect from their players on a daily basis, over and over again based on how they conduct themselves and how they interact with their athlete and everyone else associated with the program. If you think that you’re too important to earn respect, then you are distinguishing yourself as a bad coach!
How do coaches damage young people?
They tear down self-esteem rather than building it up. They create an extremely unsafe learning environment for their athletes. They use fear, humiliation and demeaning, disrespectful behaviors as “teaching” tools. They are emotionally and sometimes (indirectly) physically abusive. They directly and indirectly pressure athletes to continue to play when injured. They regularly kill the fun and passion that their athletes once had for the sport. These coaches have lost their way and strayed terribly far from the true mission of coaching.
What happens when you pressure your athletes to play when they are injured?
If you pressure your athletes to play when injured or if you demean and ignore those athletes who are too injured to play, then you are engaging in physical abuse. Encouraging your athletes to play hurt so that the team can win is reckless behavior for you as a coach. When you do this you are directly putting your players at risk.
What is the primary goal of a coach?
If winning is your primary goal as a coach you have significantly lost your way and as a consequence, you’ll actually win less! Your mission as a coach is to teach young people and help them grow as individuals so that they become better people in the world, both on and off the field.
What happens if a coach is failing their team?
Even if a coach is failing their team, personal successes can lead to team successes. All it takes is for one player to assume a role of leadership. Parents will see this. And so will the coaches. Sometimes a failing coach is what it takes to nudge our children to take the driver’s seat in their own circumstances.
How to approach a teacher who is failing your child in the classroom?
How would you approach a teacher that is failing your child in the classroom? With tact. Avoid confrontation. After discussing the behavior with other parents, consider approaching the principal or athletic director. Sometimes, a simple request from school officials will get a coach to look at his or her coaching methods.
How to be a game changer?
We can fight that mindset by setting boundaries that start with our very presence at athletic events. Be an athlete off the field. Then display good sportsmanship to the coaches that test the endurance of your patience. Escalate gently when necessary. Look ahead to the next play in your child’s social circles. Game plan for changes that make the most impact on and off the field. Often, it’s our character as parents that will make or break a bad coach. Being a game changer isn’t always easy or popular.
How to help your child find success on the field?
Be a visible parent on and off the field. Get involved when you can. For example, take part in fundraising events. By making yourself valuable as a parent and supporter of the team you will be helping your child find success on and off the field. Weathering the season is sometimes the best route to take.
Is there an excuse for the behavior of some coaches?
Still, there is no excuse for the behavior of some coaches. Because we value sports in our society as much as we do, we are often too quick to give bad behavior a pass in athletics. That is a failing on our part as much as it is in the coaches.
Can coaching change happen mid season?
However, this should probably be the last step. Unfortunately, coaching changes don’t typically happen mid-season. What does your child have to lose? Are they a top athlete universities are scouting? Or, does their love of the game exceed the drama on the field? Keep those ideas in mind. Likely, you will have to weather the season before a change can or will happen. Even then, it’s hard to gauge if it will happen.
Do high school coaches have a responsibility?
However, it is possible to put too much faith in one person. Arguably, we are all guilty of that at some time or another. High school coaches have a huge amount of responsibility on their shoulders.
What is aggressive coaching?
1. Aggressive coaches are to be taken as a wake-up call that there are such people in the world and that we all have to deal with them. When you get one, it’s time to get serious about developing your internal confidence to be able to thrive in such situations.
Does a bad youth coach make or break a career?
One season with a bad youth sports coach does not make or break a career…or a person.
