The art of observation. What details should coaches be looking for? Todd Beane explains why it is important for a coach to ‘observe’ their players rather than just ‘watch’ them. Are you watching or observing your players? Many consider these two words synonymous. To watch is to observe and to observe is to watch. But, I find a distinction here that may help us become better at our craft. Let’s take a look at the definitions. Watch: to see what is done or happens. Observe: to regard with…
pep
An excellent two part 12,000 word blog post by Jonathan Wilson recently circulating on social media called The Devils Party examined the factors that led to Jose Mourinho’s downfall at Chelsea. This fantastic article inspired The Player Development Project’s James Vaughan and Dave Wright to discuss how a managerial legend like Mourinho could fail so catastrophically at the club that reveres him most. By looking a little deeper, beyond just tactics, to examine the experiences that shaped his character, drivers, attributes and flaws, can we…
Building on the expert insight of University of Queensland’s Professor of Sport Psychology & Coaching Cliff Mallett, this update drills into the Key Characteristics of The Worlds Best Coaches. Like any decent update this post aims to provide a deeper user experience, particularly focusing on the process of knowing ourselves: Or in other words the process of hacking, updating and refining our operating system. At some point we all need to update our software, but its often niggly and almost always annoying. In the long run it (normally) makes life…
What characteristics do the world’s best coaches have in common? PDP Lead Researcher, James Vaughan shares insight from a study at the University of Queensland on the key attributes required to be the most effective coach. Last Friday, I was lucky enough to attend a presentation by Associate professor Cliff Mallett at the University of Queensland. Cliff is actually my academic supervisor, and a bit of a gun. On UQ’s website they describe Cliffs work saying: “This staff member is a UQ Expert in the…