Social Media and the Student Athlete

I'm going to lead this one off with a stereotypical "back in my day" comment. But before you go looking for gray hairs, you should know that I'm one of the coaches that doesn't have very many (if any). Social media has blown up really in the last 10 years or so. So when I say: Back when I played, I never had to worry about my social media presence, it's not like I'm talking about Coach Gilbert's day when everyone had leather helmets (just kidding, Coach).

Yet, the reality of being a student athlete today is that social media is huge. And there are definite pros. Social media, when done right, can create an incredible platform with which to spread messages of encouragement or inspiration. When I first started coaching, social media was still really in its infancy, but being a bit of a geek, I was familiar with the potential and wanted to harness it for our program. I was very fortunate to find a sympathetic ear in Coach Gilbert (despite being a pretty "old school" kind of guy). If you'd been around Coach G, you know that he's pretty big on using your platform properly. We both see social media as a powerful extension of this.

The cons can show their ugly heads unexpectedly. In a lot of ways, social media is like an open mic in a huge stadium filled with people. If you step up and shout into it, people might pay attention. Say something good, and you can affect people. Say something bad, and you can affect people. Anyone can step up. Our social media accounts as coaches are no more special than any other social media account. We may not have as many followers as Andrew Luck, but its the same technology.

We try to encourage our student athletes to be aware of this. It's not always easy because, honestly, we don't have all the answers. Ask us about football plays, and we have years (decades) of experience to draw on. Social media is still relatively new, and we never had to deal with it. We're learning right along with the rest of you in a lot of ways.

To that end, I wanted to share a short little video put out by the folks at Hudl. You can find it here. The big take home here is a reminder that, when you shout into that microphone, you never know who might be listening, and the echoes of what you say may stick around for a lot longer than you realize. We all have to remember that the Internet is a public place with a long memory. You cannot expect things you put out there to stay private.

Our rule of thumb is really to keep it genuine. Nothing we say on here or other outlets is anything you wouldn't catch us saying in a room full of athletes or parents. Taking that approach seems best. Before you post anything, think about if you'd say the same thing in person to those who are most important to you. If you're an athlete and you have aspirations of playing at the next level, keep in mind that that important person may be your next coach. What do you want them to know about you? How will you use your platform?

Our Mission

You may or may not have noticed that I've started using tags like #RockFamily, #RockFun, #RocksMakeADifference. Today, I wanted to share some of our program ideals today in order to put those tags and tomorrow's post in proper context. But first, our program motto:

Our Mission is to make playing football at Westfield one of the most incredible experiences of your life while pushing you to reach your full potential in all areas.

With that in mind, we developed our Pyramid of Success, creating a visual structure that can be utilized to reach one's full potential.

Shamrock Pyramid of Success

• Family – Love your teammates like yourself. Put their needs before your own. 
• Commitment to Excellence – Promise to do everything you can to reach your full potential in all areas. Be intrinsically motivated and driven. 
• Fun – Approach each day with an enthusiastic attitude never before seen by man. Have a blast being a Rock! 
• Victory with Honor – Compete to win at all times. Win the right way, with class. 
• Make a Difference – Serve others and attempt to make someone’s life better every day. Practice selflessness and put others’ needs before your own. There are people in need right here in Westfield. One person is significant enough to make a difference in the entire world. 
• Character – Who you are when no one is looking. Be honest, accountable, respectful, and responsible. Discipline – Doing the right thing, the right way, all of the time. 
• Effort –Work as hard as you possibly can, at all things, all the time. 
• Focus – Focus on what’s in front of you right now. This workout, this off-season, this practice, etc. When adversity hits, refocus and play the next play. 
• Physicality – Consistently develop yourself physically in the weight room and gym, while playing other sports, by eating right, and while stretching. Play physical and out hit your opponent. 
• Confidence – Believe in yourself and believe in the process. Be courageous. Play fast and aggressive. 
• Toughness – Being able to maintain control of your goals and vision in the face of mental and physical challenges. 
• Trust – Trust the process and believe that everything will work out for the best if you do everything you are supposed to do. Trust in your teammates to do the right thing. Be trustworthy and loyal to your teammates. 
• Leadership – Influence others vocally and by example. Develop your character and relationships with others to lead them in a positive way. 
• Full Potential – Become the best you can possibly be, in all ways, at all times. Be improvement driven, but always be happy with your very best.

Leadership is... Enthusiasm

“Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.”

Great teams demonstrate enthusiasm. Enthusiasm is both powerful and contagious. Enthusiasm spreads. It is very difficult to excel in any activity that you do not love. You must learn to put your heart into your work and not be afraid to let it show. A true competitor brings enthusiasm to the field every day.

“The real secret of success is enthusiasm.”

Enthusiasm brings on excitement. Excitement produces energy. Energy generates extra effort. Extra Effort develops success.

“Motivation will almost always beat mere talent.”

“Enthusiasm is faith set on fire.”

“Enthusiasm releases the drive to carry you over obstacles and adds significance to all you do.”

“It is impossible to excel at something you don’t enjoy. Find a way to enjoy the challenge.”

PASSION = ENTHUSIASM

Leadership is... Teamwork

“Championship teams are made up of people who are concerned about something beyond themselves.”

• One of the most important fundamentals of successful teamwork is the elimination of selfishness. Selfishness on the team level or with any individual player will destroy a team faster than anything else. 
• A team first attitude allows people to accept roles that make others better. Great teams have individual players who each make their own unique contribution to the group’s success.
• Roles can either be a force that binds the team together or creates jealousy between individuals. If value is shown equally to every role, it is easier for each role to be embraced by every player. The more each individual squad member feels like they are part of the team, the more they will contribute. 
• The power of an effective team is directly proportional to the effort each team member brings to their individual skills and role.

“The team must always come first.”

“Don’t let your teammates down” speaks to every situation in which athletes can find themselves.”

“Teamwork allows ordinary people to attain extraordinary results.”

“There are no individual winners on a losing team.”

“What sets apart championship teams is the degree to how deeply committed the members are to one another.”

“If your goal is to play together and play hard, then winning takes care of itself.”

A champion team will beat a team of individual champions.”

“In unity there is strength.”

“Everyone on a championship team doesn’t get publicity, but everyone can say he’s a champion.”

Leadership is... Focus

“When you are properly focused to perform, you pay attention to what’s important in the play happening right now and completely block out everything irrelevant. When you are not focused, you pay attention to all of the wrong things at the worst possible times. The what-ifs steal your courage and kill you confidence.”

When you practice or compete you can mentally be in the past, the future, or the present. If you’re in the past, your mind is behind your body. For example, while you perform, your focus could be on a recent mistake, a bad call, or a missed opportunity. If you’re in the future, you mind is ahead of your body as you perform. You’re thinking about what might happen. If you’re in the present, your concentration and your body are working together. Your focus is locked onto what you are doing at that moment. You must consistently stay in the now of your practices and performances in order to perform at your best.

“Focus allows you to eliminate all of the unnecessary distractions that interfere with reaching the goals that have been set. Developing a laser focus on the agreed upon goals is one of the key ingredients to team success. Focus promotes attention to detail. Greatness is achieved through the discipline of attending to detail. Focusing is a skill that can be learned; it is also an attribute that is within your control. All performances improve when there is focus.”

One of the mental skills that distinguishes the athletes who are successful is their ability to adapt and re-focus in the face of distractions. When you enter competitive situations, many things have the potential to distract you, upset you, lower your confidence, or put you in a bad mood. But something becomes a distraction only if you let it distract you. You can choose to be distracted by it, or choose to let it go.

“You don’t lose your performance skills because of distractions; you let yourself lose the focus that allows yourself to execute your skills effectively.”

Coaching legend John Wooden always coached the process, not the outcome. Wooden never focused his players on winning, an uncontrollable. Instead, he got them to pay attention to giving a full effort and executing to the best of their ability. In doing so, he narrowed his players’ concentration to the process of the game.

“The world’s top athletes achieve their best results when they focus only on their performance and not on the outcome.”

“Stay focused on those things that are within your control.”

Leadership is... Overcoming Adversity

As a high school football player you can be dealing with many types of adversity. Adversity can come from:

• Issues you are dealing with at home or in school.
• Injuries.
• Weather conditions.
• Officials' calls/penalties.
• Getting behind in a game.
• Making mistakes.

“Adversity brings the character of people down to the level of their circumstance or up to the level of the challenge it presents.”

“The trial of adversity will indicate whether we use the experience of it uses us.”

“Instead of cursing the darkness, light a candle.”

“More than anything else, what keeps a person going in the midst of adversity is having a sense of purpose. It is the fuel that powers persistence.”

“To achieve your dreams, you must embrace adversity and make failure a regular part of your life. If you’re not failing, you’re probably not really moving forward.”

“Don’t waste energy trying to cover up failure. Learn from your failures and go on to the next challenge. It’s okay to fail. If your not failing, you’re not growing.”

“When achievers fail, they see it as a momentary event, not a lifelong epidemic.”

Things you must understand about facing adversity:

• Adversity is a part of life. Don’t avoid situations where you might have to deal with it.
• Adverse situations should be a challenge, not a threat.
• Be self-assertive, rather than self-pitying.
• Look for possible solutions, rather than dwelling on the problem.
• During competition stay focused on the task at hand.
• Use positive self-talk to control things from within rather than allowing adverse external factors to take control.

Leadership is... Effort

No one can ask more of another person or of himself than to give his best effort. Effort is one of the qualities over which each person has complete control. It is one of the major keys to success and represents the heartbeat of the team. Personal effort reflects a player’s passion for the team and its objectives; collective effort develops respect between teammates.

The dictionary describes effort as: the use of physical or mental energy to do something that is produced through exertion. Effort has nothing to do with talent or ability. Giving a championship effort in everything you do is a choice that you make.

Reasons for giving less than your best effort:

• laziness 
• lack of self-discipline 
• lack of mental or physical toughness 
• short attention span/inability to stay focused 
• being negatively influenced by others 
• ignorance 
• arrogance 
• inability to set goals

Reasons for giving your best effort at all times:

• quickest way to improve 
• builds confidence 
• shows the coaches that you want to play 
• makes you less likely to get injured 
• makes those around you better 
• effort is contagious 
• team success depends on it 
• allows you to feel the accomplishment that comes with hard work 
• eliminates the possibility of regret 
• develops habits that will stay with you in all areas of your life

“Welcome the tasks that makes you go beyond yourself.”

“The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender.”

“Champions work hard even when no one is watching.”

“It is easier to work hard than to explain why you are not.”

Leadership is... Character

Never do anything to compromise your integrity. Anything worth achieving is worth an honorable and honest effort. There are no short cuts to becoming a champion. You will never take any trophies or medals with you when you leave this life, but your character will be with you always. Be true to yourself, and keep in perspective the fact that even if you can’t be the world’s best athlete in your chosen sport every day … you can be your best person every day.

“Good character is more to be praised than outstanding talent. Most talents are, to some extent, a gift. Good character, by contrast, is not given to us. We have to build it piece by piece by piece, by thought, choice, courage and determination.”

“The measure of a man’s real character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.”

“You identify yourself by what you do when no one is watching. The supervised athlete may be the hardest worker, the most selfless and responsible competitor. But how he practices when no one sees him, how he interacts with teammates when the coach is not within listening distance—that’s when he defines himself—his character.”

“Everyone has the opportunity to make choices based on truth, integrity, responsibility, and loyalty—all of which are necessary to develop and maintain character.”

“Character is always lost when ideals are sacrificed for conformity and popularity.”

“Swearing is a device for making ignorance audible.”

“If you can’t explain it to your mother or your grandmother, don’t do it.”

“By constant self-discipline and self-control you can develop greatness of character.”

“Be more concerned with your character than your reputation. Character is what you really are. Reputation is just what people say you are.” -John Wooden

Character is the real foundation of all worthwhile success. A good question to ask yourself is, “What kind of world would this world be if everybody were just like me?”

“Athletic competition will reveal character.”

Leadership is... Toughness

The game of football requires physical and mental toughness.

Physical toughness means:

• Enjoying the contact that is a part of football.
• Making it a goal to hit your opponent harder than he hits you.
• Being willing to play through the minor bumps and bruises that are a part of the game.
• Ignoring fatigue.
• Practicing with an all out effort, all the time.
• Playing every play as if it were the only one that counts.
• Winning games in the fourth quarter.

Mental toughness means:

• Being self-motivated and self-directed. 
• Choosing to be positive and confident at all times.
• Not being afraid to make a mistake.
• Learning from mistakes and letting them go.
• Keeping emotions under control.
• Enjoying the challenge of pressure situations.
• Having the ability to get pumped up for all types of competition.
• Being relentless in pursuit of goals.
• Developing a long concentration span.
• Never being intimidated.
• Standing tall in the face of adversity.
• Being able to focus on those things that are within your control.

Toughness is the ability to consistently perform toward the upper range of your talent and skill regardless of competitive circumstances. A fundamental component of toughness is physical fitness. Great coaches have always understood the connection between fitness and confidence, and between fitness and the ability to hold up under pressure. Being more physically fit means you’ll have the energy to fight mental, physical, and emotional battles. Becoming physically stronger deepens your belief in yourself. You become confident that you can go the distance; you simply refuse to surrender. You truly believe that you can handle anything your opponent throws at you.

2012 Captains and Leadership Council

The Westfield High School Shamrock Football Program is really only as strong as its members. Each year represents a chance for new leaders to take up the mantle of the departed, and forge a renewed path in our quest for excellence. Most football teams have captains, but I don't know that many have a leadership council. We Rocks have both.

Our captains aren't simply chosen at the end of a random practice by a show of hands. Rather, we ask that each captain apply for the position, and draft an essay explaining why they believe they would be a good captain and leader, what the program means to them, and how they plan to help the team. The essays are made available to everyone in the locker room to review before casting their votes. Coach Gilbert then reviews the votes, essays, and selects the captain's based on what he sees as the team's desire.

Thus, our captains are not always simply "seniors." Also, we may have a different number of captains from year to year. Generally, with 90+ votes, trends make themselves pretty clear. If, for instance, you have three top vote gatherers, and then the number of votes drops sharply after that... we will have three captains. Four way tie? We'll have four. Two very, very strong candidates? We'll run with two. Each team is different, each year is different. Our selection process takes into account this truth.

In addition to captain selection, we also form a Leadership Council with representatives from every class. Yes, Seniors through Freshman have a voice in this council. Coach Gilbert consults with the council often on everything from jersey color choice to potential team disciplinary actions. We are a family, and we do our best to listen to each family member. No easy tasks when you're talking about such a large group of young men. Still, we like to think our system is somewhat unique and a bit above-and-beyond your typical high school football fare. We want our players to have a voice and hand in our program's development.

As such, I'm proud to announce this year's selection of captains and leadership council members. They were chosen prior to last Friday's game, but I didn't get a chance to write this up until now (there were announcements on Twitter!). So, without further ado, here are your voices for the team:

Captains

• Nick Ferrer
• Normando Gonzalez
• Stephen Curry

New Leadership Council Members

• Jacob Tebbe
• Eric Miner
• Carson Lorts
• Normando Gonzalez
• Kory Kostecka
• Nick Ferrer
• Zane Burtron
• Adam Horkay
• Jacob Robinson
• Bailey Partlow
• Johnny Crawford
• Nick Sloderbeck
• Sam Trompen

We expect a lot of hard work from these guys in helping to shape our season and program. #Hungry

Leadership is... Discipline

Each week, we visit a specific character trait common in leaders. Our Leadership Series is on-going, and it is something we like to make sure stays a part of the bigger picture. Football is about more than just Friday Night. It is about developing leaders in the community. That is one of the central ideas of our off-the-field program goals.

This week, we discuss Discipline:

The most important single ingredient to success in athletics or life is discipline. The disciplined athlete:

1. Does what has to be done. 
2. When it has to be done. 
3. As well as it can be done. 
4. And does it that way all the time. 

In the game of football, an average team with discipline can beat a more talented team that lacks discipline. Success on the football field is the end result of the discipline demanded by the coaching staff and followed by the athletes. The coaches need to require discipline in order to provide structure, order and direction. The athletes need to make discipline a part of everything they do in order to be able to stay focused on those things that are important to success.

Choose to be disciplined. (Discipline yourself and others won’t have to.)

Away From Practice/School:

• Eat right. 
• Get plenty of sleep. 
• Hang around with people that will make you better—not bring you down. 

In School:

• Aim for perfect attendance. 
• Pay attention to everything the teacher says. 
• Sit where you can hear and are not distracted by others. 
• Write all assignments down in your planner. 
• Do all of your homework and study for tests. 
• Let your behavior serve as a positive role-model to others. 

At Practice:

• Always be on time. 
• Leave all personal problems/negative thoughts in the locker room. 
• Do your best in every aspect of practice—even the things you don’t like doing. 
• Give coaches your complete attention. 
• Try to make those around you better. 

During The Games:

• Realize the importance of pre-game habits—meetings/visualization. 
• Stay completely focused on your assignments—eliminate distractions. 
• Handle adversity—bad calls, mistakes, etc. 
• Respond to coaching. 
• Be a team player. 

After The Game:

• Win with class. 

“There are two kinds of pain when it comes to our daily conduct. There’s the pain of self-discipline and the pain of regret. Many people avoid the pain of self-discipline because it’s the easy thing to do. The pain of self-discipline is momentary but the pay-off is long lasting.”

“Discipline means sometimes doing what you really don’t want to do so that you can do what you really want to do.”

Leadership Power Points

If you missed any of the leadership meetings, go to the website and select the one(s) you missed under the leadership link.

Leadership

Don't forget about leadership meeting today after school!

Leadership PowerPoint

Here is the link if you missed the meeting:  CONFIDENCE PRESENTATION

Miss It?

If you missed the Week 3 leadership series, check it out on the webpage: GoRocksFootball.com