Monthly Archives: January 2011

Zen, carrots, and coaching

Posted on January 28, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

Chopping carrots is a lot like coaching soccer. I’ve been a long-time fan of the writing of Edward Espe Brown, also the documentary that portrayed his work at Tassajara’s kitchen. He sometimes offers a class there that I was checking … Continue reading →

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Leaving Money on the Table

Posted on January 24, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

In the endless competition to create winning youth soccer teams, coaches leave nothing to chance. Except they do. Many only develop ten positions, leaving one to chance: the goalkeeper. I know because this was my position throughout my serious playing … Continue reading →

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Changing the Complexion of the Game

Posted on January 22, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

I saw the US Men’s National Team game vs. Chile tonight. Neither team called its experienced players so a lot of youngsters played. The US looked like men at a track meet with their hair on fire whose wives just … Continue reading →

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Plugging Along

Posted on January 17, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

I was not a good coach on Friday. Tired, short-tempered, impatient. One of my players wasn’t listening when I was talking so I stepped on his hand. I stepped on a kid’s hand. On purpose. I have another player diagnosed … Continue reading →

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Coaching

Posted on January 16, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

I went to see “The King’s Speech” to be entertained but also got a reminder about the essence of coaching. What Geoffrey Rush does portraying Lionel Logue is what I attempt to do on the training pitch: Step 1. Ease … Continue reading →

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The Coach as Expert, and What If You Don’t Know

Posted on January 12, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

WordPress’ topic for 1.11.11 was “Write about one thing you’ve never told anyone and explain why” but I touched on that recently and will go in another direction: What to Say When You Don’t Know. I didn’t watch the Daily … Continue reading →

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The Long View

Posted on January 10, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

WordPress has a new feature that suggests topics for a daily post. Today’s topic: “What do you want to be remembered for?” The Hammer and I just returned from our first trip to the Association Cup where we were drubbed … Continue reading →

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The Audacity of Hoop

Posted on January 2, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

If “the way you day anything is the way you do everything,” then Barack Obama’s basketball games should explain his administration’s approach to achieving its agenda over the past two years. In soccer, we talk a lot about Direct and … Continue reading →

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2010 in review

Posted on January 2, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

The stats helper monkeys at WordPress.com mulled over how this blog did in 2010, and here’s a high level summary of its overall blog health: The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads This blog is on fire!. Crunchy numbers A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet … Continue reading →

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