Day One with the Interns

In a calendar year, we go through 3 sets of interns; Fall, Spring and Summer internships.  We will accept 3 interns per time frame.  As a strength and conditioning staff, we utilize 3 different weight rooms.  We have chosen to accept only 3 interns per time frame in order to keep one intern in each training facility. She/he will get plenty of exposure to all of our student-athletes as well as our staff members.  The interns will be assigned to one weight room for a two week period before being re-assigned to the next facility.

An internship program can either be a great addition or a huge inconvenience to your staff.  I believe your first day/week will play an intricate role in how the rest of the semester will develop.

First things first… We have a meeting to set the tone of the internship.  This meeting normally takes about 45 minutes.  The interns are each given a binder containing a syllabus, ground rules, expectations, daily & weekly “to do list”, their performance evaluation, campus map, suggested training websites, local points of interest and a blank note notepad.  Of those handouts, I feel that our ground rules are the most important.  The ground rules are to help the interns understand what is and is not acceptable behavior.  What is common knowledge for us may seem like a foreign concept to others…particularly the younger ones. 

I know many people many think I’m babying the interns for putting this together for them.  However, a great leader (professor) did this for me while I was in grad school and I found it very helpful.  I believe that, by starting them off in an organized manner it will increase their chances for success throughout their time with us.  If nothing else, I’m “paying it forward” from the Doc that set me off on the right foot many years ago.

The blank notepad is to be used for any notes that need to be taken about information they’ve been given.  On the first day of every week they are also to create their own short and long term goals and record them in their notepad.  This is helpful to get them thinking about what they want to do as opposed to what we want them to do.  Finally and most importantly, the interns are required to use that notepad to journal/reflect multiple times throughout the week. I ask them to keep a constant journal to help with comprehension of “classroom” topics as well as training/coaching situations. The metacognition (thinking about what you think) and ability to see ones’ thought process will reveal great insight to personal tendencies. Being able to understand how one best works will help to make decisions on how to put oneself in a place to succeed.  For example, through journaling you can easily see what things come easily to you (strengths), what things you struggle with (weaknesses), how you reacted to certain situations and how productive the outcomes were or were not.  From then on, when issues come up in the future you are more prepared to make actions or decisions that will create the most favorable outcome.  Again, I know it seems a bit childish to keep a journal.  However, I believe it’s one of your strongest tools to learn about yourself and accelerate your own progress on whatever it is you want to get better at.

The 3 interns we have this summer seem to be off to a good start.  I have the feeling that they’ve already developed a healthy competition between themselves to earn the title of being our best intern.  (It was stated by one of them as a long term goal.)   I’ll post updates about the trials and tribulations of the Summer 2012 Notre Dame intern class.  I welcome any comments or suggestions to help further develop our program.

Link up

I read a John Maxwell daily devotional titled "365 Days of Insight to Develop the Leader Within You and Influence Those Around You."  This is just how I choose to focus myself before whatever that day my hold, I highly recommend you do something similar for yourself.  Making time for yourself before the organized chaos we often step into can help you to remember "big picture" and not get caught up in emotional moments.  What I mean by emotional moments would be; the coaches that may constantly question your programs or change schedules, having things come up during your own training time, getting rejected for a job you thought you would get, having an athlete get injured, not agreeing with sports medicine, or just having "one of those days." 

A few months ago one of the days has continued to echo in my mind, so I want to share one of the points with you. 

"Link up with Others"

"If you do everything alone and never partner with other people, you create a huge barrier to your own potential.  It takes a team to do anything of lasting value, as you face challenges, think about who you can enlist to come along side you." - John Maxwell

My point in all of this is to continue to motivate you all as females, as strength coaches, to push on...strive for more...dig your heels in and keep your head up.  I have had a few of you talk to me about the struggle of being the only female in your strength and conditioning department.  I challenge you solo females to reach out to the next closest school with a female and create a connection that develops to a relationship. with that female strength coach.  Make plans to train together one weekend a month, share training ideas once a week, and then add another to your team.  Link up, learn, and motivate each other.  If you do this over the next few weeks write a comment on who, what, when, and how it is going. 

What Type of Leader Are You?

In a recent trip to get my oil and filter changed, I stumbled upon a very interesting article in Inc. Magazine.  The title, "13 Ways of Looking at a Leader," really made me begin to examine my leadership styles and characteristics.  Not only did it make me embark on a self-examination session right in the middle of the auto shop, but I began to think about other coaches, teachers, and management professionals who have influenced and affected my coaching style and abilities.  Before I get started, realize that if you are reading this blog post, you most likely are in a position of leadership.  I imagine that you are a female strength and conditioning coach such as myself, and whether you want to admit it or not, you are in a position of leadership.  You and I have the amazing and gratifying ability to influence young people, to expose them to certain types of leadership characteristics and situations through strength training, off-seaon conditioning and mental toughness exercises.  Because we are in this position as coaches, we have a responsibility to maximize our development as leaders so we can serve as positive mentors and effective role models to our student athletes.  By taking advantage of opportunities to become better leaders and harnessing those leadership skills, we can show our athletes through practical application what it means to motivate our peers, set positive examples, and influence others to succeed. 

The following post will look at those 6 out of the 13 Leadership Characteristics as mentioned in the title, and I challenge you to take a moment and really examine your coaching style.  Look at your strengths.  Investigate your areas of improvement.  Do you fit any of these traits or do you fit outside the box?  Either way, by knowing more of who you are and understanding how you lead others, you can best equip yourself moving forward to become a better leader. 

• Adaptive Leaders - rise above, adapt, help.  You always surge above the noise and distractions, make adjustments and then assist others in tackling issues and problems without sacrificing trust or values.

• Emotionally Intelligent Leaders - awareness and influence.  You are very aware of others, their communication styles, and emotional states; therefore you are highly influential.

• Charismatic - character.  You are a rare breed and often seen as heroic and highly motivational.  Being a charismatic leader is tough to teach because your leadership style is derived from your own personality and make up.

• Authentic - consistent and disciplined.  Your integrity and character give you the opportunity to have longevity as a leader.

• Level 5 - gives credit, takes the blame, and is selfless.  You are very driven, pursue goals with passion and put others and your cause above your own success.

• Mindful - notice, analyze and listen.  You do not assume or accept things as they are because that is the way they have always been. Instead you question and pay close attention to what is happening around you.

I hope that through this post, you were able to identify certain characteristics that make you a great leader.  Perhaps you also discovered other traits that could help you in your quest to improve your leadership skills.  Or even still, identified qualities that your student athletes possess and began to think about how you can help them use their strengths to become better leaders. In the next installment, I will identify the other 7 leadership styles. 

Lead on,

Callye