You have sent your team back on to the court after a timeout, the score is tied 23-23. During the break, you told your players that the opposing team's setter usually dumps the second contact after coming out of a timeout situation and that defensively your team needs to look for this. Nods of assurance are confirmation that your message was received. But as the next play progresses and the setter dumps the second ball, your defensive players are nowhere to be found. As a coach you ask yourself, "Didn't I just say that was going happen?"

Chances are you did. But was it the only point you stressed during the timeout? Or was it one of several pieces of information you were attempting to communicate to your players and its significance was lost in all the other information you provided.

Prior to a timeout situation, coaches should make notes for themselves during the match. Keeping a brief set of notes during the match can assist the coach during a timeout situation in four ways.

• Memory. Having a set of notes will provide a coach information with which to refer.
• Prioritization. Keeping match notes can help a coach pick and choose what information is most important and then relay it to the team during a timeout. Often times coaches will attempt to overload the timeout with too much information. For the athlete, it is difficult to listen and process all this information. A coach should begin the timeout by stressing what is the most important thing to remember and the second most important thing to remember.
• Do not focus on the last event. Do not use the limited time you have during a break to discuss what just happened on the court. Use the time to effectively advise your team in making adjustments to any on court situations. It is more time efficient to stress the key points from your notes instead of criticize a player for being out of position.
• Specificity. Having a set of notes allows a coach to be very specific in their comments, eliminating the possibility of rambling. Keeping notes helps you organize your thoughts as you prepare to emphasize a key point in the timeout.

Coaches must have an awareness of the mental frame of mind their team will have when a timeout is taken. If the purpose of the timeout is because your team is struggling with match tactics or physical execution, the coach must enter the timeout calm, confident and with a mentality that you have a solution. The players will use the coach as an emotional crutch and be great listeners. Be honest with the players by accurately describing the problem, but indicating a resolution. After the timeout, the players should have regained their composure and be fully aware of what needs to be done. A coach's own emotional state needs to reflect this.

If the other team has called the timeout because your team has been able to effectively execute the game plan or made a significant play that is changing the momentum in your team's direction, the coach should come off the bench energized. Congratulate the players by telling them what they are doing well. Through positive reinforcement, coaches can help their players feel good about themselves. In regards to listening skills, the players are likely to be poor listeners in this particular timeout situation. The team may be ahead in the game, performing successfully against the other team and feel they do not need your help. Coaches should take advantage of this opportunity to make their players better listeners by providing positive feedback and encouraging the players to continue playing at a specific level of efficiency.

Coaches should call a timeout when they have identified information which could affect the outcome of a game. By calling a timeout, a coach can offer this advice to their team in hopes it will help the players win the game. Specific comments in a timeout should be affected by who called the timeout and who is serving.

If, after a timeout, the team is receiving serve, the coach should be calm and confident with a specific agenda, emphasizing a key point which could include any one of the following areas:

• Set selection. This could include a specific play or player.
• Serve receive adjustment. Shift to a 3-person or 4 person serve receive pattern; Perhaps a reference to on court posture or anticipated location of the serve.
• Transition reference. Reminder of defensive responsibilities after attack.

The key is to get the team into a competitive mode. Comments such as "see the ball," "lets go score a point," or "let's be aggressive" can prompt a team into thinking in a flow state-a non-analytical process whereby the athlete just "plays the game."

If, after a timeout, the team is serving, the coach should still have a key point to emphasize from any of the following items.

• Opposing hitters. Information on where they hit, what kind of shots and how it will effect your block
• Set prediction. Who is the most likely attacker to be set by the opposition after the timeout.
• Serve location. Tactics on where you want your server to place the ball.
• Freeball play. Which hitter to set the ball on a freeball play.
• Defensive emphasis. Emphasize scoring after the timeout.

At the beginning of the timeout, address the team stressing one key point. Then reemphasize the point by saying it in a different way.

For example, begin the timeout by saying "Here is the one thing I want to talk to you about. Their outside hitter is killing us down the line. Let's concentrate on setting a wider block and channel the attack inside." After this, you can deal with individuals to give them specific pieces of information (telling your setter whom to set or demonstrate an error correction technique to a specific player.) It is critical for coaches to always bring the team back together before the timeout is over and reemphasize the one key point, "Set the block wide and dig cross-court." This communication strategy should keep your team focused on what needs to be done as you send them back onto the court.

Coaches have a responsibility to be excellent speakers and to enhance their players listening skills. Assistant coaches should be trained to be effective timeout communicators. This is especially true in the event the head coach wants to speak privately with a particular player during a critical timeout. However, always remember to refocus the team before sending them back into the match by emphasizing one key point.

In time, coaches will see their message effectively getting across to their players, make better listeners out of each player and ultimately make a positive difference during a match.