Is there any one dominating factor why coaches fail? A coach may get along well with administrators, faculty, and peers, may seek excellence and demand that goals be met, provide variety in workouts, and properly delegate to accomplish more important coaching functions. The coach may be also a great organizer, a fine technician, a topnotch game administrator, and keep up with current developments in sport. The coach may even have a fine personality and really like people. A coach may possess all of these and other attributes and still fail.

In 30 years of coaching, I have found one factor to be dominant in the success or failure of a coach - the "we" approach. The athletes and coach both want to win, but may have different ideas about how to accomplish this. Problems often arise when the coach and athletes do not have the same daily goals. Coaches fail because of a lack of communication between them and their athletes. The "we" approach allows the coach flexibility and patience. If the sport season is an "I" venture, the coach may be unresponsive to suggestions, or even quite defensive. In either case, there is a breach in communication.

The coach does not harness strengths nor accept each person individually when he or she meets suggestions with deaf ears or a negative response, such as, "Are you questioning my ability as a coach?" A better position to take would be, "Let's sit down and see where we can be more effective." Often athletes' suggestions may not really contribute but if they are part of the planning, they may work harder. The coach's ultimate daily reward is to observe a hard day's work-and a happy athlete as well.

The coach who resists suggestions cuts off communication-instead of the athlete and coach drawing closer together, they grow farther apart. Coaches cannot last long if they do not enter the practice and game as a joint, enthusiastic, fun, hard-working venture. To criticize athletes, resist suggestions, or become defensive is the beginning of another failing coach.

The average tenure of a coach is perhaps around seven years. Losing situations (records) cause discouragement, but discouragement results also when coaches do not realize that they should approach each practice as a fun place to be and a place to talk individually with each athlete.