Saturday, July 12, 2008

The HardHead Philosophy: What if I have a coach already?

I just updated my Coaching website to address these questions, and I thought I'd post the page here: what if I already have a coach? How do you work? What is HardHead anyway?

The HardHead Philosophy:

The idea is really simple. My job is to get you to perform to your absolute potential, no matter the pressure situation that you face.

I believe coaching is about the athlete. A coach is a person who exists to help an athlete achieve. This means that success in sport can never be about the coach. If a coach is taking credit for wins or success in sport, that coach is distracted by their own ego, and therefore can not be putting all of their energy into their client.

As a coach, I make a pact with an athlete: I will give you everything I have. I expect you to work at LEAST as hard as I am, because this is about you achieving your goals.

My greatest satisfaction as a coach is to watch an athlete make an enormous performance jump, be that in the ability to perform consistently, in breaking a performance plateau, or in suddenly being free from self sabotage and realizing their potential is limitless. I love to ask an athlete, when it is all said and done: “So, did you do what you came to do? Did you perform to your absolute potential?”

If you already have a coach, that’s even better. My job in this case is to make a bridge between technical performance and mental fitness. I work one on one with your coach, learning their coaching style, and listening carefully to their assessment of their athlete.

I then work individually with the athlete in a confidential setting to sus out distractions from ultimate performance. Together, we build a Performance Plan.

Ideally, I then work on and off snow with the athlete for two to four sessions, fine tuning the Performance Plan, which is then brought back to the regular coach.

In this manner, we build a working relationship which is inclusive of your current coaching, supports the athlete, unlocks new potential, and positions the current coach to propel their athlete even further.

After your on-site coaching session or seminar, I am additionally available on line and via phone for continued support for both coaches and their athletes.

Please feel free to comment, call or email at katehowe@mac.com for more information!

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