COACH Or TRAINER.. Or NEITHER: Some events and conversation over the last few days has got me thinking about the role and responsibility of the trainer or coach and mentor. To me these are two very different jobs, with coach being far more personal, and intimate, which is what I will focus on here. A coach and mentor is a very special individual in ones life. He or she assumes enormous responsibility whenever speaking to the trainee. As a Ranger I was fortunate to spend time with my mentors 24/7, often we were under a lot of stress in combat. I also worked side by side with one them so we got to know each other very well indeed. All of my mentors knew me. They depended on me. They were my leaders and role models. Our interaction earned them the right to suggest things. When they did make suggestions I respected them, and usually complied because I knew they were invested in me; they would facilitate whatever the objective was, and share responsibility for making it happen. A coach unwilling to do that is a coach in name only, which makes him or her a trainer. Not less, not worse, but different by way of commitment. I hear runners, fitness, and marketing enthusiasts talk about their on-line, remote coaches and how great it is to be held accountable, and to be told what to do and when. I cant argue with that because a remote training relationship can be an effective means to ensure compliance. But I do object when the trainee waxes poetic about how the on-line coach cares, and listens and understands, and how the training is individualized based on the after-action reports and data submitted by the individual to the trainer, etc. This usually lasts until the individual receives the first email with someone elses name in the header, suggesting a mass, auto-fill workout or method to marketing on so and so platform prescription. Or maybe it lasts until the individual and trainer meet in person or talk on the phone and it is clear the coach has no idea who the individual is or what he/she has done/not done in the recent days or weeks. This is not coaching. It is a few steps above counting reps but it isnt coaching. My current project reminded me of the coachs responsibility. A wise, experienced mentor can shape the course of an athletic and marketing career, of a life, especially if the coach truly cares. Not all do, or can. But when a coach earns the respect and trust of the individual, when a coach proves the student is worth his energy and attention by trusting him or her there is no length to which the pair cannot go ensemble. Care must be taken though. The relationship is intimate. Words cannot be thrown away. Topics and timing must be chosen carefully because in the right condition, when hormones and endorphins are flowing the individual is very susceptible. At this time there is a direct pipeline to the brain. Whatever is said must be the right thing to say. Jenn, Kai, Kelly, Keith and Branden are all very good coaches because they do care. They lead. They inspire. They cajole, hint, educate, push, pull ... and they are careful. They also do what must be done, which often means telling a individual student what no one else is willing to tell them.
Posted on: Wed, 09 Jul 2014 15:51:17 +0000
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