Which Whrhs Sports Coach Are You Most Like?

1. What is your goal when you play sports?

To have fun and enjoy the game.

High school me would have told you to win and get better because playing at the top level was a goal of mine. Since then for me it is a way to escape and just have some fun now that I am older. It's also a great way to exercise and keep in shape. I still like the aspect of winning and competing for a championship in the adult leagues, but it does not get as serious because all the players have a life to go back to when the game is over. So if I had to sum up what my goal is when playing a sport, it is to have fun and enjoy it because that's the whole reason I started playing; it was fun.

My goal was to work well with my teammates, to set individual and team goals, to improve at every practice, and to help motivate my teammates.

To get outside. To exercise. To have fun. To compete. To be with friends. To win. To be challenged. To learn.

2. What is the best part about playing on a team?

The best part about playing on a team is the camaraderie. You spend so much time with your teammates they become a second family to you. Now I look back and think what great memories I created with friends that will last a lifetime. The times we spent in hotels or on bus rides going to games just builds a strong bond and relationship with these teammates. It doesn't just affect how well you play the sport together it also sets up that friendship for life which to me now is more important.

There is something rewarding about being a part of a collective effort to achieve something bigger than any single person. That, and the crazy people you meet when playing on a team. Yeah, mostly the crazy people.

The bonds you make with your teammates.

Being part of a community, having each others' backs on and off the field, developing friendships, learning how to overcome challenges, and to work together.

3. What is the best way to improve yourself in a sport?

Practice everyday, find role models who are better than you and learn from them, and demonstrate determination and a hard work ethic.

To commit yourself 100% to working hard at it.

Be passionate about what you do. In sport, as in anything, those that are the most successful, are those that motivate themselves beyond what is expected of them.

There is the old saying, 'practice makes perfect'. I don't think it gets any more simple than that. That goes for anything in life we don't just decide to do something one day and become flawless at it. We work at the skills necessary to become good at what we are doing. As far as a sport goes, practicing the sport is important. Most sports have skills that transfer between the two. Now as I look back I see where I kept pushing myself to be better and I definitely think that all that 'play time' is one of the reason I was able to play on a national level later in life.

4. Why did you start playing sports?

Sports looked like fun and a good way to make friends.

I love sports, I wanted to be a part of a team. I love competition and wanted to work towards achieving goals.

I always had a lot of energy and needed a way to expend it.

I started playing sports when I was only 3 years old. My father took me ice skating and I really took to it. I like to think I was better at skating when I was 3 than I was at walking. I also got to watch the pros do it on TV and I fell in love with the game. I also think that meeting a few of my sports heroes as a young kid made it ea sier to want to practice and play hard.

5. How can playing a sport change you as a person?

It teaches you not to give up and overcome challenges. It also teaches you to work with people that are different than you, seek more opportunities, and be fearless.

Sports allow you to learn more about your limitations and then push those limitations. Pushing your limitations helps to develop a stronger mindset for how to approach challenges in life.

I think playing a sport develops some great life skills such as teamwork, discipline, and a strong work ethic. When you learn how to work with teammates towards a common goal it could transfer into a business life when you graduate college and need to work with co-workers on a big project for your boss. Discipline is one of the more important things you learn while playing a sport. Discipline is 100% your responsibility and being able to handle that pressure and expectation is very tough sometimes. A person with strong discipline doesn't allow the pressure to get to them and is able to make smart rational decision in a sport or in life. Work ethic often goes unnoticed to the average fan in a sport. The pro's that make the big bucks and play on TV gave up most of their childhood to perfecting these skills. I truly believe those sacrifices I made when I was younger made me a better person today. I still have a strong work ethic that will never change. I also think that the discipline required to succeed in a career such as teaching was learned from me playing sports.

Some of the best memories I have involve sports and teammates. The lessons learned in sports apply to many aspects of our lives. We learn about sportsmanship and commitment. We learn how to be a good loser and a gracious winner. We learn that there really is no substitute for hard work and what it means to be part of a team.

6. Is winning the most important part of the game? Why or why not?

Winning is NOT the most important part of sports. Although winning can be very fun and everyone deserves a chance to feel what it is like to accomplish a goal together or even in individual sports. At the professional level winning is important because you are getting paid to win. At the college level winning is not required but rewarded because those players are brought in to represent the school and compete with the best from high school. At high school winning is not the most important thing. We as coaches from the high school level want to develop young citizens that will be good people when they graduate. Not everyone gets the keep playing sports their whole lives to make a career out of it.

Winning is important to me, but not the most important part of the game. When you put your best effort forward, you feel good whether you win or lose.

No, winning is not the most important part. Getting better as an athlete, person, and teammate is most important, as well as showing growth and making memories.

No. It is the journey you take that is most important. Winning means nothing if you haven't gained anything in the time put in towards achieving that victory.

7. Why should more people participate in sports?

To find out something new about yourself. You might not like every sport you play, but it just means you need to keep looking.

Sports aren't for everybody, we as former athletes and current coaches understand that. I do believe that everyone should try it out once in their life. They might fall in love with it. Most of the players at the high school level will never play pro's or get paid to play but it'll change their lives in other ways which can be just as important. You'll make memories and stories that you can share with anyone. It's a great way to stay in shape if the gym isn't your kind of thing. Overall I think that you should try a sport just because they're fun. Not just the sport itself, although when you find the one you like it is always fun, but the atmosphere and friendships made along the way.

The skills that you develop as a part of a sports team can help in life, such as persevering, overcoming adversity, working together to set goals and achieve them, and working cooperatively as part of a team are all skills you'll need in life.

Because sports are good for the body and mind and being part of a team is a special feeling.