Top 5 Mistakes Coaches Make

If coaching success in the sport of weightlifting was solely based on knowledge of training theory and its application, the landscape would be shaken up quite a bit. That isn’t to say that the cream does not rise to the top with respect to training expertise, but it is not just about technical and tactical knowledge. Kevin Doherty, a well-respected and successful coach, has a saying:

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“It isn’t about the X’s and O’s, it’s about the Jimmys and the Joes.”

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This highlights the importance of the coach-athlete relationship and the coach’s ability to create an environment that realizes each athlete’s potential. This aspect of the coaching process isn’t necessarily formalized in one place or even able to be taught well. So many make the mistake of overvaluing the hard skills of the profession, ignoring the soft skills. After flushing out our thoughts on the most common mistakes that coaches make, Max and I created a list that captures where most slip up early on in their professional careers.

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1 - Errors in execution

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“Generally, coaches will be well-intentioned. They’ll have a decent framework in place, but the execution of that plan, the decision making that comes on the back end of… some sort of observation or result… They err in how they react to it.”

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Most coaches will sit down, assess how their athlete did after a recent meet or testing date, then mock up the next macrocycle with the intent to use the last few months of training as the data to drive decision making. Eventually, there is a plan in place and all that is left is how the coach and athlete respond to new information. Day-to-day performance, technical changes, everything outside of the gym, it drives any and all adjustments to the plan. Where coaches tend to err is how they execute at any point during the decision making process.

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If an athlete walks into the gym, completely incapable of lifting the weights written into the program, how does the coach respond to that situation? Do they effectively manage the weight on the bar, the athlete’s expectations, and make the most out of what they can? Do they ignore incoming information and watch the athlete’s movement and mood become compromised? This is where execution matters. Being able to take theoretical knowledge and apply it when it matters most, executing to maximize what is available not what is hoped to be available, that differentiates the good from the great.   

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2- Engaging in wishful thinking

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“The idea of wishful thinking is that you’ve decided on an idea or outcome and you think that… if we do X, Y, or Z exercise, you know if we do panda pulls it’s going to have this effect and you don’t know that. You just believe that this is true.”

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When we as coaches learn something new about training, technique, or the coaching process, it is easy to completely buy into that as deserving the most focus. For example, there is a new system of integrating Lasha pulls into your program and it seems that is the magic bullet. All of your athlete’s technical woes will be behind them. But, what if you are completely wrong? What if the integration of the new training techniques or movements makes your athlete worse? That is a very real possibility. 

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Wishful thinking stations your decision making so firmly on the side of being right, that ignorance becomes bliss. The important thing to note is that self-belief is not wrong or to be avoided, but recognizing your fallibility as a coach and the necessity of having processes in place to pivot when things do not go to plan, that’s key.

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3 - Fitting athletes into a culture (and not the other way around)

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“It turns out we have a bunch of people who are kind of recreational, they just want to have fun… but you want it to be Big Monday, Big Wednesday, and Big Friday… and there’s no compatibility there.”

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There is no wrong culture in the sport of weightlifting. From a dreary training hall without many windows or fresh water and a focus on pushing maximal weights to a bright, white walled, Taylor Swift laden facility with a concentration on hitting technical lifts at medium intensities, they can all work. Issues with culture then seem to be the result of many factors, but the focus here is a mismatch between the athletes and the expectations within the training environment. A coach may demand a certain style of training and competing, pushing a singular way of training on their athletes. This is in the absence of any consideration for who they are, what they want, and why they are there. 

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When the training environment, expectations, and athletes all mesh, there is a gained benefit from the cohesion. Suddenly people are having fun (or not, if that’s what they want), lifting weights, and showing up to training more consistently. This is the greatest thing that can happen from both a business and performance standpoint. 

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4 - Not creating a successful business model

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“If you’re going to be a weightlifting coach professionally, then you’re also going to be a business owner… and the sad reality for a lot of you is that the business side of it is ten times more important than your abilities as a coach.”

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Who does not get into weightlifting for the love of the sport? It is likely impossible that you will find someone who chose this profession to make money. This is not because there is no money in weightlifting, but because it is not incredibly lucrative given the amount of work and time that will go into becoming successful. With that said, most people who do, or will, find themselves coaching in some capacity could benefit from a thorough understanding of the business side of things, given that what you can do is heavily limited by how much you make.

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This error focuses on the absence of a business acumen, and the necessity of understanding how to dial in the business of weightlifting. Promotion, marketing, the most basic aspects should be understood and executed on. Generally, this is best done with outside help, relying on those with a far greater expertise to help take your coaching hustle to the next level.

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5 - Not having a long-term plan for your coaching

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“Have a definitive long-term plan for what that career of coaching looks like.”

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Most coaches enter the sport with wide-eyed enthusiasm, envisioning their path to the Olympic Games. While this can help many get into the sport, it doesn’t necessarily keep them in it. The path to Paris is paved with hard work, luck, setbacks, and a lot more. Without having the ability to anticipate this, you can easily get caught up in the immediate moment, planless and hopeful that you will catch a big break if you just keep showing up. This is the trap coaches fall into.

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A long-term plan can guide you to a sustainable and rewarding coaching career, even if it is not one that ends with five rings and a plush Olympic mascot. Just as we plan for an athlete’s career, including the ups and downs, the same should be done for those steering the ship. Anticipating drops in motivation to keep going or an inability to maintain financial stability, this should be considered and safeguarded against. Maybe you pick up a part-time job to supplement your coaching or you travel to international events to stay engaged and interested in weightlifting. There are workarounds to keep from committing the error of being shortsighted as a coach.

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Wrap-up

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Coaching is not easy, so it cannot be expected that anyone doing it is perfect and avoids all of the pitfalls that we have found ourselves committing. With that said, the reason we came up with this list is to help alert coaches to potential difficulties they will face along the way. Even then, it is not anticipated that you will stop thinking wishfully, execute every part of the process perfectly, or have a bulletproof business plan for your club or gym. It is anticipated that by having this information you can more quickly and correctly keep yourself from getting caught in the trap of getting stuck on these errors. There is a piece of advice that applies here: 

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“The first law of holes states: when you find yourself in one, stop digging.”