Discipline

Year in and year out, how many times do you hear a coach or commentator say so-so can be a really, really good player. Many players today will tell you that they want to be a good player and that that they want to be successful, but it takes a tremendous amount of discipline to maximize one's potential. Discipline is the practice of training people to obey rules or a code of behavior, using punishment to correct disobedience. Many coaches today don't put in the time and effort to teach discipline to their student-athletes. It takes a tremendous amount of hard-work and focus to do so, and in the end it will tremendously help the student-athletes maximize their potential as a player and more importantly as a person. There are some things that coaches can do to promote self-discipline in their players:

1. Make your expectations clear.
2. Praising initiative and self-discipline when the athlete demonstrates it.
3. Treating your athletes as adults.
4. Applying all team policies to all athletes.
5. Making your practice a safe place for all your athletes to try new things and make mistakes.
6. Spend time meeting with players and coaches on a regular basis.
7. Knowing what is going on with your players and coaches.
8. Encouraging open communication with the players and coaches on the team. Honest is crucial to growing.
9. All coaches and players are human, and they will get away with as much as you allow them to get away with.