Good coaches coach the summer and fall. Great coaches and programs build connections with their team year round.
Finding ways to do that year round can sometimes be a challenge, especially in the midst of a pandemic where many of us don't have the same access to the kids at school that we've grown accustomed to.
That brings me to Lincoln HS (WA) head coach Masaki Matsumoto, who shared a really good idea on how he's connecting with his class before they took off for the Thanksgiving holiday.
Via a Zoom call, coach Matsumoto went through each of his students in his class and shared something that he appreciates about them. Clearly this is aimed at his class, but it's also something you can do with your team because it's simple, effective, and most importantly of all, it's personalized. You can tell from some of the responses he gets how much his feedback and perspective is appreciated and valued.
Really cool idea here, probably meant for teacher, but applicable to coaches.
See a bit of that meeting in the clip.