My recent blog post "Are You Coachable?" which can be found below contained some content from a published article by Matt Wilson and Corey Lundberg entitled "Coachability: Traits and Tactics of Super Learning Students." In my original article, I failed to site Matt and Corey's article which can be found at www.curiouscoaches.com. I apologized to Matt and Corey for that omission. They are excellent coaches who have worked hard to provide useful information to the coaching community.
I think we can all agree that golf is hard even under the best of circumstances. Young golfers who are striving to get better often put their focus on finding a good coach and working hard. Those are clearly important considerations but an often-overlooked factor in improvement and success is a player’s willingness and determination to follow his or her coach’s instructions and guidance. In other words, are you coachable? Before you learn how to answer this question let’s first discuss why it makes such a big difference. Assuming you’re like most competitive junior golfers and you’ve found a good coach and are working hard, one of the biggest remaining influencers on your rate of improvement is what you choose to do in your training and practice time. The best golf instructors understand how valuable this time is and are well equipped to provide you with direction and structure to ensure that this time is productive. Below is a brief illustration depicting two young players who are striving to reach the same goal. Player A on the left, works hard to stay on track and follow the directions of his coach even in between lessons. Player B on the right, has good intentions but often gets off track and then waits for his coach to get him back on track. Player A will clearly make more progress over time. In golf, where fractions separate the best from the rest, junior golfers can’t afford to get off track and let days and weeks go by without making progress. Heeding the ongoing advice of an experienced coach can literally make the difference on whether a young golfer reaches his goals or not.
Now that we understand the importance of trusting your coach and following his or her guidance, let’s determine how coachable you are. There are several traits that coachable athletes share. Among the most important are the following:
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AuthorJeff Isler shares his observations, insights, and experiences on the game of golf and those that play it at a high level. Archives
April 2019
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