All of us as coaches have had our share of critics— from sports writers to parents. I read this today and thought it would be of interest and value to all of you who read this site.
Someone once quipped, “Every baseball team could use someone who knows how to play all 9 positions, never strikes out and never makes an error in the field. The only problem is, it hard to make him set down his hotdog and come out of the stands!!!”
You need to remember that all of us need the advice and input of others. But you should only consider the advice of a critic when: 1) you know you are valued by the the one who criticizes you (THAT is huge!); 2) the criticism is not tainted by his/her own personal agenda; 3) the person is not naturally critical of everything (you know the type!); 4) the person will continue giving support after giving advice; and 5) he/she has knowledge and success in the area of the criticism.
Let’s face it… what really hurts is the criticism of people who are important to you. It’s hard to have your dream criticized by those whom you admire, love and respect. But if you want to achieve your dream you’ll have to learn how to pay that price too. Stacy Allison, the first American woman to reach the summit of Mt. Everest, points out that there are times in our life when it’s ok not to listen to what other people are saying. Allison stated, “if I’d listened to other people I wouldn’t have climbed Mt. Everest.”
If you are a coach, you are in a very public job. We live in a very negative-oriented, judgmental culture. Everybody thinks he knows it all. That’s why I’m always amused at the Holiday Inn Express commercials on tv. They stayed at the motel the night before so now they’re an expert! My dad used to tell me, “consider the source.” Those points in the first paragraph will help you to “consider the source!”
