Communication

Article What do I say to a player who wants to quit mid-season? Listen first, then separate the reason from the feeling: most players who want to quit mid-season are discouraged, not done. Bruce Brown's approach. Read now Article Is there a good way to cut players? No — there is no good way to cut players, only a respectful one: personal conversations all through tryouts, honest face-to-face feedback, never a posted list. Read now Article What do I do when my assistant coach and I aren't on the same page? Meet privately, define exact roles, and use one voice in front of players. Bruce Brown's principles for head and assistant coaches who disagree. Read now Article What do I do about a player who loses their temper in competition? Teach the player that temper is not competitiveness — it's emotion out of control. Bruce Brown's Play, Recover, Play routine trains composure as a skill. Read now Article How do I change an athlete's behavior that's hurting the team? Name the behavior exactly, help the athlete see it through a teammate's eyes, ask "Is that who you want to be?", then walk through the change together. Read now Article How do I help a player accept a role they don't want? Ask two questions: what roles can you fill right now, and what role would you like to grow into — then commit to helping the player get there. Read now Article What do I do when my best player is my laziest worker? Hold your star to the same effort standard as everyone else. Bruce Brown's rule: you never see a great team whose most talented players aren't its best workers. Read now Article How do I correct bad body language on my team? Define it, teach it, rehearse it, hold athletes accountable. Bruce Brown's approach to fixing bad body language, from the four-step talk to the Walk Away Drill. Read now Article How do I confront a player without damaging the relationship? Correct the action, not the person, and lead with care. Bruce Brown's 'positive demanding' approach changes behavior without breaking player trust. Read now Video Parents Before the Game The first of four or five 10-minute topics drawn from one of Proactive's most requested presentations of the past two decades, The Role of Parents in… Watch now Video Parents After the Game Finishing his series on the role of parents in athletics — covering parents' responsibilities to their athletes after the game. Topics covered: the exit… Watch now Video I Love Watching You Play Sharing the origin of the now-famous phrase from his Role of Parents in Athletics presentation — Proactive's most requested presentation nationwide, built… Watch now Video Positive Intent Recorded in January from California's Central Coast, where he escaped the cold to spend time with grandkids — on a communication concept for teams. Topics… Watch now Video Jackass Farm Built around a memorable line from a crusty old baseball coach at a multi-sport clinic early in Bruce's career: "If you keep 24 great kids, you can keep… Watch now Video Beliefs on Changing Behavior The companion piece to the five-step Power of Your Words process — laying out the beliefs coaches should hold about changing athlete behavior. Topics… Watch now Video Additional Questions for Challenging Athletes Extending his presentation The Power of Your Words on working with challenging athletes. Topics covered: a recap of the five-step behavior-change process… Watch now Video 5 Steps to Changing Behavior Expanding on his presentation The Power of Your Words — the coach's ability to help kids change behaviors when they don't arrive with the attitudes the… Watch now Podcast I Joined the Dark Side Mike Cashman, high school and Division I coach turned basketball official, on the officials shortage, what makes a great one, and the player whose “you’re a liar” changed how he coached. Listen now Podcast Permission to Speak Freely Matt Kincaid, Gonzaga walk-on turned professor and leadership consultant, on why leaders stop hearing the truth, what candor does for a team, and the ninth-grade coach who believed in him. Listen now Podcast Can’t, Not Won’t Keith Orchard, mental health specialist for the Coeur d’Alene School District, on how chronic stress rewires a kid’s brain, behavior as communication, and teaching poise as a skill of the game. Listen now Podcast I’ll Never Tell You What You Want to Hear Dean Lockwood, associate head women’s basketball coach at Michigan State and 15 years with Pat Summitt, on the coach who promised him the truth, and reversing the interview to check for alignment. Listen now Podcast Cutting a Player Is an Act of Care Becky Carlson, head rugby coach at Quinnipiac, on the five reasons letting players go got so hard, reframing endings as care, and being curious over furious. Listen now Article Parent's Role Additions Asking permission before you give advice — how parents earn the right to be heard by their grown athlete. Read now Article A Senior Athlete This article from Proactive Coaching, shared by Bruce E. Brown and written by Times reader Frank Workman, imagines a letter a senior high-school athlete… Read now Article 5 Things Athletes Would Like Their Parents To Know And Do This article by Bruce E. Brown of Proactive Coaching LLC, from the Parents and Coaches Working Together collection, is drawn from the presentation "The… Read now Article Whatever It Takes This article by Bruce E. Brown and Rob Miller of Proactive Coaching LLC cautions leaders about telling athletes to "do whatever it takes to win." It… Read now Article The Power of Your Words - Additional Questions This article by Bruce E. Brown is a companion piece to his presentation "The Power of Your Words," which examines how the language coaches use shapes… Read now Article Preparing for a Tough Conversation with an Angry Parent Preparing for an Angry Parent Read now Article Athlete Questions This article by Bruce E. Brown of Proactive Coaching provides coaches with specific questions to ask their athletes throughout the year as a way to… Read now Article 3 Things To Eliminate This article by Bruce E. Brown and Rob Miller of Proactive Coaching, from the Intentional Coaching collection, addresses the power of words for coaches,… Read now Article Confrontation This article from Proactive Coaching, written by Tim Driver and included in the Leadership collection, addresses what to do when people refuse to buy in… Read now