No matter if you’re at a little league game or a college football game, there always seems to be one thing in common, there are always coaches that yell at the players! Most coaches seem to use yelling as a hope for the players to listen and do what they say, meaning that they would hopefully be playing better. However, does yelling really ever work?
Warren Grymes at jacksonville.com describes his experiences with being a player himself, turned coach. Growing up playing sports, he was used to coaches that yell at the athletes. At the time, he hadn’t really thought much about it. Years later after becoming a coach himself, he had adopted the same yelling strategy. Even as he coached his son’s team, the yelling stuck. Finally, while coaching his grandson’s team, he reflected back on what worked for him the best in any team he had been on back in the day, and quickly realized that it wasn’t having a coach screaming at him. The football coaches that he had in his freshman and sophomore years of high school had been motivational, supportive, and didn’t get mad or yell when something didn’t go the way they wanted. This resulted in a team that worked together well, trusted in their coaches, and earned a undefeated season. Once their junior year came, new coaches were introduced. They weren’t supportive, were not motivational, and liked to yell a lot. Needless to say, this resulted in a lot of losses and resentment toward the coaches.
Perhaps it’s time that we take a look at our coaching system and make a ruling. Why is it OK to have coaches that yell at their players when teachers are not allowed to scream at their students and employers do not shout at their employees?