In reflecting on this past competition season, I recall someone asking me what words of wisdom or what inspirational talk could a cheerleading coach offer to his or her team right before  they go on stage.

 This is a good question.  I have seen a variety of methods: a coach revving up the team to a fever pitch; a coach yelling at his team (obviously, not recommended); a coach warning the squad not to do certain things (also not recommended!); a coach encouraging a group hug; a coach leading the team in prayer. 

So, what works?  Well, in some ways, any of the above methods except yelling and warning can work. 

Yelling or berating or threatening a team is shaming and dispiriting.  That such behavior exists in coaches is alarming and no one (the athletes, parents or other coaches) should put up with it. 

To warn a team to “don’t do this…or whatever you do, remember not to do that…” only encourages the team to remember what they should NOT do instead of what they SHOULD do! The brain hears “don’t do” warnings as instructions so this should be avoided. 

Since each coach is different and each team has its own personality and social culture, it is impossible to create a one-size-fits-all inspirational speech.  I would warn against revving up a team to a big excited frenzy since this may adversely affect focus and precision of technique.  Besides, some athletes perform best when they feel quiet and calm; others do like to get revved up.  So, find out what works best for each cheerleader and then find a routine or ritual that can accommodate everyone. 

Of course everyone hopes to place first but doing so is dependent on so many factors out of your control such as the skill level of the other teams, the time of day you perform and so forth.  What is under your control is attitude so think of what to say that will help your team feel good about each other and the hard work they have put into their routine.  Tell them you are proud of them; tell them that if they perform with love and heart and with a desire to do their best, they will be winners in your eyes.  In other words, help them feel like winners as they march out onto the stage.  If they feel like winners, they will perform like champs.

It will be a jam-packed weekend with lots of class options for the coaches.  I will be teaching 3 different classes: How to Bring out the Leader in your Cheerleader; How to Enhance Motivation and Improve Performance; and How to Identify and Change Negative Thinking.

All of these classes are based on best practices from sport psychology and all are evidence-based.  This means that there is scientific proof that these techniques really work – if – if they are actually put into practice! For example, did you know that just by setting clear goals, you will enhance motivation for your athletes?  That may be something you “feel” is right but knowing that there is evidence to support your “feeling” makes it even better! Goals help to mobilize an athlete and aids in prolonging persistence. 

The way you set goals is also important; it should be a joint effort with you and your cheerleader coming up with the goals. One of my favorite sayings is, “That which you help to create, you will support.” 

A goal is a worthless without a plan.  I may say I want to lose 5 lbs but unless I have a clear plan as to how I will achieve that goal, I’ll probably end up gaining 5 lbs first! 

There are outcome goals (placing first in a competition), performance goals (successfully executing a skill) and process goals (focus on the specific steps that go into execution of a skill). An over-emphasis on outcome may boost motivation in the short-term but because outcome (in a competition at least) is not under your control, it can lead to disappointment and a dip in motivation. 

The best way to go is to put more effort into performance and process goals. 

If you do want to improve your chances of placing first in a competition, check out my training program – The Mental Game of Cheerleading: Training for Competitions!

I was warmly greeted by the conference organizer, Lin Lindsay and her assistant /friend, Cricket Butler. They, along with out-going President Tina Hester, in-coming President Carrie Lasseter and website maven, Cammie Dalley took  fellow conference speaker, Robb Webb and me out to dinner on Thursday night.  We went to the Last Resort which I would highly recommend.

On Friday I presented two workshops: Using Sport Psychology to Improve Performance and Bringing out the Leader in Your Cheerleaders.  On Saturday, two more workshops: Mental Toughness – The Key Ingredient for Athletic Success and Unlock the Block: How to Resolve MentalBlocks in Tumbling. I’m pleased to say that the attendees were enthusiastic, engaged, and involved in the whole process.  I had a ball and I was told they did, too!

Georgia-based Nfinity Shoes unveiled their brand new product called the Game Day shoe which is specially designed for spirit or sideline cheerleaders.  David Marler, National Sales Director at Nfinity, hosted a party to celebrate the inauguration of the new shoe and invited the University of Georgia drum line (see photo) to perform and some U of GA cheerleaders to cheer.  Munchies and beverages were also provided, all of which took place outside on a blissfully warm day.

 University of Georgia Drum Line

One of the disadvantages of being a speaker is that I cannot attend many of the other workshops.  I did manage to sit in on two of Robb Webb’s workshops.  One was Creative Transitional Stunts and the other was How to Synchronize Tumbling.  (Robb owns Robb Webb’s Schol of Stunt and Tumble and can be reached at magicalstunts@yahoo.com..)

 The conference was a big success (at least it seemed that to me!). It drew a big crowd of dedicated, enthusiastic coaches and I was honored to be part of this event!

 Tina Hester, Brooke McArthur and Lin Lindsay

No one wants to see a cheerleader get hurt and yet in the busyness of the season it can be easy to forget some simple guidelines. Of course all coaches should be trained in risk management and basic first aid.  Additionally, all gyms should have an emergency response plan. Again, the AACCA website offers a wealth of valuable information.

In addition to falls and collisions, sudden cardiac deaths, although rare, can happen in young people.  This is always shocking when it happens since the athlete appears to be in tip top condition. But there can be hidden heart conditions which is why one mother, Mary Beth Schewitz, who lost her son, Max, at age 20 from an apparent heart irregularity, founded the Max Schewitz Foundation which supports education, prevention, and research of sudden cardiac death in young people.

Schewitz is an advocate of electrocardiogram (ECG) screening in young athletes. In the Chicago area, over 50,000 high school students have been given free ECGs and one to two percent of the tests are outside normal ranges and require further medical evaluation.

ECGs are not perfect. They will not detect every heart defect and they can yield false positives (about 2%) but it sure would be good to know if a child falls within that small group of kids who do have heart defects!

Lest you think ECGs are expensive, Ms. Schewitz says that a stand-alone ECG costs less than a teeth cleaning or veterinary visit.  That seems like a small price to pay for peace of mind.

Of course there are the other times when the cause and the fix are not clear. As I mentioned yesterday, high stress families, especially families where feelings are not expressed or allowed or where conflict is not addressed in a healthy way, can be breeding grounds for all sorts of medical and psychological symptoms including mental blocks. (And by the way – high stress is a significant factor associated with sport injuries.)  

You will have your own way of working with blocks and it’s good to follow through with what you usually do – especially if you have had success with other cheerleaders.  But if you find the problem is not resolving or if the athlete is especially emotional, then you might want to consider assessing for family stress. So how do you do this?  

 This may not be as hard as you think.  After all, you probably already know something about your cheerleader and you’ve probably met one or both parents. Use what you know already to review the following checklist: 

1. Has the athlete alluded to tension at home?
2. A recent separation or divorce? 
3. A loss of a loved one – including a beloved pet?
4. A parent losing a job?
5. A parent who travels extensively?
6. A recent move?
7. Illness in the family?
8. Illness in the athlete?
9. Problems in school?
10. Relationships problems?
11. Missed practices (more than usual)?
12. Does athlete seem unusually tired and listless?
13. Does athlete seem to have trouble concentrating?
14. Does athlete seem preoccupied?
15. Does athlete seem more emotionally volatile lately?
16. Have you seen any changes in the athlete’s behavior lately?
17. Have you noticed any bruises that may indicate abuse? 

If you answer “yes” to any one of these, it’s worth investigating further with the cheerleader to see if the problem is something he or she is willing to talk about. Sometimes the athlete will feel so relieved to have the opportunity to express pent up feelings that the block will melt away.  

Usually though, your conversation will be a first step in a process that may include some problem-solving with the cheerleader or bringing the parent(s) in for a meeting. It could also result in helping the athlete and/or the family find a good therapist.

Do any of you know of any training programs for new cheer coaches?  If you do, please let me know and I will write about it here. 

There are some books and websites that provide excellent information and education and although these are not only for new coaches, they will be helpful to anyone who is new to cheer coaching.

 My favorites are: 

• Developing a Successful Cheerleading Program by Pam Headridge and Nancy Garr, Coaches Choice, 2004  (This book can be ordered at Pam’s website which also offers a lot of other great information – http://www.oakharborcheer.com/)  
• Cheerleading: From Tryouts to Championships by Inside Cheerleading Magazine 
• Coaching Cheerleading Successfully by Linda Rae Chappell  
• The Ultimate Guide to Cheerleading by Leslie Wilson  
• AACCA Cheerleading Safety Manual – Gerald S. George, Ph.D. (Editor) – http://www.aacca.org  
• http://cheerleading.about.com/ This is Valerie Ninemire’s site and it is well worth visiting 

Any others you would recommend?  If so, please let me know! 

Interested in learning the secrets of Olympic Gold Medal champions? Then check out my training program for cheerleading competitions which reveals specific techniques used by Olympic athletes to manage distractions, improve focus, manage anxiety and succeed!  The Mental Game of Cheerleading: Training for Competitions consists of 2 audio CDs plus an Action Guide filled with tips and worksheets to help you perform at an optimal level!

To refresh your memory, the series of interactions (or transactions as they are called in TA) were as follows:

 1. Coach says to Cheerleader, “Remember, cheer practice is at 3 pm tomorrow.” Cheerleader responds, “OK coach.”  This is an Adult to Adult interaction. 

2. Coach says to Cheerleader, “Remember, cheer practice is at 3 pm tomorrow.”  Cheerleader says, “Ok, ok…I know. Do you think I’m stupid or something?” Here, Cheerleader responds from her Child and tries to “hook” Coach’s Parent. 

3. In response to the above, Coach says, “I don’t need attitude from you. Show up and shut up.” Coach is responding form his Critical Parent, directing the message to Cheerleader’s Child. 

4. Another way Coach could have responded, which would have diffused the tension, is:  “Hey – of course I don’t think you’re stupid.  I just want to make sure you’re there ‘cuz practice isn’t the same without you!  I’d miss your smiling face.”  Here, Coach is still coming from his Parent but it’s his Nurturant Parent, not his Critical Parent. 

Well, there is another way Coach might handle this and it is by trying to reestablish the Adult to Adult transaction.  As you can see below, Coach says, “No, I don’t think you’re stupid. I just want to make sure you know because there was a time change.”

This should be said in a calm, friendly tone of voice, devoid of any sarcasm.  What you hope for is that Coach will have succeeded in engaging Cheerleader’s Adult.  This is an exchange of information and it belongs in the Adult realm. 

This is not to say that Adult – Adult transactions are superior to any others; they are not but this transaction started out as a simple exchange of information which is always an Adult to Adult interaction. It took a turn somewhere else when Cheerleader tried to hook Coach’s Parent. 

Different situations require different kinds of transactions; if we only had Adult to Adult transactions, life would get pretty boring.  It would be like conversing with Dr. Spock all the time! 

Generally speaking, when conflict arises, a good way to reduce the tension is to try to establish an Adult to Adult transaction.

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According to Transactional Analysis (TA), the way your Parent, Adult, and Child ego states or personality parts are constructed depends on your own history – the way you were treated by parents, siblings, and other people in your life plus your own life experiences.

 Therefore, it is not unlikely that your Parent may sound and feel like your parents or other authority figures in your life.  Similarly, your Child contains left-over feelings, needs, fears, triumphs and resentments from your own childhood. 

All of these feelings and experiences can be “hooked” or triggered by current transactions with people.  When this happens, you are likely to re-enact dramas from your past.  It feels like “now” but it’s fueled by the past. 

A clue is this: whenever there is an intensification of feelings about a situation, it’s a good bet you are being “hooked” or triggered by something from your past.  This is a good time to count to ten (really – it works!) to give yourself the time and space to step back and THINK about what your best next move should be. 

To go back to yesterday’s example, you saw Coach’s Critical Parent being hooked by the Child of the Cheerleader.  What could Coach have done differently?  

Solution #1: Coach could have recognized that this was a kid who was hypersensitive to criticism (anyone have an athlete like that?) and so, he could have responded from his Parent but from his Nurturant Parent as you can see in the diagram below.

In this instance he would have said, “Hey – of course I don’t think you’re stupid.  I just want to make sure you’re there ‘cuz practice isn’t the same without you!  I’d miss your smiling face.” Now it’s important to have the right tone when this is said.  It must be said with a warm smile and perhaps a gentle touch on the shoulder. 

What do you think this kind of response would have done?  If done with the right tone of voice and a smile, I think it would have reduced the tension and neutralized the negativity.  I bet Cheerleader would have smiled, too.  You can diffuse a lot of tension with a little gentle humor. 

There is another solution to this negative transaction so come back for more soon! 

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Today, as promised, I will show how a simple interaction can result in conflict.

 In the diagram below, Coach again offers the reminder.  Note this is coming from the Coach’s Adult and is directed to the Cheerleader’s Adult.  But this time, the Cheerleader responds differently.  This time, the Cheerleader says, “Ok, ok…I know. Do you think I’m stupid or something?” 

What happened here?  Well, the Coach’s reminder was innocent enough and if it was delivered in a neutral way, meaning no non-verbal attitude, why should Cheerleader respond in such a way?

We can’t know for sure why Cheerleader responded in this way.  We do know that she responded from her Child and directed it at the Coach’s Parent.  Whether the Coach’s Parent will get hooked or not depends on the Coach’s psychological awareness and general wisdom. 

It may be the Cheerleader perceives any communication from any adult as a remonstration; maybe the Cheerleader’s parents are highly critical people; or maybe the Cheerleader is just in a bad mood (teenager anyone?). 

What should Coach do in this instance?  There are several options, each with its own consequence. 

If Coach’s Critical Parent gets hooked, he might say (in a loud voice), “I don’t need attitude from you. Show up and shut up.” 

The Adult to Adult transaction has disappeared and in its stead is a Critical Parent to a Child transaction.  The conversation has changed from a simple reminder about practice to a heated and unpleasant exchange.   

Coach might now see Cheerleader as a trouble-maker and Cheerleader sees Coach as another adult who doesn’t understand her. 

What would you have done in this situation?  To learn how to get out of this kind of scenario, come back tomorrow for more!

If you look at the illustration below, you will see the typical 3-circle diagram of the Parent, Adult and Child personality parts.  (Everyone has all 3parts no matter how old you are.) 

In this diagram, you see how you draw a transaction. 

In this case, Person A is on the left and Person B on the right.  Let’s say that Person A is a Coach and Person B is a cheerleader. 

What is illustrated is a simple transaction.  Coach says to cheerleader, “Remember, practice is at 3 pm tomorrow.” 

This is an Adult to Adult transaction.  Coach is merely giving information and is engaging the Adult in the cheerleader. 

The Cheerleader says, “Thanks Coach,” indicating that the message has been received. 

Now you may wonder why I am talking about this. After all, what’s the big deal?  You have these kinds of interactions all the time.  Exactly!  You are constantly giving information and providing advice – after all, that’s what coaching is all about, right? 

But how about those times when an innocent comment on your part results in a sullen response? What happens then?  Stay tuned.  Tomorrow I’ll show you what’s really happening in those situations and how to resolve theme.

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