My travel soccer club sponsors a Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) workshop every year. It is a mandatory workshop for all soccer coaches, and I am always reluctant to attend. But after each workshop, I always walk away with one or two concepts to help me be a better youth soccer coach. Tonight, I attended the PCA workshop called Double-Goal Coach: Coaching the Mental Game. And what struck me tonight was that players should set and achieve goals. By setting and achieving goals, players will quickly improve.

Setting S.M.A.R.T. Goals

The first step is to set goals. Players should choose S.M.A.R.T goals: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-bound. Goals should meet all of these criteria. For example, an individual player goal could be to score at least 10 goals in a single season. A team goal could be to win the league championship. With concrete goals in mind, players can focus on achieving them.

Achieving Goals

There are many ways to help players achieve their goals. For example, positive coaches can inspire players by filling their emotional tanks. That is certainly something I try to do. But at tonight's workshop, I learned another way to help my players achieve their goals. I learned that when NBA star Kobe Bryant was in high school, he practiced on his own at 6am every morning. I also learned that Tiger Woods still hits 1,000 golf balls every day. These professional players became great by practicing often. So I am going to provide a similar opportunity to my players. I am going to invite them to come to practice 30 minutes early to work on anything they like. It will be an optional, self-paced and open session. The extra time on the field will help them achieve their goals. And I hope this experience inspires them to set and achieve more goals.

Coaches have goals too. My goal this season is to help my players set and achieve their goals. When they learn how to achieve goals in soccer, they will set and achieve goals in life. And that is what positive coaching is all about.

More from this contributor:

Positive Soccer Coaching: Unique Ways to Fill the Emotional Tank

Positive Soccer Coaching: Five Dumb Things Coaches Do

Positive Soccer Coaching: Enjoy the Game First

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Positive Soccer Coaching: Help Players Set and Achieve Goals