My Personal Philosophy On Coaching

Want to know my philosophy on coaching?

Here it is.

I can’t remember a coach ever telling me their philosophy.

That’s one reason I’m sharing mine with you now.

Honestly, I can’t seem to remember if a coach has ever specifically told me what their core principles were.

But I’m going to tell you mine because every coach operates from a core philosophy, a core set of values.

I want you to know what drives me and how I approach coaching girls lacrosse at the high school level.

My overall, simple philosophy is this.

Make a difference, do something great and make an impact.

Of course, it goes deeper than that.

Are you a coach?

How would you describe your philosophy?

I know some awesome coaches who may not necessarily have thought deeply about their coaching philosophy, but if asked they’d be able to tell you in an instant what’s important to them (at least I hope so).

On the flip side of that there are others who probably don’t have a clue as to how they would describe it.

That’s a shame.

One of the greatest lacrosse coaches I’ve studied is the amazing Janine Tucker (former Head Coach of Johns Hopkins Women’s Lacrosse Team).

Her work and contributions to the game are outstanding.

From what I know of her work, she always starts with coaching philosophy as the driving force in her team approach.

For me personally, I live by my values and it is our values that drive us in life.

Here’s my core philosophy on coaching lacrosse.

1-TEAM.

Team first.

The team comes before the individual because we have to have a unified team. If we don’t have that, we have nothing.

Lacrosse a team game and we will play as a team.

We do what is best for the team, first and foremost.

Every player is important and has a role. No team wins with one player.

I once heard a parent say to a small group of starters that “they” (the small group of top players) were the team. To me, that was incredibly stupid to suggest that a few key scorers were “the entire team.”

No – every single member of the team is the team.

Everyone is successful when individuals play together.

Yes, some players may contribute more to scoring, assisting, or whatever. But the team is the team.

Every player must have the team mentality to truly be successful.

There is no player that is better than the sum of the team.

Team first and always.

(*I want to also mention that building a positive team culture is also extremely important to me. Not only is it important, it’s the most important thing to get right. Team culture is of such significance that it is best served in another article.)

2-EXCELLENCE.

You play to win the game.

❌ The truth is I used to have “winning” as a core value, but this was all wrong.

Winning is a result of having certain standards.

To win, you have to have a standard of excellence.

Then the score takes care of itself.

However, lessons will be learned from defeat and progress can and should be made from a loss.

One of my favorite concepts is “you win or you learn.”

YOU WIN OR YOU LEARN, so if you learn, you always win. Think about it.

While I want to win every single game, I know we learn much more from a defeat than any blowout victory.

That’s a fact.

When it’s game day, it’s “go” day – time to give it all you got.

Lay it all out there with the objective to win until the final horn sounds.

Play with excellence by doing your best. Each game, each possession, each play.

Play to win…there is no other way to play.

But winning is having a standard of excellence.

3-JOY.

We should have fun with lacrosse.

Because if we don’t enjoy it, kids will want to quit.

There will be ups and downs, challenges and setbacks, frustrations.

But ultimately, it should be a positive and fun experience.

Even pro athletes will tell you, the game they play, has to be fun for them to thrive.

“Play with joy“ is something I also learned from renowned College Coach, Janine Tucker (formerly of Johns Hopkins University).

PLAY WITH JOY -Janine Tucker

I’ve seen kids that aren’t having fun and that’s not where we want them to be.

Yes, it will be hard work and everything may not go as expected all the time, but playing the game will be – and should be – a fun and enjoyable experience.

When each game is over, we want to say to ourselves, “that was fun” and mean it.

It’s not always sunshine and roses, I get it.

But we have to have fun and enjoy the game. We have to.

Create an experience that’s fun, engaging and enjoyable.

4-EFFORT.

The one thing every player can control is their effort.

Always give your best effort.

We want our players to play – in practices and games – with their best effort.

Always.

Teach nothing less.

• hustle
• grind
• have grit
• sprint
• outwork your opponents
• show you have high energy
• keep your “motor” running – all the time!

Laziness and slacking are never acceptable in my coaching philosophy and approach.

I’m sorry but athletes have to work and grind.

The truth is the athletes that work the hardest tend to be the athletes that I respect the most.

This is a big one for me because I believe in the value of hard work.

When players come to practice and, certainly, in games – our job is to have them bring their best effort.

No exception.

You will never lose by giving it your best.

5-GROWTH.

Here’s why I really enjoy coaching.

I believe the true role of the coach is to develop their players.

Player development and growth is what it’s all about.

Keep getting better, every day.

Help athletes grow on and off the field.

Isn’t this what we’re supposed to do as coaches, as teachers?

I like to develop each player and move them one step closer to their potential.

Of course, there is the harsh reality that not every player works hard and wants to develop. And that is sad because I can’t help them if they are not accountable to contribute to their own development.

I do work to find ways to better connect with my players and help them find their strengths and develop their areas for growth. Connecting with some athletes can be very hard – especially with the ones who don’t put forth the effort or have bad attitudes.

But I can usually find that every player has their own unique strengths and areas to improve on.

And player development is critical at each and every level of lacrosse.

I coach to truly “make a difference” in players lives to help them become better athletes and better all-around people, both on and off the field.

Player growth and development is a core concept of my coaching philosophy when I have players who are coachable and truly want to improve.

I learn and grow each day. I expect the same from athletes.

My philosophy is simple.

Make a difference.

I do that by following my 5 core coaching values.

As I coach, I go back to these 4 things to make sure I am following my guiding principles.

Let’s recap them.

1. TEAM
2. EXCELLENCE
3. EFFORT
4. JOY
5. GROWTH

If you’re a parent or player, now you know my philosophy and what my core principles are.

Believe me, these 5 things guide what I do each day as a coach.

If you are a coach, how would you describe your core philosophy?

Think about it because that is what keeps you moving forward and will contribute the most to your success (whether you win or lose).

Take the time to write our your core values.

I promise you, it will change how you coach and lead.

Once you have your philosophy – I encourage you to share it with your team, if you haven’t done already.

It will make a difference.

Coach Scott is the creator of Disruptive Lacrosse and a high school girls lacrosse coach specializing in dodging, speed, footwork, and player development.

With a background in strength & conditioning and movement science, he brings a unique, high-performance approach to training the modern female lacrosse athlete.

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