Mindset – fixed or growth?

What is your mindset?

If you find yourself ignoring a professional coach, refusing to listen to their ideas and sticking to your own thoughts, you could well be preventing your own development.  This is a fixed mindset.

Carol Dweck, an expert in mindset behaviours, believes:

In a fixed mindset, people believe their qualities are fixed traits and therefore cannot change. These people document their intelligence and talents rather than working to develop and improve them. 

In sporting terms, this could be statements such as, I know what I am doing on the bike, I don't need help.  My swim is always going to be rubbish.  I don't need to work on my bike skills.  I can not run quick.  I do not need to do that session as I am good at that.

Alternatively, in a growth mindset, people have an underlying belief that their learning and intelligence can grow with time and experience. When people believe they can get smarter, they realize that their effort has an effect on their success, so they put in extra time, leading to higher achievement.

As a coach, I have done a number of qualifications which have helped me develop and become a better coach. However, I also have nearly 20 years of practical coaching that make me the coach that I am.  I read books about coaching, coaches, business, skills and am continually learning and developing as a coach.

"We need to internalize this idea of excellence. Not many folks spend a lot of time trying to be excellent." - Barrack Obama

When I did my Performance Coaching qualification with Triathlon Australia, the 10 day course was excellent, with some outstanding speakers and incredibly informed minds... and yes I got to meet some of my coaching heroes... but personally, I learned more by observing, engaging with and questioning other performance coaches. Watching what elite coaches do. How they deliver to their athletes. The content of those sessions... why are they asking their athletes to do particular exercises?

We have all been involved with a coach who believes in "Its my way or the highway approach." If I am being 100% honest, at times in the past, I have been guilty of this. Most coaches will have. Its part of our learning and development curve.

However, I'll also be the first to admit I am not an expert in everything.  I don't think anyone can be.  So what do you do?

In the last 15 years of coaching, although I am extremely loyal to the athletes, I get the honor of coaching, I have had to learn that athletes are transient.  It was actually, Jamie Turner who helped me appreciate this.  Athletes will come and go.  Often they will come back again in the future.

As a coach we just get the pleasure of being part of their Triathlon journey.  Sometimes its a journey that lasts a long time... other times it is just a few days on a training camp.

"If you have a trait that you believe cannot be changed, such as your intelligence, your weight, or your bad habits, you will avoid situations that could possibly be uncomfortable or that you think that are useless."

I have certainly had athletes who avoids swim sessions because they believe they are useless swimmers and don't think they can improve...  Or an athlete who won't do a particular type of run or bike session... who will avoid a skills session as they won't get fitter...  Or they are uncomfortable riding in a group of athletes... or going down hills...

I have witnessed coaches who believe the athletes they coach are theirs.  I know coaches will tell their athletes, do this or do that.  That's my athlete, I know what is best.  If the athlete has a nutrition issue... coach says, the athlete should do this... well I am not a dietician.

I promote a healthy balanced diet, I can tell you about race day nutrition formulas and offer suggestions, but if an athlete thinks, or I believe, they need more specific advice... I'll point them towards an expert.

Excellence or Perfection

Nor am I an expert in strength and conditioning.  I will very happily provide you with a solid S&C plan to compliment your training for Triathlon.  I will happily help you work on and strengthen those weak areas.  However, you want rehab on an injury or need specific advice... I'll point you towards and listen to an expert and their advice.

Alex Ferguson (legendary manager of Manchester United Football Club) says, "We have two ears, two eyes and one mouth."  Food for thought.

BUT, swimming... I believe I am excellent triathlon swim coach.  I know my stuff when it comes to running and cycle coaching too... setting programs and working on technique.  These things I can excel at...

However, an excellent coach will continue to open their mind to new ideas, new approaches, new technology and ways to become a better coach... and then question them!

As a coach I do not have to use all those ideas and technology.  I certainly do not have to use them all of the time.  Some athletes don't have access to power.  Some use a Heart Rate monitor indoors but then you have to worry about heart rate drift.  Which Heart Rate zones should I use?  Just because a particular coach says 7 zones is better for their athletes... is this right for me and the athletes I coach?  Should you use a windmill stroke or a front quadrant?  Sometimes drills are the wrong ones for an athlete.  Should you run on your toes or land on your heal?  It is horses for courses.

As I continually grow as a coach... here is the important bit, this enables the athlete to grow and develop.

Developing the partnerships as a performance coach and engaging with other coaches, physios, dieticians, strength and conditioning experts allows the athletes I get to coach to grow and become better athletes.

“The path to excellence could not be more difficult. It is steep, gruelling, and arduous. It is inordinately lengthy. And, most importantly of all, it forces voyagers to stumble and fall on every single stretch of the journey.” - Matthew Syed