Create a Coaching Journal

posted by coachquam, a Women Talk Sports blogger
Wednesday, February 26, 2014 at 5:35pm EST

About coachquam:

I coached D1 collegiate swimming for 15 years. Now I am coaching coaches. My mission is to support, challenge, & inspire women who coach by getting more women involved in coaching, building support ...more

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CREATING A COACHING JOURNAL

by Erica Quam

JUST HOLD ON A MINUTE!

It's easy to leave to go home feeling like you've just worked all day and gotten nothing done. As a coach, you do a LOT each day! Your list of to-do's gets interrupted by dealing with the actual day to day things that come up - in the moment. And it's easy to forget them. Then, it's easy to lose your momentum and get stuck.

Do you ever take time for reflection?

You probably do at the end of the season when you go on vacation and have an umbrella drink in hand. But what about reflecting at the end of the day, or week, or month?

Keep a coaching journal! (separate from a workout book)

Journalling doesn't have to be a long saga or novel...just bullet points.

I hate journaling. I don't know what to write about!

Yep, that was my response too before really challenging myself to START doing this. Journalling always sounds like such a great idea, but is such a difficult habit to begin!

Need a little help figuring out where to start?

Here are 5 things you can journal about:
1. Accomplishments
Always begin by listing your successes!
2. Breakthroughs
What am I excited about?
3. Challenges
What am I struggling with?
4. Ideal outcomes
Best case scenario (keep it short)
5. Priorities
Top 3 priorities for tomorrow

One of THE best ways to gain confidence and build momentum is this very practice. It's amazing how great you feel when you get clear. Instead of looking at all of the un-done's, you experience a completely different energy! The energy of completion.

If you suddenly feel lost when it comes to the actual writing, you’re not alone. It can be daunting to begin this practice!

I created a tool that gives you Coaching Journal Prompts (with helpful explanations). You can download it for free right here. Use these to help you get started, and to come back to when you need some direction. You’ll soon discover your own structure and rhythm to your new ritual of keeping a coaching journal.

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MORE ABOUT THIS AUTHOR:

coachquam

I coached D1 collegiate swimming for 15 years. Now I am coaching coaches. My mission is to support, challenge, & inspire women who coach by getting ...
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