Aside from the priority placed on planning and reviewing – briefing and debriefing – as espoused by Robert McNamara and others, the main message of Mistakes Worth Making is that coaches must deal with the emotions of players, in addition to their skills.
As evidenced by the title, there are some mistakes which lead to improvement and others which are desultory. As coaches, we aim to manage mistakes so that we (and athletes) learn from the positive errors and control the negative ones.
A theme which is repeated through the book is that the emotions of athletes are as important as physical performance factors, skils, or tactics. After an unsuccessful performance, coaches should first deal with the emotion of the athlete before addressing the skill. Otherwise, the skill correction will not be effective. Halden-Brown suggested that coaches should follow a brief, debrief, and “de-grief” model for pre and post performance meetings.
For example, any coach such ensure that those who they coach are in their respective Ideal Performance states when it comes time to perform. Also, when training, it is necessary for athletes to train in a group of similar commitment and motivation for optimum results. Some mistakes are due to the novelty of the competition environment so athletes should be familiar with techniques to narrow their focus.
We all make mistakes. They may be pre-pressure, mid-pressure, or post-pressure and each requires a unique remedy. Before the performance, the coach can devote time in practice to help the athlete or team develop the discipline required to overcome adversity. During the game, everyone should remember their responsibilities, recite the tasks for which they are accountable, and do their job. Afterwards, coaches should be conscious that taking the time and stepping back can avert outburst which are not optimal. Although we all err, nobody should be so arrogant that they do not seek to learn from those miscues.
The rest of the book is a summary of the many mental training techniques that are out there in many other sources. One closing thought which stood out: confidence is a finite resource. It is related to performance, needs to be refuelled, and should always be sport and task specific. I think that I will go administer the Competitive State-Anxiety Inventory test (CSAI-2) now…