The “What Type of Culture Are We?” Assessment

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Far too many coaches spend far too much time trying to “motivate” their athletes.

Controversial opinion alert: I think trying to motivate your athletes is an utter waste of time. Many coaches take pride in being great motivators, and I think striving to be a great motivator is a colossal mistake.
Motivation, by definition, is the reason a person has for acting or behaving in a particular way.

When a coach establishes himself as the reason to choose certain behaviors, he creates a culture in which every member of the program is focused on an audience-dependent motivation.
If you’re a great “motivator” as a coach, the odds that your athletes are dependent on your presence to do their best is near 100%.

And that’s a massive problem because ultimately, the only thing you are accomplishing by being a great “motivator” is modifying your athletes’ behavior when you are present.

Your presence is the reward for good behavior.
You aren’t transforming the way your athletes think. You’re merely modifying their behavior.

I am not a “motivator.” Say it with me: “I am not a motivator.”

Take a look at the three motivators at the bottom of the motivation chart.
Fear, shame, and pride are all audience-dependent motivators.

By their nature, they require that an audience be present.

Athletes motivated by fear, shame, and pride only work hard when their audience, whoever their audience may be, is present.

This audience can be present at the moment, or it can be an audience they are looking forward to, like the fans in the stands or the college coach who is planning to come to their next game.

Whether they realize it or not, 99% of the coaches who claim to be great motivators motivate their athletes with fear, shame, and pride.

Coaches who are great motivators know how to push buttons and pull levers in their athletes’ minds in such a way that athletes choose to do their best.

Athletes will respond well in the moment to the coach’s tactics, but they are 100% dependent on the coach’s constant prodding and pushing.
But what happens to the athlete’s work ethic when the coach is not there to push the buttons and pull the levers?

Coaches think they have to be great motivators because they have never taken the time to understand from where motivation comes.

Motivation is fickle, fleeting, and hard to maintain unless you build it on a solid foundation.

If you are the foundation for your program’s motivation, don’t be surprised when your athletes make poor choices in the classroom, in the halls,