'Bouncing back' from stress: Resilient coaching
Issue: Volume 29 Number 3
There is little doubt that coaching can be an extremely stressful profession. Coaches encounter a diverse range of challenges as part of their job, including facilitating peak athletic performance, mediating relationships between athletes, managing support staff, and coping with scrutiny from others.
There is also the stress associated with the sometimes chaotic lifestyle associated with coaching, including travel, being away from family and friends, long and undefined hours and limited down time.
Coaches have been identified as a group of individuals who appear to function extremely effectively despite exposure to stress and adversity. Within the sporting community, coaches are often thought of as stress-resistant and invulnerable. So what enables coaches to react in such a positive and adaptive way? It involves resilience.
Resilience is the process of successful adaptation despite challenging or threatening circumstances. It involves ‘bouncing back’ from difficult situations and experiences. Resilience is not a trait that coaches either have or do not have. It involves behaviours, thoughts, and actions that can be learned and developed.
Protective factors in resilience
Protective factors in resilience are influences that modify or alter a coach’s response to stress. Protective factors arise from within the coach, or from the environment around the coach.
Proactive orientation
Resilient coaches have a realistic and positive view of themselves. They feel they can have an impact on their environment and situation, rather than being passive observers. They are hopeful about the future. They are confident in their ability to surmount obstacles, make use of the resources and opportunities around them, and view hardships as ‘learned experiences’. Resilient coaches take positive actions in their lives, such as seeking mentors and pursuing educational opportunities. They also interpret successes as an indication of their abilities.
Self regulation
One of the most fundamental keys to resilient coaching is developing self-regulation or self control (that is; gaining control over thoughts, emotions and, behaviours). If coaches are able to regulate their emotions and behaviour during stressful situations, they will more likely elicit positive attention from others and have healthy relationships with players, fellow coaches and support staff.
Mentors
Coaches with at least one mentor are more likely to be resilient. The most effective mentors for coaches have been identified as providing supportive, positive, and cognitively stimulating environments.
Connections and attachments
Having positive connections with family and friends is significantly related to a coaches’ ability to adapt to life and job stressors. Possessing a strong social support network renders coaches less vulnerable to anxiety, depression, and externalising problems (for example;.drug and alcohol dependencies). But remember, social support is an active process, meaning that coaches need to create and maintain supportive relationships.
Coaching achievements
It may sound obvious, but coaching achievements are associated with resilience. The more success you have as a coach, the more confidence you will have in tackling difficult and stressful situations. Becoming aware of your own competence is also important. Each coach possesses at least one small ‘island of competence’ or area that has the potential to be a source of pride and achievement. Fostering resilience requires coaches to focus on these areas of competence to increase a sense of accomplishment.
Ways to build resilience
Resilience should be seen as an acquired set of attributes that enable coaches to adapt to difficult circumstances. It involves action. It means taking charge of your coaching. Coaches who are resilient are proactive when faced with challenges. They adapt to difficult circumstances by using internal and external resources. Resilient coaches come to understand that although they cannot control everything, they do have some power over what happens next.
Some hints for resilient coaching are:
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Make connections. Good relationships with family members, friends and others are important. Make sure to allocate enough time to those most close to you.
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Enlist the support of a mentor. Seek mentoring from a colleague for advice, encouragement and support during stressful times.
Avoid seeing crises as insurmountable problems. You can’t change the fact that highly stressful events will happen, but you can change how you interpret and respond to these events. -
Take decisive action. Take action, rather than detaching from problems and wishing they would just go away. Stop, think and then act.
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Nurture a positive view of yourself. Develop confidence in your ability to solve problems.
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Look for positive feedback. Noticing the positive events that occur with your coaching is crucial for promoting self esteem and resilience.
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Keep things in perspective. Even when faced with extremely stressful events, try to consider the situation in a broader context. Avoid blowing the event out of proportion.
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Deal with mistakes and failures. Remember that mistakes are an important ingredient in the learning process.
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Take care of yourself. Pay attention to your own needs and feelings. Engage in activities that you enjoy and find relaxing.
Conclusion
Resilience involves maintaining flexibility and balance in your coaching as you deal with stressful events and circumstances. It involves stepping forward and taking action to deal with problems and also stepping back to rest and re-energise yourself. Make sure to spend time with those closest to you in order to gain support and encouragement. And finally, remember to rely on yourself and your abilities as a coach.
