LovePrints - What are your Coaching/Teaching/Parenting Commandments?

Great coaches make great plans. Great plans make great coaches. This may be the toughest question that I ask of you. It may require the most time thinking about it. It may also require that you ask yourself questions that you may not have the answers to.

Why? Who? How? What?

You may already have the answers.

If you do not have to answers, it is time. If you have the answers, it is time to share them.

Each day, coaches, teachers, parents, mentors and leaders face the masses. Those masses are looking for answers, direction, and leadership. If we stand before them under the assumption that we know what we are doing, that we know what we are going to ask them to do, we should already know.

Why are we there, standing in front of them?

Why were you chosen?

Who are you there for?

What is the goal?

How will we get there?

Where do we begin?

What are the boundaries?

Are there rules?

Are there different ways to get to the goal?

Is there existing proof of a right way?

Is there only one way?

What is daily success?

When is enough, enough?

What are the steps to success? How do we know?

On the path to success, the path to any goal, there must be a playbook, a plan, a purpose, and a way. Far too often, these things are not known, understood, or shared with the people who need them the most. The shortest distance between any two points is a straight line. Your commandments are your points. They are your straight line.

Do you know your points? Do you know your goal? Do your players, students, and children know?

If you do not, they can’t either. If you know, and they don’t, you can not achieve them.

Let the discussion begin. Let the goals be known, clearly.

I hope that you understand that these are your LovePrints. These things are what they will take with you once the games and tests are over. I hope that you are giving them something worth following. I hope that you are directing them forward and up.

Thank you, Teachers. LovePrints in action.

Great people make great teachers. Great teachers make great people. Action in Love. Love in action. Thy name is…TEACHER!

That sentence could be completed if I said parent, coach, mentor, etc. Today is about the teachers.

Those paid servers. (service not wait). Those paid babysitters, psychologists, nurses, therapists, doctors, father and mother figures, hand holders, back patters, smile inducing, future seeing, greatness cheering, knowledge giving, ambition feeding, gift shopping do gooders. Those under paid, over worked, over looked, underappreciated, over taxed, underfunded, over booked, under heard, over criticized, under loved, over scrutinized, under supported, and over scheduled society builders.

Whew. I feel better.

Those things can be said about parents, coaches, mentors, etc. Today is about the teachers.

Love in action. Action in love.

Teachers must wear several hats on those educator heads of theirs. On any given day, at any given moment, for any given student in any given situation. They must see, identify, calculate, conclude, consider, reconsider, adjust, predict, acknowledge, confirm, and direct.

Teachers are asked to direct traffic, reroute roads from dark streets to light. They are required to know more than they share, share more than they have, and have what everyone needs at any given time. On each day, a different group of young people show up than the day before, more knowledgeable than they were, wanting more than they knew, expecting to be greater tomorrow after they are informed. Teachers are successful is raising the masses, raising the standard, and raising the consciousness of generations.

Action in love. Love in action.

Each year, a new group of young people are poured into new clothes and shipped off each day to the trusted hands, hearts, eyes, and minds of teachers across the land. Each year, new problems will arise, new home issues will arrive, and new angst will be delivered to their classroom doors. The teachers will be there, waiting and ready. They will have answers to questions, solutions to problems, advice for the needy and love for the lonely. They will have hugs, smiles, and wisdom. They will be love, and loved.

That’s who they are. Every year. Every class. Every day.

Some of you are teachers, parents, educators, coaches, and mentors as well. If you are several of these, go on, put your superhero cape on and wear it proudly. Let it speak for you. You deserve it.

In the meantime, I will speak of you. Out loud.

Go on teachers. Be epic. Be love out loud.

LovePrints - A life in the game. The game of life with Coach Angelo Hunt

Angelo Hunt Action in Love. Love in action.  Do whatever it is that you do with an honest love of it, and great things happen. Pursue excellence with an understanding that while it may not be achieved, it must be pursued. And if you do those things, for those reasons, you will be able to do so with a big huge smile on your face, and with joy in your heart.

He is a product of love. An amazing family circle of bright lights and minds. Born from beautiful people, he has always shined. They always shined. And because they got your attention, they made sure that they gave you something to awed by. They always shined.

I met my brother in sports, coaching, and in life, when we were both young men. Same neighborhood. Same teams. Same joys. Each, and every sport, each, and every game, and each and everything that was tied to them. We played the games, learned the games, and then shared the experiences so that the next time we played them, we would be better. We shared it with each other, and anyone else who wanted to know. And, with anyone who wanted to get better as well.

As the years passed, we went our own ways, taking different paths in life, with successes and lessons all along the way. And with each lesson and win, more joy was available to be shared. As time went on, we reconnected to find out that the players had become teachers and coaches. That the games we played became the games we taught. And in that, more shared love of those games.

As a coach, teacher, leader, or mentor, we notice those who do so with a smile. Behind the smile is a comfort in what is being taught. Behind the smile is an assurance that this it is where you should be, and what you should be doing. It is knowing that it is a privilege, and honor, and a responsibility. And again, it is joy.

The smile is another weapon. It hides the drive, it masks the computer like brain of experiences and knowledge. It allows those that need an invitation forward to know that they are welcomed here, and an acknowledgement that there is a payoff to the work required to do whatever it is that is going to be demanded of you in your pursuit.

Behind the smile are all seeing eyes, paying attention to every detail. Those eyes tell a story, a different story, to each and any of his charges. The eyes scream YES to  the leader, GO to the tail, and LETS GO to the masses. The eyes beg for more, cry for joy, and seek out those in need on their journey. Those eyes hold the key to his players knowing that he is there for them, and they lock in until acknowledgement is received that the message is seen, and received.

I respect “ Brother ‘Lo” because I know his path, his purpose, and his heart. From one coach to another, it is wonderful to watch him do what he does because you know that he cares. His players matter. His goal is about them. And it is wonderful to watch.

His players are lucky to have him. His LovePrints are all over them as they walk forward in life. They know that they have someone in their corner, back against the wall or not. They know that they carry his name forward, and honor that in their actions. That is the sign of an amazing coach. They know.

And behind his smile, HE KNOWS.

Continue being the light, Sir!

Cathy Proctor Coffman- LovePrints in Action

Cathy Coffman Love in Action. Action in love.

The eyes and the smile are windows to the soul. When you are in the presence of certain PEOPLE, certain COACHES, certain EDUCATORS, you recognize that you are looking at exceptional. You are looking at amazing. You are looking at love.

I met Coach Coffman as teenagers, and she was already ahead of the game because she already knew that she loved sports. She enjoyed being around them, in them, and adding to. She always knew how to add to. No matter what she was engaged in, she added to it. She always made it better.

There are two facets to this that stick out in my mind. She always had a smile when you needed it. Not the fake” I see you looking at me so I am smiling back at you smile”. No. This was always “I see you and want you to know that I see you” smile. It is powerful. It was always helpful, always on time, and always enough. It always made whatever was going on, better. As an athlete, she understood the energy of the games watched and being played, and always was present. And, aware. I can recall having a difficult game, with several things on my mind that certainly were keeping me from doing what I was there to do. And then, there was Cathy. Coaching from a distance with a look, a smile, a nod. It ALWAYS made it better. ALWAYS.

Secondly, there is THE LOOK. Coaches recognize other coaches looks. We KNOW what they are saying without hearing a word. And I would bet that Coach Coffman’s athletes, Teacher Coffman’s students, know exactly what look I am talking about. It is authentic and brilliant. It makes everything better. It makes everything good. It adds to.

I look through some photos of Coach Coffman, and I look into her eyes, AND theirs. I look at her smile, and theirs. In those things are stories being told, lessons being learned, and love.  And with that, there is this. I would give my child to her. If asked, I am sure that most parents would say that it would be perfectly fine with them if their young people emulated her, or wanted to be like her. That is a wonderful testament. And truth.

Her LovePrints all over her community, her school, her squads, and her amazing children’s lives. I have known of her ability to add to for a long time. I smile at the thought of her young people being blessed with her joy in their lives. I am smiling now at the blessing of her in my life. She has added to it. Again, and again, and again.

Thanks, Coach.

Thanks, my friend.

What is success? What is winning? Finding answers requires asking more questions.

If you are a parent, a teacher, a coach, a mentor, an educator, a student, or an athlete, there are words that are thrown around far too often and far too easily with no real definition of their meaning. Winning. Success. Teach. Learn. Each word conjures up some image in what we do that tells some that the word or idea has been achieved. Trophies. 100's. A's. Money. Smiles. Love. Whatever that image is for you, it may not be the image that someone else sees or agrees with. And that person may be the one who gets to decide if it is enough. That leads to confusion, doubt, stress, fear, and yes, LOSING. FAILURE. IGNORANCE. DOUBT. What brings this to mind is a gathering of coaches, educators, students, teachers, parents, athletes, and supporters who all seemed to be on different pages when dealing with the meaning of the words WINNING, SUCCESS, TEACHING, LEARNING. Even within the same title (coach, for instance) the word winning has different meanings and priorities than one would think. Winning for some coaches is the pay day, or the title, or the game, or even the day the young person moves on happily and prepared for their next coach, game, or team. If there are two players out of a hundred who play at the next level in your program, does that mean the coach succeeded or failed 98 %? Did the athletes become more prepared to contribute to life in their community? Are they in good standing with themselves and others? Is there joy in the games played, or are the games masks for discontent and fear? Do the athletes know why they are playing? Do the coaches?

For parents, WINNING can not be the end goal. Or can it? Is winning of greater importance than love, or learning, or success? As a parent, the priority might be happiness of their child, the experience of their child, or it can be the journey in which the winning and losing takes them on.

For teachers, is the focus TEACHING, or is it loving? Is there a concrete measurement for the growth of the child under the teachers watch and guidance? Is success in teaching the number of A students, or is it the improvement of the former D AND F students into B and c students? Is it the positive impact on the community, or is it about the constant flow and exchange of knowledge and information? Is success in the act, or the result? Is winning in the process or the end?

For the athletes and students, it would be incredibly helpful to know what winning, succeeding, learning, and loving are truly about. It would make sense for them to know what the focus and priority is, and is not. It would be great to know that these things are relative, temporary, and simple when known. If 1% of athletes deem playing professionally, or in college,  as success, the definition of success and failure better be known in advance. If students do not achieve whatever academic goals they deem as such, they should also know the success in their pursuit.

For the educators, what is the measurement for success, winning, teaching, and learning? Is it the number of young people processed through the system, or the number of prepared for living as an adult young people who happily walk out of the schools doors into the world?

I ask questions in hopes of reaching the place in your brain that speaks directly. I ask questions in hopes of reaching the place in your heart that speaks honestly. I ask questions in hopes that someone dares answer the questions for the good of us all. We can not make things better if we do not know why we are doing what we are doing. For clarity sake, there is no wrong answer. Each thing clears a path to know why things are the way that they are. Hopefully, the answers make things better than before. That should be why we are here.

Here are the questions at hand"

What is the priority of education? scholastic sports ? athletics ?

What is the purpose of coaching? What is the greatest result that coaching can achieve? Who is the greatest responsibility to for any coach?

What is winning for the athlete? Who wins if the athlete wins? What is losing? Who loses if the athlete loses?

What is the purpose of teaching? What is the greatest result that teaching can achieve? Who is the greatest responsibility to for any teacher?

What is success for the student? Who succeeds if the student succeeds? What is failure? Who fails if the student fails?

What is the dream for parents? What is the greatest result that parents can achieve? Who is the greatest responsibility to for any parent? What is success for the.parent? Who wins if the parent wins? What is parental failure? Who fails if the parents fail?

I hope that we can begin to define the why and what of these questions so that we can get to the HOW?