Fun Fact about me:
I hate this shit.
On my first day as a strength and conditioning coaching intern, my 35-year-old boss that had a wife and kids told the interns:
“At this place, we all love working 14-hour days, and if you don’t, you’re never going to ‘make it’ in coaching.”
He was jacked, had a beard and a gravel truck voice so you know a lot of the interns ate that up like he was Jordan Belfort giving a rousing speech to his firm at the peak of his powers.
Just listening to him made me feel uneasy. As others were eating it up, I had my doubts that it was the truth.
But even having my doubts… I drank that Kool-Aid for a few years.
You First
I made it “not about me” for my first 2 years as a head coach in junior hockey.
And I got news for you.
I worked myself into the ground and completely mismanaged the one person who is most important…
Myself.
I don’t care if you think you’re the greatest coach of all time.
If you’re not eating well, managing stress, exercising, relaxing, and doing any other form of self care that you find beneficial… You’re leaving ability on the table.
Working 14 hour days, not being “allowed to eat lunch”, never getting outside of the 4 walls that are blasting fake light at you for 14 straight hours, not seeing the sunrise, or sunset to set any sort of circadian rhythm… Do you want me to go on?
You think a coach with dysregulated hormones, who isn’t eating and 14 hours at work and 2 completely exhausted hours with his wife is an “optimized coach” that is the best coach for those athletes?
You think those athletes are getting the best version of you when you’re grinding 14 hour days, 7 days a week?
Give me a break folks.
The industrial age has come and gone.
My call to action is that you adapt.
Use technology to find ways to work “less hours.”
Create boundaries so you aren’t answering your phone at 9pm when you should tuck your kids in bed or have a conversation with your significant other.
And my other call to action.
Start saying that it is about you and challenging the braindead zombies who keep saying that it isn’t.
We get that you have to give. But if your cup is empty, what are you giving them?
And if you want to know why you should look after yourself and why it is all about you. It’s because I came from this background and made those mistakes already.
I didn’t take my new advice of ‘overflow or no-go.’
And it cost me my health, mental well-being and almost my relationship with my girlfriend.
I wrote the book on it. Learn from me.
Be at your best first, or else you can’t give your best to your athletes. No matter what any poster or bullshit tweet says otherwise.
I wrote more about this struggle, and the solutions here, get it for 1 whole dollar: