Coaching Tips Based on Tara VanDerveer

Congratulations to Coach VanDerveer and the Stanford Women's Basketball team! It's always inspiring to see an incredibly energetic and positive coach help maximize their players' potential. The winning part is amazing too!

From Stanford Athletics:

Tara VanDerveer is now the winningest coach in college basketball history. Her first rule for leading a successful team?

“Hire right. As my dad said, ‘You can’t win the Kentucky Derby on a donkey.’ And not just players but staff. Be sure they complement you more than compliment you.”

More gems in this New York Times Q&A: https://lnkd.in/gcSC-kRY 👇

"Have a vision for your players, and give them the tools. Maximize people’s strengths and minimize their weaknesses. Don’t be the center of attention. Don’t micromanage, and seek input. Outwork the players on your team. Take care of yourself — eat and sleep right, and exercise — so you can take care of one another. If you can’t swim, you can’t rescue the other swimmer, and you’ll both go down. You can’t have 15 personalities, one for each player. But you can recognize everyone’s different, and get to know them and understand where they’re at. Every behavior is communication — not just words but also eye contact and body language. Know that if your senior leaders are unhappy, your whole team will be. Learn the art of the controlled meltdown."