Every day, I try to be less of a trainer and more of a synergizer.
By trainers, I mean those who associate their role with implementing their own game model, rather than proposing a system adapted to their context; I’m referring to those who believe they are paid to shout instructions; those who assume they need to teach an endless list of closed movements because their biased opinion says they are the “right ones”.
Synergizing —as Rafel Pol described it— means combining or working together in order to be more effective. A synergizer is just another component of the team —not a special one— with specific personal constraints like every other member. Just like the goalkeeper, the right-back, the last substitute, or the assistant coach, the synergizer must contribute his bit so that the whole team has the best collective qualities possible. A synergizer multiplies —or at least, adds; never subtracts— so that the team enjoys the most dexterous behavior possible to achieve every goal at any time scale. This is what a synergizer should be: a source of functionality, efficiency; not a dispenser of shouts, a collector of tasks, or an over-intervener.
Don’t get too caught up in labels and descriptions. As Popper said, don’t waste time arguing about words and meanings. I just want to present two currents, two different approaches to coaching. Don’t obsess over the label used: there are trainers who, without realizing it, are what I describe as synergizers. The important thing is not the name of the label or if you call yourself trainer or synergizer… but that you put yourself at the service of the team.
My goal is to be more of a synergizer and less of a trainer. In case there is any moment of doubt during the journey, I wanted to build myself a lighthouse —love you, Nassim!— to see the way when I don’t know where to turn.
Feel free to use its light if you ever need it. Welcome to my lighthouse!
The Fosbury Flop No-Nos
“No leadership without love,
intervention without understanding,
propose without convincing,
uncertainty without acceptance,
certainty without question-mark,
judgement without context,
freedom without discipline,
stability without flexibility,
diversity without functionality,
performance without dynamism,
methodology without criteria,
periodization without change,
design without unpredictability,
data without feelings,
teaching without learning,
coaching without agency,
team without purpose,
values without congruence,
environment without attunement,
intentions without alignment,
behaviors without dexterity,
players without full-say,
components without —quality— relationships,
help without necessity,
fast-changing constraints —the player— without slow-changing ones —the person—,
training without competition,
session without playing,
constraints without —real, so spontaneous— self-organization,
practice without imperfections,
error without re-calibration,
tactics without co-adaptation,
task without challenge,
drill without why,
attribute without coupling,
action without —representative— perception,
technique without re-organization,
repetition without repetition,
movement without flow,
form without function,and, most of all:
nothing without emancipation.”
I wish you a great start of the season.
Would you change or add any No-No? Write it in the comments.
Martí Cañellas | Fosbury Flop
The Synergizing No-Nos