Doug Coan

Head Coach Ballard High School Varsity, Head Coach and Director of Player Development at WAVE Volleyball Louisville

[Alan Stein, Jr. @AlanSteinJr]

Yesterday’s success is not a blueprint for tomorrow’s. The leaders who continue to win are the ones who stay curious, embrace change, and have the courage to evolve.

[Brian Kight @BrianKight]

Winning is a bigger threat than losing.

The most dangerous seasons aren’t after failure. They’re after massive success.

Failure is honest. As uncomfortable as failure can be, it's hard to ignore for long. It demands attention.

But success does something different to people's minds.

Failure is painful but truthful. It shows you what you need to see but don’t want to acknowledge.

Success is seductive but manipulative. Winning hides what you need to see and address behind a false promise of continued success.

Winning and success convince you that certain laws of the universe don't apply to you. It feels like evidence of your superiority or confirmation your success will continue on momentum alone.

That's where the trouble starts.

Watch what happens to people after major success. Motivation changes.
Ego moves in quietly.
Caution and focus fade.
Decisions that would have seemed undisciplined before suddenly feel earned.

Knowing yourself means knowing this pattern exists in you. It may not be active now but it can activate at any moment.

The same self-awareness and discipline that drives you after failure has to work twice as hard after success.

Because failure reminds you of your limits while success tries to convince you that you're invincible.

You're not invincible.

You're capable, but you're not invincible.

Keep your self-awareness and discipline strong after failure.

Keep it even stronger after success.

[Brian Kight @BrianKight]

"ABA" people are the hardest to lead.

"Average But Acceptable."

Good enough to avoid major criticism but not good enough produce the result you need. Good enough to have a role but not good enough to trust.

ABA will destroy a team. It's a true test of a leader's skill.

[Greg Berge @GregBerge]

Do you have a "beginner's mindset" each season? - Sam Presti

Each season is different.

- Stay curious
- Try new things
- Listen to your team

That's what champions do.

[Jon Beck @CoachJonBeck]

When players succeed, we point to reps, coaching, or the grind. When they struggle, we blame effort, focus, or say they need more reps. Rarely do we question the design of the practice itself. Maybe it’s a preparation problem. Evaluate the environment you’re developing them in.

[Coach the Coaches @WinningCoaches]

~ via @CoachBobStarkey

[Coach the Coaches @WinningCoaches]

"Mediocrity has a million fans, but excellence has a million critics." -- Dr. Bhrett McCabe

[Greg Berge @GregBerge]

Winners own it. Losers point fingers. 🔥

Kirby Smart said it straight. The moment you blame someone else, you've already lost.

Accountability isn't a team rule.
It's a mindset.

Does your team own mistakes or make excuses? 👇

[Sports Psychology @SportPsychTips]

Stop beating yourself up after making mistakes in games. You need to support yourself like you’d want your teammates and coaches to support you.

[Sports Psychology @SportPsychTips]

As an athlete, you can’t be too nice while competing in games. You have to play to win and not worry about hurting your opponent’s feelings. Don’t take winning and losing too personal. Know that you can still be friends with your opponent after the game, whether you win or lose.

[Derek Deprey @derekdeprey]

You can call it soft and ineffective if you want. I call it smart and impactful. The best coaches I’ve been around coach with intensity, honesty, accountability, and respect. They coach hard without treating people poorly. Funny how the players willing to take hard coaching, fight through adversity, and run through a wall for you usually aren’t the ones who feared you the most. They’re the ones who knew you believed in them, challenged them, respected them, and cared about them beyond the scoreboard. How you treat people multiplies… and eventually it comes back to you!

[Jon Beck @CoachJonBeck]

How you treat people says everything there is to say about you. It doesn’t matter how smart, accomplished, wealthy or cool you think you are. Strength of character is beyond any measure. Being a good person with a kind heart is what matters most & will benefit you for a lifetime.

[Greg Berge @GregBerge]

Overprotected kids become unprepared adults.

Dawn Staley nailed it.🔥

You can’t shelter your child from every hard moment and then expect them to handle adversity when it counts.

Hard is the lesson.

What’s one hard lesson sports taught you that helped later in life? 👇

[Jon Beck @CoachJonBeck]

Our youth system is beyond broken. We’ve devalued real coaches. Kids aren’t developed, they are overtrained, burned out, forced to specialize early & pressured to win at all costs. Structural change is needed. We don’t teach the game anymore! We promote the game & it’s killing us

[Brian Kight @BrianKight]

A phrase coaches should repeat 1000x:

"Don't mistake good results for permission to abandon the process."

[Derek Deprey @derekdeprey]

A bad coach tears people down. An average coach focuses only on results. A good coach teaches skills and systems. A great coach builds confidence and trust. An exceptional coach helps people believe in themselves at a higher level. And the best coaches impact lives long after the scoreboard stops mattering.

[Jon Beck @CoachJonBeck]

Too many players grow up comfortable. Real growth happens when you compete against players just as talented as you, around coaches who don’t know your name & won’t hand you anything. That’s where daily habits, toughness, consistency & the little things separate serious players.

[Greg Berge @GregBerge]

Coaches who only correct never connect.

“Negative experiences without teaching kill morale.” - Nick Saban

The hard moment isn’t the problem.

Leaving it without a lesson is.

That’s what transformational coaching actually looks like.