Comments on: Thinking Outside the Box in Coaching in High Performance Sport – Creativity is King!

By: Wayne Goldsmith

Wayne Goldsmith — Thu, 06 May 2010 23:19:13 +0000

Thanks Mark.

I am currently working with a client on how to best integrate their sports science support for coaches and athletes. My focus in not on teaching them how to do their own jobs – I assume they know that better than I ever will – my focus is on teaching the various sports science disciplines – physiology, biomechanics, nutrition, psychology, etc to work together as integrated, cross disciplinary, problem solving teams.

Now, you would think that in 2010 we would have evolved to the point that the multi-disciplinary approach to sports science is just accepted and embraced but I still face aggressive opposition – particularly from the academic sector and the big sports institutes and academies of sport to adopting what is the most commonsense and practical way forward for high performance sport.

Why? Because there is no previous model, no one else is doing it and the history and traditions of sports science – their outdated “department” model – is the only way they know.

The first nation to grab this concept, to really embrace it and to implement it will gain a significant advantage over the rest of the world but….at the moment the conservatives just keep pushing the old ways, old programs and old thinking.

And so it is in all industries – the ongoing battle between the “that’s the way we do it here” group versus the “let’s strive to continuously improve, to create new ideas and to be innovative in everything we do” group.

Thanks again,

By: Wayne Goldsmith

Wayne Goldsmith — Thu, 06 May 2010 23:10:07 +0000

Thanks James.

I have read Robinson’s book The Element – great stuff.

By: Mark Upton

Mark Upton — Thu, 06 May 2010 13:34:56 +0000

Some great points in this post Wayne. Also Jeremy’s and your comments on the past is relevant and I think touches on another key point – the courage required to action the “thinking outside the box”. When you do this there is no “past” experiences or evidence to support your action, it is truly a journey into the unknown.

However with that clear vision you talk about and the courage to go after that vision great things can be achieved – you just have to be prepared to risk it all going “pear-shaped” to get there!

cheers

Mark Upton
teamsportcoaching.com

By: james marshall

james marshall — Wed, 05 May 2010 19:56:51 +0000

as far as creativity goes, I have ordered the book from this guy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpmNySlM4p8&annotation_id=annotation_398728&f

who appears to have some good ideas.

By: Wayne Goldsmith

Wayne Goldsmith — Tue, 04 May 2010 20:34:28 +0000

Thanks JP.

I think that’s the reason why it is so hard to show athletes their potential and what they can achieve in the future.
You can feel and see what you have done in the past and what you are doing now but the future is often a mystery and a hard concept for people to understand. But we know that the people can really see and feel the future get there first and in doing so change the world.

That’s why we call it a “vision” – you need to be able to really see it clearly if you are going to strive to achieve it.

Thanks again,

By: Jeremy Pryce

Jeremy Pryce — Tue, 04 May 2010 19:33:53 +0000

When it all boils down, all we really see is the past. Think about it: Everything we know in the present is built on our experience in the past.
Take the example of a cup. All we are reviewing is our past experience of picking up the cup, being thirsty, drinking from a cup, feeling it against our lips etc. All our aesthetic reactions to the cup are based on passed experience. That´s why we know whether this kind of cup will break or not if we drop it. We have no idea of the cup outside our past experience. So, do we really see the cup at all, or are we seeing our past experience? This is why it´s so frigging hard to think outside the box.
Just my humble opinion…..