Why don't we ask Why more?

Here is a great article to read about children using their curiosity and learning.


http://www.fastcompany.com/1801410/how-childlike-humility-and-curiosity-can-inform-inspire-and-unlock-new-ideas


I am inspired by the article along with having a 14 month old son who has been curious his whole short life. He watches as people all around him do different things. He observed how we walked each and everyday and would love to stand up holding the furniture. Then we slowly encouraged him to walk and he tried it. So now he can walk, but not before some falls.

He never crawled until he saw another boy do it. We had friends over with their own son and the kids were playing. He would watch as the other bot scooted around on his belly. 1 day later my son is scooting around himself. He must have learned something huh?

The article also touches on something that should concern all of us as we move into our future. The world is growing fast and always changing. It has been said that the current generation of high school students have the most unknown future of any generation so far. We have no idea what problems people of that age group will run into and yet we are not preparing them or ourselves for that future because of the lack of one thing. Curiosity.

Curiosity is essential for us to learn and grow and it is disturbing to me that we lose that sense so early in our lives. It is not only education that causes us to cease asking questions, but maybe the cultures need to make everyone the same. I like how it states some of those points in the article and I leave with a few thoughts of my own that some other people have also helped me to see.

Is everyone supposed to be a Doctor and a Lawyer?
They won't have cool buildings to hold court in and we won't have any hospitals to save us when the lawyers are done.

Is everyone supposed to be an engineer?
Engineering is one of the most abandoned college majors in the nation? This means so of the supposed brightest people are still leaving that major. Why? Because it is hard and takes something more than just brains. It takes passion and work.

Passion? Maybe that is a key to learning something

I bet passion is different for most people so that makes what they learn and how they learn different.

I am hoping that the athletes that pursue sports in a competitive environment will remember the passion and love that made them want to play in the first place. Allowing that passion to help them learn more and more each day to become their best. I hope that they stay curious and keep asking why!

What is the education you get from Athletics?

Attainment - the act of achieving an aim

Something accomplished successfully, especially by means of exertion, skill, practice, or perseverance

A notable act or deed, especially an act of courage; an exploit.

An act of skill, endurance, imagination, or strength; an achievement.

  

Achievement, exploit, feat are terms for a noteworthy act.  

Achievement connotes final accomplishment of something noteworthy, after much effort and often in spite of obstacles and discouragements.

Education, noun The act or process of imparting or acquiring general knowledge, developing the powers of reasoning and judgment, and generally of preparing oneself or others intellectually for mature life.

So what we learn from athletics is the way that people must act to achieve something meaningful in their life. If we really are getting an education in college athletics, then the lessons must be preparing us for something in life. 

Education is something that that each individual has a choice to participate in or be ignorant too, and that a lesson that each person must learn individually.

What do people think about getting educated by athletics?

 

Thoughts From Graduate Assistant Annie Erskine

My experience as the Assistant Tennis  Coach has been a good learning experience. I am a local tennis enthusiast and was excited to have the opportunity to work with MBC girls' tennis team.  For the past 2 years, the young women on the team have been hard working in the classroom and on the tennis court. I didn't play in college yet I shared in the successes and struggles of our team. Working with Coach Yee has been beneficial. He has excellent insight into the game and in being a successful athlete.   

In the past, competitiveness, strategy building, and skill improvement have been areas of focus. I've enjoyed hitting with different partners and watching the development of MBC tennis players. I want to make myself available any way I can to the young adults on the team. I am happy to be a part of MBC and hope the best for the school community!

My goals for the team this year will include learning the strengths of the freshman and helping them become better-developed tennis players. I hope to be able to hit with all the members of the team and be the "opponent." Then the girls will get practice assessing my own strengths and weaknesses.  In addition, my goals always include my own personal tennis development; I look forward to having hitting partners readily available!

This year is different from the previous 2 years. I am a graduate student here at MBC and therefore can relate better to the players. Time management is going to be challenging but being active is high on my priority list and tennis is a fun option. As a graduate student, I am learning more and more about MBC. As I spend Tuesday's here at the PAC, I will be more easily accessible and available to the tennis team’s needs. Come say "hi" I would love to have visitors. I also have a MBC email address, aerskine@mbc.edu (and more recently a phone). I am looking forward to this season and being a leader to the MBC Women’s tennis team!

Why does that happen? Again....and Again?

As we continue on in our tennis season, I would like to share a small lesson with a big impact in all sports.

Tennis seems pretty simple.

Take the racquet back, hit the ball over the net in bounds....repeat and life is good!

or

Take the racquet back, hit the ball over the net out of bounds.....repeat. (I don't like this game)

Imagine the athlete that consistently hits the ball out of bounds with the same swing on the same ball every time.

Usually you will see young athletes continue to hit it out over and over and over. You ask them what they did and they say..."I dunno?"

What advice would you give someone? What advice would you give yourself?

You probably told them to change something. You can change the same thing.



Applying why is what impacts us over time. If we can figure out some more things ourselves you get to make a bigger impact on yourself.

We all need to ask why and continue learn.

I believe that the team is learning this lesson as we continue on our journey this season. We see a greater response after errors and a greater understanding of why. 

Starting the Season......Are You Better?

We get to start our season with the help of donations from an indoor facility that trades us court time in the middle of January for a some time during the summer. We are a very fortunate program that gets to begin practice during the middle of winter and I hope that our players will appreciate this fact. The thing they don't appreciate is that we have to go at 6am.

Our players have been going for a few days now and getting up early is just the first part of the time and dedication that our athletes will put in this season. Getting to know their teammates, practice and self-discipline are just some of the areas that they will be dealing with as we go on with our season, but what I wanted to focus on is Are You Better Than Last Year?

We as Coaches always want our players to get better and this is a question that all athletes can ask themselves as they begin their seasons.

Did I get better? Yes or No

If you can honestly say you did, then you have something to be happy about and a way to continue in your training.

If I don't really feel I did, think of a few ways that you can help yourself to get better.

I look forward to helping our athletes get better and helping them to know that they have improved themselves as an athlete. Athletics teaches us so much about ourselves, the game and what it takes to be better each day and I am thankful to be a part of this profession, just as I hope our athletes take advantage of the lessons that Tennis can teach them.

Go Squirrels!

Completing Your Greatest Performance

Some of you may watch American Idol and others may not, but this season I believe that the contestants are showing great performances. What are the things we can learn from them as an athlete?

Prepare

The contestants are practicing their craft daily. They get up early, living the dream…..that means 6am in the studio working on their next song along with fulfilling their obligations to the show schedule and special appearances.

They also are receiving advice and training on how to improve their song and their own voices from an expert(s) in the business. Applying what they learn to each song is vital to them remaining on the show.

I look at this as learning and practicing the fundamentals of your sport. Fundamentals are the building blocks of your sport, and great athletes train to exact standards and execute fundamentals when needed.

Perform

Performing is the part everyone sees, the great song you sang, the three-point shot that wins the game, the final goal to win it all. We have had some great performances on Idol and you can have some as an athlete.

I want to make the point that we see great performances rarely, but where did they come from?

Those that have done it know that Great performance comes from Great preparation. Working hard daily to perfect your skills will allow you to have many good performances and the occasional Great performance. Poor preparation will lead to poor performances.

Hmm…it goes back to how we prepare. How do you use your mind to prepare yourself? There are no shortcuts.

Perceive

Contestants on Idol face judgments after every performance and voting by America. There are two perceptions here…performers and judges which are similar to players and coaches.

Judges give their feedback and it is the contestant’s option to accept or reject the advice based on their own perception of the judge….helper or critic? Coaches, just like the judges, are on the same team as the players. Remember, America votes the contestants off the show. That perception is easily lost sometimes, but if done right, will help the player to prepare again for the next contest.

Did we just start the cycle all over?  Maybe it is as simple as this, and I hope that you can keep the cycle going in whatever you are trying to find your greatest performance.

Improving a Little Everyday

We have about 450 NCAA Division III schools in the country. Only one of them will win the NCAA tournament in any sport.

I have also heard it explained to me, that teams puts winning the national title on the goals list, but only a few truly have a chance, leading to one of the great questions I have heard since I have started coaching.

What about the rest?

Answer.
We can all only control getting better everyday. If a team or program can get good enough, then they will have a real chance at the national title. If a team or player truly does get better everyday, then they are overcoming one of life's greatest obstacles (inability to improve) and learning great lessons at the same time? It will always be my hope that players that I have had the opportunity to coach, have improved since I have worked with them and current players continue to get better.