How to Succeed as a Competitor, Coach and Leader
Know Yourself
Dear Participant,
The questions and your answers in this booklet will help you design a template for your success, on and off the race course.
It has helped me in many arenas of sports and in my profession, from a top trainer in show jumping, to pro Ironman Champion, and now as a top coach. I learned a lot by planning and executing carefully! I learned from good examples, from bad examples, success and failure over many years.
By being here, you are clearly paying attention and you are ready to make a plan for your success.
Thank you for joining me on the journey!
“Begin with the end in mind.”- Stephen Covey
I want you to know who you are, and own who you are. When you clearly know yourself and don’t try to be who you think you should be, you will have a clear vision of your brand, your mission, and your goals. Know who you are to succeed.
This is a way to help you organize your thoughts and be deliberate about clearly setting up who you are, and what you believe in.
Succinctly and clearly, what do I want to do?
Ex: Be a coach with 20 remote athletes
Why do I want to do this?
Ex: To help improve people's lives in a positive way, help them reach their goals, help them be faster, have more confidence.
What fundamental differences will this make in my life?
Ex: I am able to make a living doing work that I love and feel proud of.
What will happen if I don’t get there?
Ex: I will have to work doing something I’m not as passionate about.
How will I set goals? The Power of Setting a Schedule, Not a Deadline.
As I think of reaching my goals, I set a schedule for my day-to-day routine and weeks. For each of my goals, what do I need to do on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis that will work towards reaching my short-term and long-term goals through repeated action and habits?
What motivates me?
How will I deliberately use what motivates me to achieve my goal(s)?
What habits and routines will I create in my day-to-day life? Tiny routines that are repeatable make big dreams a reality. Dream big, but start small.
On my way, from start to finish, who is my team?
Advisors:
Motivators:
Mentors:
Critics:
People I might need to pay:
Always there for me, no matter what:
How will I celebrate?
It’s key to celebrate small achievements along the way.
What is unique about me, what do I bring to the table, and what type of leader am I?
What type of people do I want to attract? Ex: as a coach (professional athletes, remote programming, local club, advanced to beginner)
Where are my strengths?
What is the role I find myself in over and over again in group situations? (whether I think it or not, how I show up, self-awareness)
What is my message: (How do I want to be seen)?
I like to lead through example: telling stories, guiding people in the right direction, giving them support, creating a team, empowering and teaching skills.
Written- Articles, Social Media, Print
Action- Talks, coaching in person, as an athlete on the course
Communication- Peers, to people I’m leading, to my mentors
My Beliefs- Overall and specifically. Personally and professionally.
Philosophy- Day-to-day and big picture
What rules of my own do I want to remember?
What are my rules that I will expect others to follow, and what are my rules for how I handle myself?
Athlete Code of Conduct (see mine at www.mcc.coach in the guidelines and forms tab)
Safe Sport- https://safesport.org
How will I manage relationships? (in celebration and conflict)
What are my boundaries?
What are the top five personality traits I possess that will work well with clients’ styles?
Develop a pre-screening questionnaire that will allow you to assess if someone will be a good match with your style.
As a coach, an example list that might be important to you is: coachable, accountable, openness, positive attitude, good under pressure, organized, adaptable, emotionally stable, understanding of long-term process.
Spend time knowing who you are coaching. Spend a lot of time developing the skill to adapt their styles when necessary to facilitate communication with someone who is not exactly like you. Not everyone has the same level of energy and drive. So when someone does things differently, you might not agree, but the bottom line is that they may be better at one thing or another and we need to accept others may get results in a different way.
What are the ten questions you would ask someone to see if they would be a good fit?
What pitfalls and weaknesses do I need to overcome in order to succeed? How do I avoid them/get back on track when I need to?
Always restate your goal with a statement of how you will reach it with your “why” in mind.
In every journey, there are twists, turns, mistakes and victories. How will you ensure you always get back on track and keep moving forward to the next level?
After completing this workbook, how will I apply the lessons learned and move forward with my plan?
What is the next concrete step? Know where you are going!
Marilyn Chychota about coaching programs: “The true definition of a successful program and coach is not by the success of one or two top results they have, but years and hundreds of athletes that come through and are successful with all different abilities. Anyone can take a talented athlete and just stay out of their way enough to get a good result. But a great coach can take athletes from all levels and abilities and make them successful year after year in all different circumstances. That is how I judge a successful coach.”
Please feel free to contact me with any follow up questions you may have.