July 2005 How To Be A Better Player By: Tia Brandel-Wilhelm Ferris State University Head Volley Ball Coach (and a fellow Ponytail Sports writer) www.ponytailsports.com (313) 274-5500 Congratulations! By choosing to read this article, you took the first step toward improving yourself as a player. Now comes the hard part….work. If it were easy to be great, great would only be average. Few athletes achieve near to their potential because it is not easy to be their best. The three general areas to focus on to improve yourself as a player are: physical, mental and team. The physical is so obvious, it is often overlooked. Frequently players seek to improve their self confidence and their results before putting in the necessary physical work. You must run, jump, lift, push and sweat to attain a higher level. You must also spend hours with your coach, in summer camps and on your own, honing and improving your sports skills. Do not tell people you want to be good. Show them. Get up early to run; teach the dog to chase your soccer ball so you can work on your keep-away skills; hang a volleyball from a tree in your yard so you can work on diving and rolling. You will go nowhere until you understand that work ethic is not just going to practice and doing what your coach requires. Work ethic is doing what is required then excitedly doing more. When you have begun the physical work, you can improve the player you are by working in your mental conditioning. First, you must be goal-oriented and persistent so as to push yourself through the physical rigors. Without a vision of the player you want to be, you will not have the mental strength to persevere when the workout gets tough or to finish that extra shooting practice when your friend call and want to go to the mall. Second, you must develop positive mental skills. Confidence is important and is developed from working hard (really hard, not just sort of hard) and choosing to think positive, helpful thoughts. Also important is taking responsibility for what you can control then accepting and working around what you cannot control. (Note: you can control only two things- your attitude and your actions, You cannot control the official, the weather, the opponent, your parents yelling from the bleachers, your coach and his/her substitution choice, etc) When you have committed to working on your physical and mental conditioning, you must focus on your team. You may think the team does not have to do with how good you are as an individual, but being a strong teammate is an important part of being your best as a player. Be certain you value the first of each teammate. Do not run down anyones role within the team. No matter how fit, talented and confident you are, you will not be a good player unless your actions, attitudes and words strengthen the team. No matter if you are an elite athlete or just beginning in your sport, you can be a better player by focusing on three areas: physical, mental and team. Tia Brandel-Wilhelm has been at the helm of Ferris State University womens volleyball for nine seasons. Brandel-Wilhelm, who competed in both volleyball and track at Alma, was an all-conference first-team scholar athlete. From Ponytail Sports July/Aug 2005

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