Positive Coaching: Building Character and Self-Esteem Through Youth Sports

The Author has a background that provided him with examples for each of his methods. He has Coached at many different Sports & Physical Abilities. The book is all about BEING POSITIVE in all your contacts with Athletes & Parents. Nearly 400 pages long, it covers most of the situations Coaches face in their Career. The one I broke a smile on was describing how to deal with NEGATIVE PATENTS. He advises that you stay positive; continue to demand that they be positive & sooner or later, they will leave for another team. A negative person is just NOT HAPPY unless they can be negative. I bought 5 used books & handed them out to my fellow High School Coaches & my neighbor who coaches 12 year old Boy Basketballers. This book is one you can keep on the top shelf & refer to it as the need arises.

I coach volleyball in grade school and junior high school, and I usually get the "B teams" (the leftovers who are not as talented as the girls on the "A" team.) Therefore, if there ever was a crying need for a book on how to coach these types of athletes, this book more than served its purpose for me. Actually, this book had a positive effect on me since it saved my coaching career. Don't get me wrong, though, this book will turn around any coach's career whether he has an A or a B team. I coached a group of 13 and 14 year old softball players the year that I purchased this book. At the beginning of the season, the only team these girls could beat was themselves; in fact, that was primarily the reason they were losing was the fact that they were beating themselves! Well, after one mediocre game, I sat the girls down on the bench and instead of reading them the riot act, I took to heart a suggestion by the author. I emphasized all the positive aspects of the game they played just to show these girls that they were capable of doing some positive things. I did this after each game from then on, win or lose. Wouldn't you know it, these same rag tag girls lost the last the last game of the season: the city championship game by one run (to a team that annihilated them by 12 runs in the first game of that season.) This was an example of positive coaching, and I've used everything in this book to my advantage to become a successful POSITIVE coach. Thanks Mr. Thompson for turning my career around!

The reader from Trenton, Michigan missed the point of this book. Readers of that review should carefully consider the source and its use of hateful ideas and language. This is an excellent book for amateur coaches of kids. It teaches how to interact with kids and how to motivate them to do their best without resorting to screaming and put-downs. If you are a coach or parent, this will be both fun to read and useful to learn from.

You wouldn't think "profound" is a word to use in connection with a book on coaching youth sports, but Jim Thompson's "Positive Coaching" left me deeply affected. And for the right reasons. There is so much practical information on how to be a great coach that I have just finished it and cannot wait to reread some key chapters. Of course Mr. Thompson will help me win more Little League girls softball games, but, much more important, I will be better able to communicate with my players, and help build their character and self esteem, lofty but eminently appropraite goals for any coach. The capper for me was one of the final chapters where Mr. Thompson examines his personal motivation for coaching in terms of his own unfullfilled dreams. We all have demons. By sharing his, Mr. Thompson made me better able to deal wiht mine. The difficult part of coaching is not the plays and the stratigies, but how to deal effectively with the people - the players, their families and the league - to this area Mr. Thompson brings a wealth of reading, years of experience and deep and sensitive interest.. He is beyond expert.

I found it to be a great book to remind you of what is important in coaching young athletes and gives you ways to accomplish the goals he presents. I highly recommend it!