Character, "what are you willing to put in?"

Over the summer I tried out for Southland's basketball team and one thing the coach really emphasized was character. I thought maybe just because it's a christian school they want people to really be in touch with who they are and what they want but then I remembered what Jennifer would tell the girls during softball practices which was "I'm not doing this for me, I already went to CIF and won." That statement alone always gets the girls mad and determine to show Jen that they wanted it too. Mr. Johnson who is the girls basketball coach always asks the girls what THEY want to accomplish once he goes over the game plan for practice and the girls really think about it because we all know we can't be great at every drill but as long as we put the same amount of energy and commitment towards them we'll find the things we're good at even if we thought we weren't. Whenever we would get frustrated with a drill, he'd make us step out of the court and if we want to get back in we needed to give two reasons why and it couldn't be something like "because I want to be on this team." "So do others girls," will be your response from Mr. Johnson. He really wants the girls to think about why they are there in practice and if it's not for themselves then why are they there at all? Who are they doing it for and why? Character is based on an individual doing it for themselves not for anyone else.

Character is still a main part of Jen's practices but isn't really thrown out there, it's more for you to decide if character is what she's looking for. She teaches the drills to these girls the best that she can and since these girls are varsity they should expect to do what anybody would do if they don't understand something, ASK. At first it seemed weird to me because she's a coach and she should make sure everyone is on the same page but at the same time these girls went through tryouts and they're on the team because they understand the game and/or are good at certain positions. No girl out there is well rounded when it comes to softball or any sport. You'll always standout in something you are good in so when Jen has the girls do a drill and they don't speak up to say that they don't understand, she takes into consideration the girl's motive and if she's really committed to the team.

Both are different examples of character I was exposed to with my mentor and basketball coach. Coaches all think alike no matter the sport and within my first month, Character seems to be number one on the list.

"Character is a victory, not a gift."

Blog 6: Second Interview (2nd Interview Questions)

"We don't wear cups, we win them" - Tim McGraw

1.
Mentor: Jennifer Dorado
Workplace: La Puente High School


2. Questions:

• How long have you been working at La Puente High School?
• How has your college experience prepared you for your coaching career?
• What college did you go to and what did you study there?
• Did you have any specific goals you established for your career?
• What went through your head when you won your first game as a coach?

Blog 5: Project Reflection and Working EQ

"Softball isn't a one woman sport, there's 11 other girls who become your sisters. And don't forget that you win as a team and lose as a team."

(1) Positive Statement: What positive thing happen as a result of what you have completed so far? A positive outtake of all I've done so far for my topic was pretty much realizing that this topic so far is really intriguing and enjoyable. I actually enjoy doing research for this topic and i'm not only looking at it as a topic but maybe a career path I could take or can help me link to another career? Who knows yet.

(2) EQ Content: Pick a piece of research or your interview. How has it helped you improve your understanding of your topic? My research has improved a little of my understanding of what becoming or being a softball coach takes but NOTHING really compares to actually talking/mentoring someone under that field because they can talk to you a little more about what they did and break everything down for you without all this meaningless sentences that are sometimes just there to make a page look nice. Jennifer really loves her job and I can tell by the tone in her voice as she was answering my interview questions or as I would just talk to her about her team. 

(3) What has worked for you so far in the senior project? What has worked so far is my understanding on all the research and the reasoning of most things that coaches do. I think it all has to do because i'm already familiar with the sport. Another thing that work was correcting what I had believed about softball coaches, for example like how much they earn and if they were a teacher and coach for the same school they would earn more no matter what but I was obviously wrong about that. (check my last post, "I didn't know that?")

(4) What hasn't worked so far? The only thing that hasn't been working so far for my senior project is my schedule trying to fit in with Jennifer's (mentor) softball practices. Since LPHS has only been in school for a month practices haven't been a daily thing so  they have them every Thursdays and I have basketball practices every Tuesdays and Thursdays. There were times where I left practices early to get to LPHS just so I can catch at least the last 30 minutes of softball practice but it hasn't been working out. As the year go on, Jennifer's schedule will change to daily practices and that will be way easier for me because I would have 3 days to make it to any practice.

(5) Finding Value:  

•  What is a potential question you would like to study this year? (working EQ) A question I would like to study this year would probably be something like, "how would you coach a varsity softball team well enough to make it to make it to CIF (California Interscholastic Federation)?" I want a question that helps me learn the background, basic drills, and requirements. I really want to learn this topic well enough where you think I'm good enough to become a coach at age 17.

This website helps me keep track of LP's softball team eligibility to go to CIF: http://www.maxpreps.com/high-schools/la-puente-warriors-(la-puente,ca)/softball/home.htm 

•  What do you plan to do for mentorship?  If you haven't found a mentor yet, then discuss where you are currently looking and who you are talking to to find it.  What I plan to do for my mentorship is to help Jennifer out with practice, familiarize myself well enough with coaching and maybe once a month (for these 3 months) coach a whole practice. I'll definitely ask questions about something I read if I find it confusing or need more explanation.