Leadership in sport

 Leadership in Sport

Many when they think of leadership, they think of it as being a role that is played by one individual. For sports they typically believe that the leader of the time is either the coach because they are the ones who oversees the team, or they believe that is the best player on the team. However, that is not always the case. In this blog I am hoping to examine and discuss the key principles of leadership in sport, the types of leadership, looking at coach lead teams versus player led teams, and hope to give examples as well as share my own experiences with leadership in sport.

when thinking of just the word leadership and what that means, what comes to mind? Some may say inspiration, motivation, empowerment for individuals and their teams. However, leadership is all of that and more. It encapsulates various qualities such as integrity, resilience, communication, and vision. All of these variables are important when it comes to the struggles that will occur within athletics because sooner or later, they will happen. But with proper leadership you can overcome them.

Coaching leadership

I think when people think of leadership styles coaching leadership is what all individuals think of automatically. In sports every team has one or multiple, a coach. Someone who has many hats and jobs, coaches can be a mentor, motivator, strategize. They have various responsibilities to not only keep their team and organization afloat but to help them thrive and ensure their success. Their purpose is to help shape the culture of their organization that in turn impacts their identity, performance, vision of the team. When properly leading they constituently pursue excellence among their team and players by having standards and expectations that are accomplish through discipline and holding their team accountable.

However, there are other types of leadership that are not typically thought of.

1. Transformational leadership:

    - The purpose of the leadership is to motivate and inspire their players so that they are to accomplish their goals. These types of leaders can achieve this by properly communication with the members of their team their vision. They also are open to change and innovation and empower those who are around them. Having this type of the leadership instilled within a team would be very beneficial because it creates a culture that focuses on teamwork, continuously improving, and excelling. It will also help to inspire the athletes in this program to keep reaching their full potential, and overall help the team be successful.

2. Transactional leadership:

    - This type of leadership is when leaders establish roles, expectations, standards, and responsibilities so that there is a better order, and they are more efficient. In this type of leadership, a reward and punishment system will typically be put into place to reinforce particular behaviors and performances. This type of leadership could be harmful to teams because it doesn't focus on wanting to inspire the athletes on the team. Thus, it could hinder the team from growing, excelling, and reaching its full potential.

3. Servant leadership:

    - This type of leaderships focuses on the well-being and the needs of their members. A major emphasis is put on qualities such as humility, empathy, and serving. Unlike the previous type of leadership, the aim is empowered and support its members rather than holding authority over them. Though it may not be commonly thought of as a leadership style in sports, servant leadership can be very beneficial. This is largely due because it promotes collaboration, trust, and builds a relationship amongst the leader and the member within the team. Resulting in the members of the teams to feel supported and cared for, and fostering an environment of success.

4. Autocratic leadership:

    - This type of leadership is the complete opposites of servant. It focuses on strict control and authority where all decisions are being made by the leaders. This is done through never asking for thoughts and input but rather stating their own direction and thoughts. This type of leadership may produce short term result but will not be sustainable when wanting to create a successful environment for its team and members. This is because typically in sports, teamwork and adaptability are essential and when using this type of leadership, it could be detrimental to the team to accomplish these variables because they have been taught to be obedient and comply.

5. Democratic leadership:

    - This type of leadership is where the members of that team are involved in things such as giving their thoughts, feedback, and being a part of the process of making decisions before anything is set in stone. This type of leadership can be effective because it allows for the athletes to be more engaged within their team and will make them buy into the program and culture easier. It will also help leaders build trust with their athletes because it shows that they value their thoughts and opinions that have been stated, and overall can help improve their success.

When it comes to styles of leadership in sports, there are more than just universal coaching leadership that can help a team accomplish their goals and create a culture that will allow them to succeed. Although there have been many debates over which type of leadership style is the best when it comes to athletics, I believe that the better options would be servant and transformational leadership. I think these are the best options because the promote an environment where athletes can feel inspired and empowered while working together as a team. Also, because this type of leaders focus on creating a culture where there is a vision, accountability and trust. Thus, helping performance an overall success of the team.

 

Now that we have discussed the types of leadership lets discuss what is a coach-led team, a player led team, and the advantage and disadvantages of both.

Coach-Led Teams:

Coach-lead teams is where the responsibilities of development, strategy, management of the team, and decision making all fall of the coach. They have created the culture through establishing the expectations and goals of the team.

Advantages:

- Accountability: Coaches hold their players accountable for things such as behavior, performance, and meeting of expectations and standards. Holding players accountable can help them achieve their goals and excel.

- Clear direction: On a coach led team the coach is the authority figure and are responsible for guiding by making designs and setting goals. this can create an environment of structure and stability that can be beneficial for athletes who need it. 

- Experience: Coaches have typically come in with years of knowledge, expertise, and experience for their program. This can give athletes a way to learn because they are able to give knowledge and strategies on what is needed to improve players and to achieve success.

Disadvantages:

- Dependency: In coach-led environments, players may become over reliant on their coaches because they have made all the decisions and taken full responsibility over the team. Therefore, hindering athletes because it does not create an environment where there can develop qualities such as confidence in their decision making, self-resilience, and leadership.

-  Conflict could arise: Not all coaches are the same. They are various way of communication, philosophies, and expectations. This can result in an environment where there is tension between coach and player and can be detrimental to their success.

- Lack of player involvement: Coach-led teams can create an environment where their players have little to no opportunities to add their thoughts or opinions on decisions. When players feel like this, they can become uninterested and may create a culture where it is hard for them to buy in.

 

Player-Led Teams:

 

In player-led teams it is where the players are the ones who take responsibility for making designs, dynamics of the team, and the leadership that occurs on and off the court. It is the players who create the culture and goals. 

Advantages:

1. Ownership: Player led teams allow for the player to take more ownership of their team and take pride of the team’s success. This is done through working together in making decisions, setting goals, and solving the problems that will occur throughout their seasons.

2. Development: Player led teams allow for the players to work on qualities such leadership skills, decision making abilities, communication abilities. Overall developing them so that they are more confident in themselves within these areas and prepare them for their future leadership positions in their careers.

3. Cohesion of the team: Because the members of the team are the ones responsible for the team’s success and have created the culture and standard, it easier for them to buy into these objectives because they have all agreed on them. This creates an environment where there is a strong since of trust and unity among the players.

Disadvantages:

1. Potential conflict: although they work together to create the goals and culture there is always a possibility for differences in opinions, personalities among the athletes, and priderites. All of these variables can lead to conflict arising within the teams.

2. A need for strong leadership: When having these types of teams, it is essential for the players to have strong leadership qualities so that they can accomplish their goals, resolve conflict, and excel at decision making. Without a strong sense of leadership can cause the team to struggle.

3. The coach and player balance: Although within these teams the players hold accountability and responsibility for their team, they still have a coach who they listen to. Finding a proper balance of taking a coach’s guidance but still maintain ownership is essential. Coaches can help players feel supported, give guidance, and provide valuable insight that can help players and their team perform.

 

Personally I believe that when it come to a teams success that it is player led-teams are beneficial. On the teams where I had the most success and development have been when it is player led. Similar to what I have mentioned about how it creates an environment where it is easier for the athletes to buy in because they have established what the goals and standards are for their team. 

As of this weekend my team and I did accomplish the goal we set for ourselves since arriving on campus in June for summer workouts. We are MAC Champions. The very first day we stepped foot on to campus for our workouts we all discussed what we really wanted for this season, and of course everyone’s answer is to win the tournament, but we meant it. That day we all signed the white board in our locker room to show that we are all committed to achieving our goal. Throughout the season we have had many ups and downs. Throughout those downs is when we as a team decided to come together, without the coaches knowing or telling us, to figure out what we need to do to get back on track. Through each road bump that has come our way we have figure a way to get passed it. Because we created an environment that is disciplined, holds each other accountable, has trust, and unity allowed us to accomplish the thing we set out to do from the very first moment we got to Kent State in the Summer.