The values, attitudes and goals of a successful team culture
This week I was asked by a Medicine Hat College Rattler team to come in to talk about team culture. As I was preparing for my presentation I wanted to look at what some of the research had to say. It is interesting to note that although coaches have varying meanings of what a successful team culture means, a lot of it boils down to values, attitudes and goals.
Dr. Jim Taylor out of the University of San Francisco spoke on the fact that team culture does not just refer to traditional team sports. We often look at the classic sport stories of football or hockey that had teams that went through stormy periods in order to find their new normal and bond together. However, individual sports can do much of the same. Individual sports such as figure skating, athletics or swimming are not immune to team culture. Beyond just the partner or team competitions within these sports, these athletes find themselves in a training environment surrounded by fellow athletes. They go to the gym with these athletes, show up at practice and even travel to competitions together. It is critical that they form a culture where they can learn to work together for individual success.
As coaches, it is critical that we look at our own behaviour as ultimately we shape how our team acts. The power that coaches hold in sport is not just limited to the playing field. The values that we have are reflected in our actions and picked up by our athletes. An easy example of this is the value of respect. The way we talk to our competition, officials and team staff models how are athletes will act.
The attitudes we hold also filter down. An attitude that I have been working on with the Women’s National Sledge Hockey team is how we can push each other out of our comfort zones in order to move forward. As a coach, I highlight certain players in training that have achieved new results due to struggle and fighting for that change. This does not always have to be sport specific skills either. For some of our players, these attitudes are things they carry over to their everyday life such as changing eating habits or time management.
Goals are essential to a team’s culture as they are a driving force for the attitudes and values held. I am a believer of bringing in everyone who is a part of your team in order to create these goals versus a top down approach. From my experience, this approach brings a level of accountability that cannot be as easily accomplished when the coach or team leader defines all the goals.
Team culture is something that I would highly encourage every coach to take a look at it. The attitudes, values and goals that your athletes learn now from team culture are the things they carry forward for the rest of your life.
Tara Chisholm is the head coach of the Canadian National Women's Sledge Hockey Team. She was born and raised in Medicine Hat and is the program coordinator of the non-profit organization, Medicine Hat Adaptive Sport and Recreation. She can be reached by email at tara@parasports.net.