Communicating the Message

Regardless of the message you have a very small window to communicate the message in a meaningful way so that the person receiving the message with get it. I was reminded of this this morning at mass when the priest missed a golden opportunity to get his message across. His theme was love. Instead of making his point he used way too many analogies and mixed metaphors and droned on for fifteen minutes. He lost me! As I was driving home and reflecting on this I could not help but relate it to coaching. Effective coaching is all about communication. How many coaches do what the priest did this morning? How many coaches talk just to hear themselves talk? We get away with it because we have a captive audience, but is it best, is it effective? Know what you are going to say. Say it wit appropriate inflection and emotion. Get the point across. Short, sharp clear on point, don’t belabor the point. Follow the example of the great John Wooden who rarely spoke more that twenty to thirty seconds during practice. The majority of what he said was instructional. Speak in phrases, short and to the point that emphasizes instruction and action words.