Your Champions Journey™

Your Champions Journey™

The Power of Why

BY STEFFANY HANLEN

Any successful journey must begin with the WHY!

Simon Sinek said it best when he opined, “Let us all be the leaders we wish we had”. Coaching, for many, is the opportunity to grow and evolve as a person and continue to make a difference in someone else’s life.

Not all coaches can work well with all athletes. Coaching is not a one size fits all game. When it’s time to transition from being an athlete to train to be a coach, I’d like to introduce a series of thought processes that may assist you on determining what KIND of coach you want to be.

Each athlete, as you know, is a unique individual with dreams and goals of their own. I always say—“I don’t coach skaters; I coach people. I help them uncover HOW and WHY they can become the best person they can be in the time we have together”. This is my WHY! Do you know yours?

Grab a pen and paper.

1. Take a moment to reflect on your past favorite coachesthe one, two or many in your past who made a positive impact on you. Write down two or three qualities of that person(s) and if you integrate those traits or values into your own coaching today.

2. Now, take a moment and pull up a memory of a coach that you did not align with. What were some of the traits or qualities that you did not like or didn’t resonate with you? Which list is longer? What are the traits you are committed NOT to bringing to your athletes?

Have you asked yourself lately—What drives you to coach? Coaching can be an exercise in leadership and a gift of self-discovery—if you let it—or it can be a freezing-cold, early-morning-drag where you just put in time. What is it for you?

This question, “What drives you?” was asked to a group of high-level PSA coaches in a 2020 workshop and the answers were as varied as the coaches themselves. Several answered- “to make a difference”, a few replied, “to make a living” and one or two said “to take a skater as far as possible and to coach at the highest level”.

Is coaching your passion, your purpose or is it your job? There is no wrong answer here—it just requires telling the truth. If becoming a coach is just a job, then that must be okay with YOU. Making a living doing what you love is one of the highest callings. If you are still reading this, I assume coaching is more than just a job for you.

Over the several decades working in high level sport, I have observed four types of coaches:

1. Former athletes wanting to stay in their sport to contribute or give back

2. Former athletes who may not know what they want to do once they retire

3. Coaches who are driven to explore possibilities and figure out what and how to make a skater become their very best.

4. A combination of 1, 2 and 3. Seeing coaching as a sacred profession.

These reasons are all important because they help give us a personal road map as to what lane or specialty we want our expertise to thrive in.

Many athletes become coaches by default- or as an interim way to pay bills while they go to school or navigate their way through life after sport. This is a wonderful opportunity and a whole other conversation we can dig into another time.

Figuring out your WHY you coach is even more important than the HOW to’s of teaching a skill. If you know WHY you coach and it is crystal clear to you and your clients, then the How to land an Axel or perform the perfect Baby Blues, the What to do to keep it clean, consistent, and strong- become obvious.

I’ve known many of the “How to” and the “Do it again” coaches and they do a good job. But after over 35 years in this industry, I can tell you the few coaches that know their inner WHY are the ones who connect with their skaters and train them to be champions, inside and out. Not just when they are on the ice— but in all areas of their lives.

Years later, when I randomly hear from an athlete about how much, not just what I taught them but HOW they were treated or how we helped them manage a problem or navigate an adversity—and how they use the lessons they learned from us in life outside of sport—it confirms I am living in alignment with my WHY!

As you discover your WHY, let it lead you towards a career of ups and downs. You may not always be the most popular, however when you know your values and stand up for them it will be worth the effort, care, and compassion it takes to be an authentic, amazing coach!

Find Stephany's presentation for the 2021 PSA Summt at PSA TV.

Steffany has a unique and historic career working at the highest level in Sport and Business. As a pioneer in Long Term Athlete Development, Steffany is the founder of several successful businesses, has knowledge, experience and credibility unlike any other coach/ entrepreneur that crosses over into other realms of life.

A partner in I.AM, focused on the mental and emotional development of the best Ice Dancers in the world, Steffany and her on-ice partners, Marie France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon and Romain Hagenhauer are committed to building a holistic environment for Ice Dancers to train, compete and WIN on their own terms.

The driving value of Ice Academy of Montreal is to treat each athlete as a cherished individual, on and off the ice and challenge them to dig deep to discover and be their best selves.

Steffany consults with athletes, Coaches, Clubs and Organizations around the world. She is willing to work with PSA Coaches interested in diving deeper into how to build or elevate their businesses.

Email: steffany@steffanyhanlen.com to request a link to book your meeting.