1. Know the game and how to teach appropriate skills

If you are a beginning coach, review the rules to see if any have changed. Consider the skill levels of your players. There are many sites dedicated to teaching skills. You can't teach a player to run to home plate if you haven't yet taught them where first, second, or third base is. Consider having an older player come in and demonstrate various skills. It is important that the players show you respect by holding the balls and making eye contact while you are instructing them. Consider watching or asking other coaches how they deal with certain situations. Be confident in yourself. The players will tend to ignore you if they cannot trust in you as their coach.

2. Have Fun

The coach's attitude determines the atmosphere of the practice. Are you causing tension in your players by the pressure you put on them? Are you practicing too much for the age level you are coaching? You can reward your players with a drill of their choice after some focused hard work. A consequence of not going for a ball can be doing a pushup. But it's more fun when the coach does it right along with the players. Be creative: for younger age volleyball players you can bring in balloons to teach serving skills.

3 Know how to accept criticism or mistakes

Players and parents are eager to share their ideas or opinions. Consider responding with, "I will look into that" or "I will think about that."� It gives you a chance to determine what and how you want to handle the situation. Coaches are not perfect and the players can handle knowing it. Don't hesitate to apologize.

4. Mix it up

There are times during the season when the sport becomes a chore. Parents, players, and coaches get tired and bored. Don't be afraid to try new drills. Have the players take turns being the coaches. It helps a player's personal performance to teach a skill to someone else. The player thinks about the little things in their performance that make a big difference. A coach can also pick up on some ideas on his coaching skills.

5. Build all kids up

It is easy to coach players who have a natural talent for the sport. It is your responsibility to increase the skill level of all players. Smile at your players. Compliment your players. Focus on the little progress that is made. So maybe your player still can't make a free throw shot but at the end of the season they can finally hit the rim of the basketball hoop. Celebrate those little things and those players will not only continue to improve in their sport but you might actually teach them some very important life skills.

6. Communication

The younger the children the more important it is to communicate with the parents. You should let your players and their parents know what the expectations are. As long as parents agree, coaches of older kids can communicate more directly with the players. A written schedule is helpful for the players' families. Make sure the parents have a way of getting in touch with you in case of emergencies.

7. You are a part of the team

Your players need to be able to count on you. They are relying on you to show up for practice. They are relying on you to teach them skills and how they can personally improve. They are also relying on you to be their leader. If you give up on them and stop encouraging them, who will? A coach can build unity in a team or can divide one. Are you helping build unity or division by the things you say or do? Are you showing favoritism? There is a time when you play the best players in order to win the game because you are reaching for a title for your high school or college. Until then it is your responsibility to give all players the chance to play, enjoy the sport, and learn valuable skills that can be used on and off the court.

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Mothers play a vital role in their sons' lives. Here are a few suggestions to help in the amazing and sometimes scary endeavor of motherhood.

1. Give boys examples to follow

Express to your son what a wonderful man his father is. It builds his father up in his eyes and, honestly, it will cause his father to rise to the occasion. Encourage your husband to include your son when he is working on projects around the home. If he doesn't have a father in his home, then give him examples to follow. Arrange for trusted men to teach him skills. Arrange for your son to work on service projects in your community. Tell them stories of the wonderful things the father figures in your life did for you.

2. Cleanliness and modesty look good on boys

Boys can be taught to take care of themselves. They can learn the importance of grooming their hair and keeping nails trimmed. They can trim those bushy grandpa looking eyebrows to look more manageable. Boys can be taught how to wash and iron their own clothing and to dress appropriately. Boys sometimes will need to be reminded to put deodorant on more often or apply it more fully. You might need to explain to them that their body odor requires them to shower more frequently. Remind them to clean their ears or take care of their acne with skin care products.

3. Teach boys respect for womanhood

Do you allow your son to hit you when he is throwing a fit? It is never appropriate for this even as he is learning to deal with his emotions. Teach him to open the door for you or other women as he grows up. He can be prepared to guard the girls in his life. He can be taught to not allow himself to think inappropriate thoughts. He will not allow the guys around him to talk about girls inappropriately. Pornography is not a rite of passage but an awful source of addiction that skews the view of womanhood. Teach your son that the goal for him is to get to know girls. Be friends with them. Hang out and have fun. Boys should be prepared to know how to deal nicely with girls who do not have the same high standards as he does. It is natural for a relationship to progress in a certain direction. Jeanette G. Smith, a family therapist, explains that there are different stages to a relationship, and until he is ready to be a husband or father it is best to keep his relationships nonexclusive. It is my opinion that every parent and adult should own and read her book.

4. Decide when to let go and allow your son to sink or swim

In our attempts to help our boys succeed in life we sometimes do not allow them to suffer the consequences of their actions. Some mothers will own the mistakes of their grown sons, thinking that they should have taught him better or she should have prepared him more. If you are one of them, stop it. You have done enough and he is accountable for his own choices.

5. Build boys up

Boys need to be told by their mother that they are handsome. They need to know that their muscles are looking stronger and bigger. They need to be complemented. If your son has sisters, encourage them to do the same. A few nice words about his physical appearance go a long way for boys.

6. Expect greatness but don't be derailed when your son is not so great

It is good for you to expect amazing things from your son. As they grow they will try to rise to it. It is also important for mothers to understand that your son will make a mistake. Sometimes, a very big mistake. When this happens it is vital to show an increase in love to that boy who needs you. Tough love doesn't mean an absence of it.

It's tough when you are cleaning around the stinky toilet or picking up the toys that you slipped on. You groan when you see them struggle with bullies. It's expensive when you are supporting them with a passion that has them working towards a goal. You're tired. You're not certain you are doing enough. Take solace in the thought that amongst all the cleaning, training, carpooling, and doctoring you are putting together a man and it's worth it.

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