The Perfect Storm - Leadership for Performance

I admit it, I’m a bit of a geek. I love analysing data and I’m especially fascinated by applying theories & models to real life situations. Is this a bad thing? Well it would be if I wasn’t acutely aware of my ability to make peoples eyes glaze over, before rolling into the back of their head.  So I’ll keep this brief, here is one of the models I used for leading teams to deliver performance.



(Guest blog by Darren Warner, Olympic medal winning coach, and Judospace Performance Advisor. Follow Darren on twitter at @createautonomy )

In 2007, I was lucky enough to be part of UK Sports Elite Coach, a three year leadership programme for GB coaches. Lucky? I say lucky because at this stage in my career, I was unsure on my leadership style.  I considered myself a good coach. I had confidence in my coaching philosophy, and clarity in the model I worked within. But how did I Lead? 

The Tipping Point
For me, it was the seven days I spent in Wales with the Leadership Trust, paid for by UK Sport, as part of my development.  The Leadership Trust thrives on setting tasks, where the debrief consists of the group telling the task leader how their leadership made them feel.  At times, it was brutally harsh, but dispersed with leadership models throughout the week, it struck a great balance. I’d definitely recommend it to anyone who has a spare £5,000, or someone else has…

Forming - Storming - Norming - Performing
Looking back, I think Tuckman’s stages of group development model struck a cord with me because I already felt that group development wasn’t a linear progression. Maybe it confirmed my beliefs… Sure, it was first proposed in 1965, with many further developments since then, but it provided me with a model to conceptualise and play with. That was all I needed.

The following year, in 2008 was the first time I recognised the signs of the forming-storming in a team I was leading.  There were plenty of  strong characters in the team, with many of the athletes coming from the same club and I had a feeling that this had the potential to be an explosive year.  But, I had no idea how explosive!

There were plenty of  strong characters in the team...

I’d like to say the first cracks appeared in June but in all honesty, it was more like a smash! We were on a conditioning camp in Austria when things kicked off. It started with money being stolen from one of the girls rooms and progressed with a drunken binge with six of the athletes, leading to two of the players being banned.  By the time we arrived for our high volume block of training in Japan, two weeks later, the problems were there for all to see.  There was a lot of animosity and blame, everyone seemed to have an issue with someone. So how could I make things better? I didn’t, I decided to make things worse…

Riding the Storm
Firstly laying down the law, telling them how unhappy I was with their behaviour and that for the next three weeks, their life would be hell. ‘Expect to be woken up in the middle of the night for training!’ kept them on edge, as did putting them in small rooms of six, when double rooms were available. I’d be lying if I said I had a master plan of how it would pan out.  As I mentioned, my leadership style was just developing, but I did recognise that by becoming the common enemy, they stopped hating each other.  By the end of the year, I had to look back on the Japan camp as a massive success. OK they hated me, but I pushed them much harder and got a much better reaction when they wanted to prove me wrong. 

Once we were back from Asia, there was a different feel in the air.  They’d won back my respect with their efforts out there and I used that as a way to win them back. I told them how wrong I’d been, that I realised that this team was capable of having the most success at a World Championships that British Judo had ever seen.  From that moment on, I didn’t want to speak to them about anything that wasn’t taking us closer to world class success.  We reestablished our team rules, but rather than the average session at the start of the year, where nobody seems that clear on why we’re doing it?! Everyone had a focus that this was taking us all closer to the success we craved. 

Everyone had a focus that this was taking us all closer to the success we craved. 

So that's how it started, the momentum built and anyone who has led a team to success will tell you they can feel it. Every team talk I delivered, I looked in their eyes and I knew this year could be different. I knew they wanted it more than any team I’d worked with before. So how did it end?  I’ve realised there’s only one way it could end… BRILLIANTLY

European & World Championships
That year we attended the four hardest European ranking tournaments: Russia, France, Poland & Germany. So going into the European Championships in September, we had six players who’d won 10 medals from the four events. If I compare this to top nations such as Russia (won 43 medals), France (won 33 medals) or Germany (won 46 medals) it was clear we had both a smaller talent pool and less consistency throughout the team. In fact only two members of our team had won more than one medal from the four events, highlighting we had no guaranteed medals!

2008 Major Event Medals By Nation

Europeans Worlds

Russia 4    4

Germany 4    1

France 5    4

Great Britain 3    3


Whilst periodisation played a key part to these results, I really felt the storm we’d had earlier in the year was pivotal.  The six medals were won by four players but we were 4 seconds aways from a fourth medal at the Europeans as one of the lads lost with four seconds to go in the semi-final! That said, we were also the only European nation to improve our performance at the World Championships as we achieved a silver and two bronze as opposed to three bronze at the Europeans.

Conclusion
So what did I take from that year? Well, every year after that I created a storm with the athletes in one form or another. Every time I felt a real shift in attitude. I became very comfortable in not being the most popular person in the room. One thing I did notice is that unlike my periodisation model, the storm never came at the same time.  

Sometimes you have to force it, other times it comes by itself. But either way don’t run from it, once you see it, embrace and whenever possible, ride it! 

Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s learning to dance in the rain…


Find out more about Darren's work with the Judospace Educational Institute here...

Reasons for Success

Everyone wants to know the reasons for success in judo. But few conduct serious research to try to find out. This guest blog is from the Judospace Psychological Advisor, Rebeka Tandaric MS. The picture shows Rebeka with the young players she coaches at Samobor Judo Klub, in Croatia.


Attributions are the explanations we use to explain the outcome of some event.

Attribution theory attempts to explain the purpose and consequences of different interpretations used for success and failure. Attributions can affect our future expectations, emotions, performance and effort. They also include beliefs about control we have over the events. They don’t have to be actual causes because they represent the perception of the one who makes them.

We make attributions because we want to explain, understand and predict our own as well as others' behavior or we are trying to justify, feel better or make a better impression. 

Understanding previous successes and failures allows us to better prepare for new challenges and increase the likelihood of successful outcomes in the future. That's why attributions are extremely important in the sporting context.  In order to develop and enhance the individual's ability as an athlete it is necessary to understand and explain their successes and failures in the past. The perception of athletes in this process is particularly important because it determines the way they will behave in future situations.

Recent research made on the Croatian athletes from three martial arts (judo, karate and taekwondo) explores the reasons which they think have led to their most successful and least successful performances in the competition. The study included 154 competitors who were between 16 and 33 years old. 

For the most successful performance in competition, 32 % of the reasons were related to good physical preparation. In addition, 10% of the reasons were related to happiness, having a good day, good rest or some other similar reason.

The rest of the reasons that have led to success ( 58 %) were related to the different components of mental preparation: 

• 12 %  was related to motivation and desire to win
• 20 % was self-confidence
• 8 % relaxation
• 6% concentration. 

In addition, 12 % of the reasons were simply  "psychological preparation ".

"58% attributed  their most successful performance in competition to components of mental preparation."

In case of the least successful performance, 18% of the reasons were related to poor physical preparation. Illness, having a bad day, injuries and underestimation of the opponents represented 13% of the reasons. Only one participant stated that the referee was responsible for his bad result. Fatigue was present in 6 % of the reasons.

All the rest ( 63 %) attributed reasons that can be considered as mental preparation:

• 14 % lack of concentration
• 13 % fear, nervousness and self-doubt
• 11% lack of motivation
• 6 % lack of self-confidence
• 4 % negative mood and negative attitude
• 4 % too high expectations.

In addition, 11 % of the reasons were “bad psychological preparation".

The reasons mentioned above gives us an insight into the attributions made by athletes which can be very useful in their preparation for competitions.  Specifically, when coaches have an insight into how athletes think and to what reasons they attribute their good or bad performances, it allows them to respond with proper feedback. 

Since attributions were associated with various psychological constructs that are known to be necessary for success in the sport (anxiety , emotion , expectation of success in the future , self-esteem , self-efficacy , emotion , effort ... ) it is very important to recognise them in time so they can be properly directed.

From these results we can conclude only one thing: 

"Athletes believe that psychological preparation is extremely important and greatly affects their performance."

This is especially true in the least successful performance situation. The question is: how much the athletes and their coaches work on this kind of preparation? Many coaches in their planning devote little or no time to psychological preparation. This might be due to ignorance, lack of time or consideration that this kind of preparation should be athlete’s responsibility. 

Physical preparation is certainly crucial on a daily basis because without fitness, technical and tactical preparation there can be no good results. However, on the day of the competition without adequate psychological preparation all this is not enough.  If an athlete who is physically in great shape  goes to the contest under pressure and concentrates on the wrong things it is unlikely that he will achieve a good result.

Athletes in our study indicated that the lack of concentration, anxiety, lack of self-confidence and motivation greatly contributed to their failure in the competition. These same constructs were important in the most of successful competition as well. 

Considering that we can conclude that it is very important to work on those aspects of psychological preparation. The only question is whether the athletes and coaches will continue to leave this part of the preparation to chance or will they actively start to work on it. Do athletes really know how to properly concentrate, reduce anxiety, increase motivation and self-confidence? All this falls under psychological preparation that can be easily trained. So really, there is no excuse and you should start to work on this immediately. 

"Will coaches continue to leave mental preparation to chance?"

So, is Rebeka right? As a coach, will you leave the mental preparation of your judoka to chance, and keep working hard on their physical and technical preparation?

Why not arrange for your judoka to have an Initial Needs Assessment with Rebeka and find out which areas she would be able to help. Read about the services offered on our Psychology page.. http://www.judospace.com/courses-for-athletes/psychology/psychology-for-judo/

Finally, good luck to you, your club, and your team in forthcoming, training and competition.


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Judo and Science

We found an article published in 1949, some 65 years ago, written by eminent judoka and Budokwai member Douglas Mann, entitled, Judo and Science. In this blog we consider its relevance today.

We present this to contrast our earlier blog on the art of judo.

In hearing the word “science” what’s the first image to be pictured in your mind? A man with crazy hair, a lab coat and a board full of equations? Do you welcome science as a method of learning, or shun it because of anxiety about its complexity. 

But the judoka among you are learning a science every time you step on the mat. We hypothesise, when we think about how we might throw, who might beat who, or how we could deal with a tactical situation. Randori practice is the trials and testing of the scientist; then our throws are displayed in competition, donated to the collection of others – in the same way that significant findings are exhibited and published in science.  With this comparison, Mann explains that we as judo players become the experts of our own science.

Mann goes on to state that “By painstaking, objective study of nature, man learns to control the powers of nature”, in this example Mann refers to science as an objective method of study. This can then be applied further; through study of the body we can learn to control our health and our physical conditioning for performance and through study of judo we can learn technique, tactics and develop control of our actions. 

As Mann identifies, science plays an important role in judo, he describes the scientific approach to learning judo as the study and application of biomechanical principles and the understanding and manipulation of an opponent’s cognitions. Over time developments have been made in the core sciences, leading to an influence by sport scientists in many sports. Such developments in judo have allowed us to gain a greater depth of knowledge about how our sport is evolving and about those partaking in it. 

Effective coaching requires keeping up with and driving forward the direction of sport science – in order to effectively educate others it is vital to first educate one’s self. Is this something you too feel is important in order to be a great judoka or coach? Are you utilising and making the most of resources available to you to be the best you can be? 

“In order to effectively educate others it is vital to first educate one’s self.”

Some readers may insist that judo is instead an art, as if by being an art, something cannot therefore be a science. This view is clearly flawed. One only has to consider the fibonacci numbers we see in nature to realise that, science and art are locked together. Mann recognises this when he concludes his article with a comment about the “Middle Way”. An important concept in judo and budo. 

At Judospace, our view is that coaching needs to be founded on evidence. We call it evidence based coaching. Science relies on evidence. If we are not using evidence based coaching, we must be using “guess based coaching”, at Judospace we believe that athletes deserve more than that.

We work with the European Judo Union, and many forward thinking federations to help coaches apply science into their work. Module titles on the EJU Level 4 Coach Award at Anglia Ruskin University include; Applied Pedagogy in Judo, Physiology for Judo, Biomechanics in Judo, Judo Technical Principles, Talent Development Pathways in Judo, Strength and Conditioning for Judo, Performance Analysis of Judo, and Psychological Profiling for Combat Sport. These courses are delivered by some of the top judo expertise in the world. Four members of the IJF Hall of Fame have taught on the EJU courses, (George Kerr, Kosei Inoue, Peter Seisenbacher and Neil Adams).

This Easter (April 2014) on the EJU course, Juergen Klinger, Nuno Delgado, Emanuela Pierantozzi, Yoshiaki Tsuruoka, Katrina McDonald, Bob Challis, Darren Warner and Mike Callan will share their expertise on subjects related to Judo and Science. You can find out how to enrol here.

To find out more about Judo and Science visit our research pages.

Wishing every success to you and your athletes.

In an attempt to keep up with the latest waza, we have other ways you can follow our information. on website, facebook or twitter. You can also connect on LinkedIn, or subscribe to our newsletter.

(Judo and Science by D. Mann. First published in Judo, Quarterly Bulletin, January 1949. Vol. IV. No. 4. Published by the Budokwai. London. p 33-34.)

The art of judo

One of the coaches furthering their education at Anglia Ruskin University on the EJU level 4 Performance Coach Award is Danny Williams. Danny is still an active player, and as part of his self-reflection as a coach he has blog at: http://dannywilliamsddjw.wordpress.com/

In his recent post he put forward some of his views on whether coaching is a scientific or artistic process.

I read his post whilst I was having breakfast at the Tokyo Dome Hotel, during a recent lecture tour to Japan. His post prompted me to reflect on my own views on the topic, and inspired, I wrote the majority of this post there and then at the breakfast table.

“When I think of an artist, I think of the artist with their tools, their easel, oils, brushes, palette, model etc.

But tools are not enough, they have to have technique, knowledge of anatomy, art history, composition, the skills and knowledge of the trade.

Those tools, skills and knowledge are the science that is required for a judo coach. The nutrition, periodization, technical and tactical understanding.

The artist then adds style, their own spin on things. It’s how art historians and forgery experts can tell the difference between a master and apprentice.

That’s what the artist judo coach does with their tools and expertise, spins them into something unique, something special for each athlete.

It’s why I love judo. To see two artist coaches pitched against each other. Picasso and Manet, seated just metres apart, battling with their canvases.

Best regards from Tokyo.”

As a judo coach have you studied enough to have the skills, tools and knowledge required?  How much do you reflect on your coaching to be able to add your own spin? To turn your coaching from a science into an art? Unfortunately too many players are poorly served by coaches who have not studied to better themselves, who do not have the skills, tools and knowledge required. Help ensure that your players are better served. Make 2014 the year that you learn the science and turn it into art.

To all the judo family who have taken time to read this blog over the years Good luck in 2014 with all your endeavours. Thanks from all at www.judospace.com

The image for this blog post is a woodcut by Jane Veveris Callan. Check out her website www.janeveveriscallan.co.uk

Her judo images are available as greetings cards from www.judospace.com/shop/the-art-of-judo/

A dream for judo

While the IJF 2013 World Senior Judo Championships were thrilling the audience in Rio de Janeiro, the free world celebrated the 50^th Anniversary of the civil rights march to Washington DC, and the famous “I have a dream” speech of the visionary Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.

http://www.archives.gov/press/exhibits/dream-speech.pdf

Recently there was a discussion on social media about coaching and the development of a judo system. One post referred to the speech and said that his dream for judo is “'- that every town, borough or city will have a permanent dojo with quality facilities.”

The comment got me thinking, about what my dream is for judo.

I have a dream that those dojos in every town and city of the world will be based in a place of learning. That every school, college and university, will have a dojo, and that judo will be synonymous with education. That the values of judo will be taught in the classroom, and the values of the classroom will be taught in the dojo.

I have a dream that those dojos are led by great coaches. That those dojos are led by educated coaches. Are led by coaches who have devoted their own time to the study of how to make their dojo better, the pupils better, their athletes better. Coaches who have studied diligently about how to change lives through judo.

Without great coaches, dojos are empty, sometimes intimidating, sometimes scary, and sometimes dangerous. Without great coaches that embrace the values of judo, dojos can encourage arrogance, deceitfulness, even bullying.

Great coaches, educated coaches, encourage the development of the whole person. They encourage hard training, technical excellence, respect for others, seiryoku-zenyo and jita kyoei.

At Judospace we are committed to helping coaches become great. Recently we have teamed up with KokaKids to create more opportunities to link judo and education.

http://www.judospace.com/news/koka-kids-and-judospace-educatio/

http://www.kokakids.co.uk/benefits-of-judo-for-school-children-guest-blog

To find out more about our work visit www.judospace.com

or follow us on facebook https://www.facebook.com/Judospace

Judo Coaching: great coaches make great players

If you are a judo coach you have a very important role. If you are paid as a judo coach, then you have a very important job.

Why is it an important job?

You have a responsibility to your judoka, the athletes that trust you. The trust is often built on respect. Your judoka respect you, your behaviours and your opinions. They value your knowledge, they learn through the way that you communicate that knowledge.

When you share knowledge effectively, it can be utilised by the judoka to win a match. The judoka understands that the win is because of the knowledge that you shared with them. This reinforces their belief in you, and the knowledge that you have, and your ability to communicate it effectively.

Sometimes your knowledge is found wanting. You are not really sure how to deal with a certain opponent, or a certain kumi-kata situation. You are embarrassed at your limited knowledge in a certain area. You try to hide it. Maybe you convince yourself that you think you know the answer. Your judoka trusts you. They try their best, but they don’t succeed. Your limited knowledge let them down. There is a small chink in their respect for you. They are not sure to fully believe you the next time. Gradually the relationship breaks down. The trust and communication that you had together starts to fall apart. Each thinks the other is to blame.

How can we avoid this? Certainly you cannot hope to win all the matches, your relationship cannot be built on only winning.

If we think about a judo competition, in each round, half the players win their matches, and half the players lose their matches. That’s the sobering thing about judo. You either win or lose. If you keep a record of the matches of all your judoka, if the win record is better than 50% you are doing better than average.

If your judoka can see that you are constantly trying to improve your knowledge, they will see that you are investing your time to help them. They will see that you are studying for mutual welfare and benefit. They will have greater confidence that the suggestions that you make are based on reflection, on evidence, on research.

Research, evidence and reflection can help the judo coach to make better decisions, to offer better advice, to have access to a wider range of ideas. Study into communication methods and techniques can help the decisions, advice and ideas be understood and applied more effectively and more efficiently. Maximum efficiency with minimum effort.

Study hard, don’t expect it to be easy, and your players will benefit. They may even win more matches. The harder you work, the luckier they get.

Good luck to all your judoka.