• Fitness & Health
• Sport & Exercise Science
• Physical Education
• Strength & Conditioning
• Sports Medicine
• Sport Management
• Dance

The four qualities of the Athlete Character Code

This is an excerpt from Successful Coaching-5th Edition by Rainer Martens,Robin S. Vealey.

Table 8.1 lists the four character qualities, or moral values, discussed in this section. You can revise this code for your team as you wish. There may be other moral values that you would add (e.g., loyalty), as well as additional actions you would like your athletes to engage in for each value. However, it’s important that you clearly define to your athletes your expectations for demonstrating character and competing honestly. Of course, these same expectations apply to you as the coach, and you should make sure your athletes know this as well.

How can you help athletes become aware of their behavior in relation to the team’s Character Code? Because character cannot be directly observed but is inferred from behavior, you need to help athletes see the connection between their behavior and the value it represents. You can do this by labeling their behaviors:

• Respect. When a player argues with an official, you can point out that it shows disrespect.
• Fairness. When your high school golfer calls a one-stroke penalty on herself because her ball moved a fraction in the rough when she pulled a leaf away from it, you can say “I’m proud of you for calling the penalty on yourself. Golf rules sometimes don’t seem fair, but they are the rules and you showed true character in that situation.”
• Responsibility. When an athlete skips practice for no good reason, you can let her know that she has not acted responsibly.
• Gratitude. When an athlete complains about a meal provided to the team by parents, you could note that he is being ungrateful for the support that was provided.

Once you help your athletes understand the connection between the behavior and the character quality it reflects, be it positive or negative, then you can express your expectation about that behavior in the future. For example, after discussing an athlete’s tardiness, you might say, “Show me you’re responsible by coming to practice on time tomorrow.” Coaching for character requires constant lessons and discussions with athletes so they understand and begin to internalize good moral values.

Remember that the development of good character is not unlike the development of sport skills. Few athletes get them right the first time. You’ll need to be tolerant of mistakes, provide immediate and accurate feedback, demonstrate the appropriate action, and give your athletes repeated chances to practice. Reward progress even if the behavior is not totally what you want.

More Excerpts From Successful Coaching-5th Edition

---