The mission of Mindset Volleyball Club is to:
- Instill a love for the game of volleyball
- Improve fundamental volleyball skills
- Teach values like teamwork and cooperation
- Develop competitive players who strive to achieve both personal and team goals
Established in 2017, Mindset VBC provides an environment where athletes improve their volleyball skills as well as learn the values of team, spirit, and sportsmanship. The club encourages fundamental skill development along with techniques necessary to compete at a high level in the game of volleyball, focusing on the physical, mental, and emotional development of all players. Mindset VBC utilizes the sport of volleyball to teach lifelong lessons to our players, including leadership, teamwork, work ethic, handling adversity and success, communication, and dedication.
The success of athletes and the club is best measured by the following: (1) sincere, self-disciplined, persistent efforts to improve, fulfill commitments, and reach goals; (2) individual skill improvement; and (3) team improvement over the course of the club season.
Athletes who commit to Mindset VBC will learn teamwork, self-discipline, goal setting, personal responsibility, and the excitement of individual and team achievements.
Coaches are first and foremost role models and teachers. Good coaching should not be measured by producing winning teams; it’s about constantly asking “is what we’re planning to do today in the best interest of the athletes?”
If there were only one life lesson from sports, it should be that hard work is a key to success. Mindset VBC believes in winning and enjoying the experience, but these are both by-products of a goal that is further reaching: hard work!
In life and sports, “what you put in is what you get out.” Mindset VBC teaches players how to create real results through demonstrating positive attitudes, giving 100% effort, and being team players. The most rewarding aspect of being a coach is the opportunity to have a positive influence on young athletes. Along with athletic skills, Mindset VBC instills values that build self-confidence and success in players, both on and off the court.
Goal Setting
Mindset VBC’s goals are specific and measurable to ensure we are making progress. They are adjustable to be responsive to a team’s changing needs throughout the season. Examples of goals are passing, serving, and attacking percentages. Coach Randy finds the most success with 90% of serves are in, 85% of attacks over the net, and 60% of passes made are reached by the setter (his 90-85-60 rule). This varies depending on age and level, but setting goals like these have helped him develop tournament-winning teams.
How does Coach Randy evaluate Mindset VBC’s progress? He shares his 90-85-60 rule with players as well as tracks their stats. Getting players involved in tracking helps keep them active observers of the game. Decisions made throughout the day are based on these stats and keep Mindset VBC focused on goals. Positions and rotations can be switched up to keep our teams on track. Post-tournament, all stats are calculated to evaluate if Mindset VBC is still moving toward the club’s overall expectations. If so, Coach Randy continues. If not, practice plans change to focus on areas of improvement.
How are goals chosen? They need to be attainable, yet not so easy that there is no motivation to achieve them. A goal could be to make it to the state playoffs, but players on the worst team in the league will have a hard time buying into it. This does no good for team morale. If the best team in the league has the goal to make it to the playoffs, even still they may be unmotivated because the goal is not challenging enough. Nothing about their attitude will change. Goals like “never letting the opponent score over 20 points in a game,” or “winning every match in four games” have the potential to be more successful. They are challenging enough to be motivating and keep the team focused, especially during game time. All players need to buy into the goal though – this is the only way it can be achieved.
Personal goals should relate to team goals already set. If a player’s goal is to get 20 kills in a match, but the team’s goal is to play together more as a team, either one or both goals will not be achieved. An example goal could be to vary hitting attacks by hitting to line every once in a while if a player usually only hits cross. Another example is to tip and chip even from a great set, because there is typically a spot open behind the blockers.
Before any match, goals should be written down somewhere. After the game, revisit the goals as soon as possible so players can evaluate themselves. Players should ask themselves, “did I swing even when I shouldn’t have?” “Did I go for every ball like I wanted to?” Instruct them to give their goal a 1-5 rating on the degree to which it was achieved. After this, evaluate the goals themselves. Was it set too high (20 kills in one match) or too low (getting half of your serves in)? If it was an appropriate goal that is close to being reached or narrowly achieved, players should note what they will do in the future to continue making progress.
Goals are important because they show how a team is performing. This can reveal aspects that were previously missed, such as believing one player is the best passer on the team. After looking at stats and goals, it could show she’s not reaching her passing goal of getting her passes up to the setter.
It is crucial that a team’s goals are measurable. Having goals like, “jump higher” or “set better” will not do players any good. Goals need to specify exactly how much higher they want to get or where their sets should go. This helps evaluate skills and give specific feedback for continuous improvement.