Program Director's Playbook

"It's Okay" Isn't Normalizing Mistakes. It's Dismissing Them

"It's Okay" Isn't Normalizing Mistakes. It's Di...

What your coach says in the three seconds after a player makes a mistake determines more about that kid's athletic future than any drill or clinic ever will.  

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"It's Okay" Isn't Normalizing Mistakes. It's Dismissing Them

What your coach says in the three seconds after a player makes a mistake determines more about that kid's athletic future than any drill or clinic ever will.  

Your Highest-Fee Offering Might Have Your Thinnest Margin

Your Highest-Fee Offering Might Have Your Thinn...

You know your program's total revenue, but you probably can't identify which offerings are actually making money and which ones are quietly draining it.  

Your Highest-Fee Offering Might Have Your Thinnest Margin

You know your program's total revenue, but you probably can't identify which offerings are actually making money and which ones are quietly draining it.  

How to Structure Optional Costs So No Family Feels Left Out

How to Structure Optional Costs So No Family Fe...

Your program's "optional" costs are creating a social paywall where the real price of full participation is invisible on the registration page but painfully obvious on the sideline.  

How to Structure Optional Costs So No Family Feels Left Out

Your program's "optional" costs are creating a social paywall where the real price of full participation is invisible on the registration page but painfully obvious on the sideline.  

Your Budget Keeps the Lights On. Does It Keep the Families?

Your Budget Keeps the Lights On. Does It Keep t...

Most youth sports budgets are built around operational necessity, not retention strategy, and the line items nobody questions are quietly costing you families every season.  

Your Budget Keeps the Lights On. Does It Keep the Families?

Most youth sports budgets are built around operational necessity, not retention strategy, and the line items nobody questions are quietly costing you families every season.  

Your Team's Belonging Gap Tracks Closer to Income Than You Think

Your Team's Belonging Gap Tracks Closer to Inco...

Your team bonding calendar probably defaults to events that cost money, which means belonging in your program tracks closer to household income than anyone wants to admit.  

Your Team's Belonging Gap Tracks Closer to Income Than You Think

Your team bonding calendar probably defaults to events that cost money, which means belonging in your program tracks closer to household income than anyone wants to admit.  

One Word Swap That Changes How Parents Receive Your Message

One Word Swap That Changes How Parents Receive ...

Your preseason parent meeting isn't changing behavior because mandatory meetings, codes of conduct, and sideline lectures were never going to work in the first place.  

One Word Swap That Changes How Parents Receive Your Message

Your preseason parent meeting isn't changing behavior because mandatory meetings, codes of conduct, and sideline lectures were never going to work in the first place.  

Injury Response Trust Gets Built Months Before Anyone Gets Hurt

Injury Response Trust Gets Built Months Before ...

Your concussion protocol is probably solid. The problem is that most families don't know it exists, don't understand it, and don't trust that you'll follow it when the game is...

Injury Response Trust Gets Built Months Before Anyone Gets Hurt

Your concussion protocol is probably solid. The problem is that most families don't know it exists, don't understand it, and don't trust that you'll follow it when the game is.

The Kids Most Likely to Quit Aren't the Ones Complaining

The Kids Most Likely to Quit Aren't the Ones Co...

The athletes most likely to leave your program aren't the ones causing problems at practice. They're the ones who stopped caring and nobody noticed.  

The Kids Most Likely to Quit Aren't the Ones Complaining

The athletes most likely to leave your program aren't the ones causing problems at practice. They're the ones who stopped caring and nobody noticed.  

The Best Hire Might Be the Coach Nobody Outside Your Zip Code Knows

The Best Hire Might Be the Coach Nobody Outside...

The coach with the biggest resume might generate a registration bump in September and a retention crisis by March, and most directors don't realize it until the damage is done....

The Best Hire Might Be the Coach Nobody Outside Your Zip Code Knows

The coach with the biggest resume might generate a registration bump in September and a retention crisis by March, and most directors don't realize it until the damage is done..

Celebrate the Grinders. They're Holding Your Culture Together

Celebrate the Grinders. They're Holding Your Cu...

Your coaches aren't playing favorites, but if you audit what they praise out loud, you might find that most of it requires a parent's credit card.  

Celebrate the Grinders. They're Holding Your Culture Together

Your coaches aren't playing favorites, but if you audit what they praise out loud, you might find that most of it requires a parent's credit card.