Clinic with Cindy Bristow - Good stuff
I was able to catch bit and pieces of Cindy's coaches clinic this past weekend. I definitely enjoyed what I was able to be a part of. We had a camp for players running at the same time and most of my time was spent there helping out. But I did get to meet a few people that I've previously only "conversed" with online (including Cindy). I also met some opposing high school coaches which was interesting.
If you have a chance to go to a clinic with Cindy, I would recommend it. It's always great to hear from someone who has experiences that back up what they talk about. Cindy also has a way of mixing in humor with what she's saying. I laughed quite a bit and had fun because many of the stories she told to illustrate her points reminded me of things that I've experienced. Another thing I realized (being one of only 2 women coaches there) was that often times men don't understand things that I do because I've been in the shoes of the players. Even those coaches that played sports, some of them just don't realized some things simply because they are men. I mean I knew I probably related to the players a little better, but Cindy talked about one thing in particular which was right on. I knew she was right on because it was like she was describing me as a player. But it never dawned on me that men may not understand that that's how most females are.
What she was talking about was how we don't like to separate ourselves from the group. For me that was so, so, absolutely true. Maybe as I got older, I didn't care so much because I gained more confidence and higher self esteem, but it certainly was true up through, probably my sophomore year in high school. I did not want to be singled out or be different - not even in a good way. I never wanted to lead drills. I never wanted to be first in line. I would rather see some others go through the drill less than perfect before having to do it myself in front of everyone. I never wanted to stand out skill wise above the other girls either. Because girls talk - they'll tease or make trouble to the ones that stand out. That's just how girls are. Which is why my daughter surprises me because she is the total opposite of how I was. She's only 9 and she doesn't care - she wants to always be in the front of the line. Whether she knows the drill or not, whether she can do the drill or not, she wants to try it first. Even though there have been times when she messed up going first in front of everyone else in the group, that hasn't discouraged her from racing to the front of any line she's in. If you're a guy, maybe that's not so strange, but it's surprising for me to see because I was not like that, especially at that age.
But luckily, as I got older, like I said, it didn't matter to me as much. Probably because at that point, not many people would really say anything. If my teammates talked is wasn't in a spiteful way and I knew that, so it didn't hurt. Since it didn't hurt, I no longer worried about being different. I had fun being who I was and being the best I could be at it. This wasn't only in softball but in other areas too. Where some people go through lots of peer pressure to drink and do other things they shouldn't - I never had to deal with that. No one really tried to pressure me into doing anything. I'm not exactly sure why that is, it just never happened. I'm not saying that I was never asked to drink or do any of those things, but simply once I declined, that was the end of it.
But I don't know that that happens for all young ladies. Maybe some of them live through their entire high school years having spiteful things said about them. Some of them are under much more pressure from peers than I ever was. If that's the case, they may never get out of that zone of trying to fit in.
If you have a chance to go to a clinic with Cindy, I would recommend it. It's always great to hear from someone who has experiences that back up what they talk about. Cindy also has a way of mixing in humor with what she's saying. I laughed quite a bit and had fun because many of the stories she told to illustrate her points reminded me of things that I've experienced. Another thing I realized (being one of only 2 women coaches there) was that often times men don't understand things that I do because I've been in the shoes of the players. Even those coaches that played sports, some of them just don't realized some things simply because they are men. I mean I knew I probably related to the players a little better, but Cindy talked about one thing in particular which was right on. I knew she was right on because it was like she was describing me as a player. But it never dawned on me that men may not understand that that's how most females are.
What she was talking about was how we don't like to separate ourselves from the group. For me that was so, so, absolutely true. Maybe as I got older, I didn't care so much because I gained more confidence and higher self esteem, but it certainly was true up through, probably my sophomore year in high school. I did not want to be singled out or be different - not even in a good way. I never wanted to lead drills. I never wanted to be first in line. I would rather see some others go through the drill less than perfect before having to do it myself in front of everyone. I never wanted to stand out skill wise above the other girls either. Because girls talk - they'll tease or make trouble to the ones that stand out. That's just how girls are. Which is why my daughter surprises me because she is the total opposite of how I was. She's only 9 and she doesn't care - she wants to always be in the front of the line. Whether she knows the drill or not, whether she can do the drill or not, she wants to try it first. Even though there have been times when she messed up going first in front of everyone else in the group, that hasn't discouraged her from racing to the front of any line she's in. If you're a guy, maybe that's not so strange, but it's surprising for me to see because I was not like that, especially at that age.
But luckily, as I got older, like I said, it didn't matter to me as much. Probably because at that point, not many people would really say anything. If my teammates talked is wasn't in a spiteful way and I knew that, so it didn't hurt. Since it didn't hurt, I no longer worried about being different. I had fun being who I was and being the best I could be at it. This wasn't only in softball but in other areas too. Where some people go through lots of peer pressure to drink and do other things they shouldn't - I never had to deal with that. No one really tried to pressure me into doing anything. I'm not exactly sure why that is, it just never happened. I'm not saying that I was never asked to drink or do any of those things, but simply once I declined, that was the end of it.
But I don't know that that happens for all young ladies. Maybe some of them live through their entire high school years having spiteful things said about them. Some of them are under much more pressure from peers than I ever was. If that's the case, they may never get out of that zone of trying to fit in.
posted by Stacie | 5:57 AM
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