People, Participation, Progression, Performance in Hockey
How to change your club/organization model
3 Key Points:
Here are five practical steps any coach, parent, or sports leader can take immediately:
Words shape how we think and act.
Pathway language: Talent, pathway, development, potential, elite, selection, testing, standards.
Participation language: Experience, enjoyment, connection, growth, opportunity, inclusion, challenge, discovery.
A coach I worked with stopped using the word “training” and started using “practice.” He stopped talking about “drills” and started talking about “challenges.” This subtle shift changed how his players approached each session.
Next Session: Count how many times you use pathway language. Consciously replace it with SEM language.
Take your next practice session and completely redesign it around the question: “How can I make this an extraordinary experience?”
What about adding elements of choice, social interaction, challenge, and fun to her standard workout. Instead of prescribing every detail, she created opportunities for players to make choices within parameters.
The result? Energy levels soared. Attendance improved. Performance improved too—not because because engagement was higher.
Next Session: Identify one aspect of your next practice that you can transform from a program into an experience.
At your next practice, make a conscious effort to connect with each participant before you start coaching them.
Try this simple ritual: He greeted each player individually as they came onto the pitch, making direct eye contact and asking one question about their life outside hockey.
“It takes me five minutes,” he said, “but it completely changes the quality of the two hours that follow.”
Next Session: Arrive early and spend the first five minutes connecting with participants on a personal level before shifting to coaching.
Deliberately design one element of your next practice that has no performance purpose—its only goal is to create joy.
I often end every practice with what a “Celebration goals”—players can score any way they want (Push, hit, reverse stick, slap etc) and everyone cheers regardless of outcome.
Next Session: Plan one element in your next practice purely for enjoyment and connection.
Pathway: “Who has potential? Who shows talent?”
Participation: “Who’s having a great experience? Who’s developing a love for this activity?”
A rugby administrator transformed his club by changing the questions they asked in coach evaluations from performance-focused to experience-focused. Instead of “How many players advanced to representative teams?” they asked “How many players returned next season?”
Next Session: Change your evaluation questions from performance outcomes to experience quality.
All these actions require is a shift in mindset and approach.
You will be amazed at the ripple effects generated from these small changes.
So in summary:
