No doubt – the BEST thing about sports, other than the thrill of victory, is being a part of a team. There’s nothing quite like sharing common goals and memories with your teammates.
Just by playing together every day teammates are able to form bonds, but even if your team practices, eats, lives and breathes with each other every day, it’s sometimes hard to get everyone on the same page, right?
I’ve played on teams where everyone is like family and we would each move the Earth to help the others and I’ve played on a team that was divided, cliquey and cutthroat.
Looking back I can’t help but notice that the bonded teams I played on won championships while the divided team went 3-31 for the season. Coincidence? I don’t think so.
Team bonding can happen naturally with the right mix of people, but sometimes the bonds need a little bit of nurturing….
You can find more about how to bond your team, here:
Here are some suggestions to keep the season (and off
season) fun for the team while forming bonds that will resonate in everyday life and on the court…
1. Kick off the season together.
When I played in college our coach started each season with a camping trip. He loaded all 12 of us into a van and took us to a local camp. We spent the entire weekend with no phones, TV or radios.
Since every year there were new players, it was like a crash course of getting to know each other. We did team building drills like trust falls and ropes courses and charades as well as grueling conditioning and sand court practices.
2. Watch volleyball training videos
There’s one thing that the team has in common, its volleyball… So why not get some snacks and forgo a training session to watch a few volleyball training videos or maybe a few of your own games that you’ve filmed.
Its a great bonding and training at the same time!
BTW: Volleyball Magic has over 4 hours of video training with international coaches teaching teams just like yours.
I have four more tips to help you with team bonding, but that’s for the next email. Look forward to it! :-)
Talk soon,
