Whew! That was a rough last few minutes to the game tonight.
No, I don't remember that ladie's name- only that she is a graduate of 1998 and was disappointed in our performance compared to cheer squads back when she was in school. I'm sorry that you had to endure that kind of negativity, especially on your special Homecoming night. I also apologize if, like Cammey, you felt like I didn't defend you adamantly enough. In 17 years of coaching I've never experienced anything quite like that, although coaches of other sports have to endure plenty of heckling and/or criticism all the time.
I want you to know that I told her that I'm very proud of all of you, especially considering how only 2 of you have a lot of experience cheering in hs and how hard it's been to get together to practice. I also told her that I believe in positively encouraging you and that it wasn't right to berate you or ridicule you.
Having said that, I'm the one who's ultimately responsible if we need to have more pride. Plenty of cheerleaders have com plained over the years that I'm not enough of a "hard-ass." I'm not the highly structured, strict, letter-of-the-law, organized, stickler for the rules. I'm not rigorous enough and my expectations aren't high enough.
My personality and therefore coaching style, as you've probably noticed, is to seek harmony and try to nurture and build people up. If anything I'm probably too patient and flexible. I believe that my main role as your coach is as a mentor. Unfortunately, this means that don't always push you hard enough.
But I respect that you're smart enough to recognize what needs to get done and motivated enough to want to do it. I've seen all of you do amazing things, work incredibly hard, and I know how brave each and every one of you is. It's not easy to get in front of your peers, let alone the entire crowd week after week.
That's why I want to remind you of something that I've written before. Please keep reading, no matter how boring it is to read me. And try to take this to heart-
“You can't let praise or criticism get to you. It's a weakness to get caught up in either one.”~John Wooden
listen to the criticism or suggestion carefully, don't take it so personally that it ruins your life, but don't throw the baby out with the bathwater, consider if and how you can use it to improve- even if you don't have a lot of respect for the source or you know that they meant it to be mean. ANY criticism can become corrective-criticism if you take it to your brain and not your heart.
Being a cheerleader means being under a microscope, on display, on stage. It's not about you, it's about raising spirit and leading the crowd to make noise for the teams- but sometimes it feels like everybody's a critic. You're going to need to learn how to take it, but more importantly, 1. take it in stride, and 2. be willing to take it and do something with it if/when it can actually help.
Remember, have your ego let it go, but use your brain to pick through what you can use to improve.
When you're really feeling bruised and sensitive and the criticism is hard to take, remember Dr. Seuss's sage advice, "Those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind."
So shake it off, but learn from it. We need to be louder and prouder.
We do need to average at least 8 cheers per quarter, so all of you (not just Cammey & Kaitlyn) just start up lots of cheers. You want to lead, not just follow. A thermometer responds to the climate, thermometers respond to the action of the game or the mood of the crowd. A thermostat affects the climate, keeps the energy up and the attitude positive even when we're losing. Thermostats keep cheering often, even when the crowd doesn't join in.
You can do this- I've seen you do it. I know it isn't easy, but like I said- I not only know you can do it, I've watched you all do amazing things in and out of school.
Next week you cheer at my hometown. I know you'll make me proud. Because you already have.
People who rail on others in anger and indignation only think they know about pride, but really they're trying to make up for their own insecurities. All of you are better than that. That's why I know you'll get past tonight and stay positive.
Remember:
“You can't let praise or criticism get to you. It's a weakness to get caught up in either one.”~John Wooden (That's poise)
and "Those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind."~Dr. Seuss (That's team spirit)
Poor sportsmanship includes negative comments about the teams. This alumna also complained about there not being a band during the second half. What I've seen is 5 band directors in the last 10 years. Personally, I think that the new band director this year has done a remarkable job in just 6 weeks to make our band sound incredible. In the 10 years I've been here, the band has never stayed past half time.
We lost tonight by at least 2 touchdowns. I wondered why this lady didn't head on over to the sideline and lay into the football coaches for how the boys were playing.
But she's not the only one who's so negative. Rumor has it that some of the 2010 and 2009 graduates have complained that "8-man's not REAL football."
When my wife and I taught at Los Angeles Lutheran High, there were graduates from when LHS was in Burbank who didn't accept the campus in Sylmar and felt betrayed that the school had moved. Never mind the fact that the school couldn't afford the massive debts it incurred by staying in Burbank. No doubt there were some alumni who resented that it left Inglewood to move to Burbank.
Change is never easy. The school is different. Times are different. Kids are different. Parents and the community are different.
When I first moved back to Iowa, people in Charter Oak worried for me because I was going to work in Dunlap. It had a rough reputation for drugs and fighting. Come to find out it was plagued with problems that made it look like a soap opera from the administration, to teachers and coaches, on down to students.
The Boyer Valley I work at today is a very different place. It's a place where the administrators are working hard to improve learning and test scores, a place where teachers and coaches genuinely care about the well being of their students, a place where parents and the community are actively engaged and involved with the school.
Yeah, 20 years ago the cheer squads competed at the state championships, but between that coach and me there were something like 5 coaches in 4 years. No, I don't demand enough out of my cheerleaders, but I support them, listen to them, worry about them, and try to steer them in the right direction.
Things change. Things don't always live up to our ideals, but that's no reason to turn on your old school with reproach. Schools, like countries, states, or individuals for that matter, grow and evolve, make mistakes and have different strengths and weaknesses. We have to allow for that.
This Alumna needs to learn how to be true to her school instead of attacking it.
