Recently I attended the Coaching Masterclass event held in Dublin City University. Coaching itself is not something I wish to do as a profession but the premise behind good quality coaching can help with dealing with patients and receiving the best quality effort from them.

Often coaches, therapists and others, who would be perceived to be in a position of authority and care, can fail to communicate to the people that come to them.  As professionals in our fields we often talk to athletes or patients and tell them what to do. Not always necessarily listening to their own views and difficulties on the matter. We often lose ourselves in the idea that we know best and that doggedly persevering through any form of set back or failure without making changes will work.

This is of course is a selfish ideal that we can all fall in to. Thinking we know best and that if others just listen to you and do as you say, well then of course they will improve. Sadly this is not true for most. We have seen now for years that not every form of learning will suit each person, “One size fits all” does not always apply.  Within the event better ways to communicate and understand athletes as well as people in general were presented by coaches, sports scientists, sports psychologists and experts of human behavior.

We sometimes act like most people will improve at a steady and homogeneous rate. This is often a trap that health care providers fall in to with set backs and slow progress stumping many of us purely because “Well why wouldn’t it be working”.  Its the exact same way in which we look at performance. We often look at the potential in individuals and we can see where they could end up, but just as many of the people speaking at the event made reference to, you can have the greatest car in the world but it will only drive as well as the person behind the wheel.  Simple example but it holds true to anyone trying to come back from injury or improve their performance. Your body has all the capability in the world, but the effort you put into it and the decisions you make are what determines the outcome.

We normally see this in private when a person can perform to a high standard with ques and a presence to guide them step by step. Adversely we see them falter and become unsure in an open environment with unknowns and the fear of return to play. As such we need to be able to communicate with our athletes/patients in a manner that allows them to grow as an individual with the necessary skills to not only return to general activity but excel in it. These individuals must not be afraid of stumbles and failures as they will be what allows them to grow.

We all want those we aid to grow more and more but each individual is different and cannot always fall under broad methods of training or learning. We cannot merely tell them what to do at every given period. We need to instill in them to ability to return from injury and know the way to prevent re-injury. This can be difficult as most people are in a rush and want to be told what they need to do, step by step. Challenging them while aiding their physical return to play may be what is truly necessary in the long run for player health and longevity within a sport. Knowing the ques for the best result and describe where an individual truly both mentally and physically are also necessary.

Performance as well as the rate a person progresses in their rehab is seen as 90% preparation. If we do not adequately challenge people with factors relatable to their sports or general activities and merely cater to their ability to complete abitrary tasks away from a true to life scenario then we are merely setting them up for a fall. Rehab must become something where the patient, those involved with them and ourselves all share a common goal in mind that we all strive to achieve, a “shared mental model”. This system where we strengthen not just a person physically but also mentally is where we make people return and become even better than they were as staying the same in their position means they aren’t getting better. This responsibility given to the individual will hopefully make them try harder and make them more open to try methods on their return to full health and continuous improvement in their performance, be it on the field of in every day life.