This semester, I've been struggling a lot with just being a player and not letting my captain-minded thoughts get in the way of my role on the team. I share many of my ideas with some of the leadership as well as some of the other veterans who are looking for solutions. I really pride myself on being able to not only point out what is going wrong and what needs to change, but actually offering concrete solutions to specific situations that arise. Oftentimes, I find that it's not my place to give advice, that others don't want to hear it, and that what I'm proposing will not always be able to be effectively and quickly implemented. But, I have a lot of faith in the potential of teams and individuals to be able to accomplish a lot - and I have high expectations. I give people the benefit of the doubt and more often than I not, I err on the fact that my team CAN: CAN learn a new defense, CAN handle adaptations on the fly, CAN run 2 more sprints, CAN devote 2 more hours a week to ultimate, CAN change their dump cuts this late in the season if they need to change. By outlining some of my tried and true methods of effective captaining, hopefully I can put some of my thoughts out there in order to help other captains and teams supplement their own styles with some new ideas and change more of those "CAN"s into accomplishments. (I would love to hear back from others about their tools, so that I can make my repertoire more complete! Really, I would love to write an entire guidebook on how to be an effective captain comprised of the best advice from lots of captains around the country. Maybe when I'm old and rich and playing ultimate in women's masters and getting paid for it (a girl can dream), I'll do it).
These tools are in no way exhaustive. You can't just use them and expect big results. You can't use them without lots of other strategies. And I am in no way attempting to prioritize these particular things over others that may be more fundamental, more obvious, or more relevant to your team. Take this for what it is. Think about your reactions and your experiences. Give me feedback if you feel strongly about something. Use it to think about your own tools or what you would do if you were a captain. Share your ideas with others!
1. Be open, honest, and transparent.
This will give you authority and respect, and it will help to build trust. It will also foster these qualities in your team and hopefully they will be open and honest with you. If the team is seen as a safe place to express opinions and feelings, communication will be better. If you are open about the structure for determining playing time, there will be fewer mumblings amongst small cliques who grumble about playing time, and more players who come to you with "so I know that playing time is decided this way, but I feel like I'm not receiving my due because of X, Y, and Z." Communication. Communication. Communication.
2. Explain WHY.
As a captain, you have to make hard decisions that are not necessarily what the team thinks they want (sprints after practice? probably only a few people on your team will do this voluntarily...). If you explain why you're making these decisions and what the purpose of them is, then players will be able to recognize that you are not arbitrarily making unpopular decisions. There is a reason - and that reason is important. This also helps with building a system that players will buy into (#8, below).
3. Utilize the skills of your veterans.
For example, when I played during undergrad, I was almost purely a handler. The only time I ever cut was as the first out of the stack or as an iso in the lane. I understood cutting on a theoretical level, and I understood it from the perspective of a handler. Clearly my authority on the subject was somewhat tempered by the fact that I just could not be an example. I was constantly going to one of our best/most experienced cutters (best friend and personal life hero, Lindsey "Screech" Cross) and discussing someone's cutting problems with her, and then enlisting her to be both of our voices when speaking to that player. For one, she carried more authority than I did in that area. Secondly, she was just plain better at helping someone understand the nuances of cutting. And thirdly, she had examples and demonstration skills that I did not. She was a huge resource for me and the rest of the team, and I definitely could not have achieved many of the things that I did as a captain without her and other veterans stepping up to the plate.
4. Be serious...and a little bit ridiculous.
It's important to show the whole team that you have a game face, that you take things seriously, that everything is not fun and games, that you are willing to put in the time and the work. But that doesn't mean that you can't temper that attitude with a side of you that knows how to be funny, play games, and be outright ridiculous (always, of course, in the appropriate situation).
5. Learn how to read your team. If you can't, seek out who can and listen to them.
I cannot emphasize how incredibly important this is. Gage where people are coming from and what they need. Maybe they need to run sprints for 20 minutes, and maybe they just need to be able to go home from practice 20 minutes early. Decisions regarding the team are just as much about general strategy as they are about what your team needs right then and what is going to bring about the desired result. If you can't read how the team is feeling, then find a few people that can - maybe a rookie who is aware of how all of the rookies are feeling about time commitment and playing time, and a veteran who has insight into how tired the team is getting of early morning practices. And then actually listen to them and use what they say in order to cater to your team's needs.
6. Address difficult situations.
This goes hand in hand with explaining why. Discontent is bred by confusion and a lack of trust, so don't ignore awkward conversations or decisions that might not be popular. Address them with individuals and the team and you will command more respect and happier players, even when the decisions happen to be unpopular.
7. Think about the Little Things.
See previous post.
8. Convince everyone to buy into the system.
I think this is far and away the most important thing you can do as a captain. If you can do this effectively, then the rest of your job is relatively easy. If everyone understands the system, and believes in it, then you will have a content, hard-working team. Part of this is every person understanding what her role on the team is and how to go about filling that role. If she understands how she fits into the team and why she is important, then she will probably not need to complain about playing time, sprints, or mandatory conditioning. In addition, if players trust the overall structure of the team and the decisions made by the coaches and captains, they will be more willing to give their all to something new. For example, if you change up the default cutting structure in your ho stack, you may have a few skeptics; but if all of the cutters understand why you're making changes and what the intended result is, they will probably dive head first into working as hard as they can to make this new offense work. Accordingly, the chances for a successful transition increase. The joy of this tool is that it works no matter what system you have as long as you can articulate what that system is and how you're going to achieve its goals as a team.
