Posts

Coach Interview: Melissa McGhee

Melissa McGhee a native of Toledo, Ohio is a graduate of The Ohio State University where she obtained a B.A. in Business Administration. She is the current Head Coach of The Ohio State University Dance Team. Under her direction, the team has…
generation z

Generation Z: Coaching Today’s Athletes

There is no denying that the current generation of athletes is different. Not necessarily good or bad, but they are different. There are some things to consider this season when coaching Generation Z: the advantages, the challenges, and strategies…
jodi maxfield

Coach Interview: Jodi Maxfield

30 years as the coach of the BYU Cougarettes Tell me about your background I grew up dancing, I always had a love for dance. I’m quite a bit older than a lot of the coaches who are coaching now, so there weren’t a lot of opportunities…
dance team

How to Measure Success as a Dance Coach

Whenever a team achieves competitive success, we see lots of social media posts, public praise, and gratitude. And rightfully so. When a team comes out on top of the rankings the coach is usually a big reason why. We should celebrate and congratulate…

Coach Interview: Keri "Trim" Atchison

Coach Trim agreed to sit down and talk with me about her coaching philosophy, how she cleans routines, handles coaching decisions and so much more. Keri is a talented coach with a resume that speaks for itself. If you're not familiar with Coach…
productivity

The 5 Secrets of Remarkably Productive Dance Coaches

I don’t know a single coach who has coaching as his or her ONLY job. Many are teachers, have a traditional 9-5, work more than one job, and many of us are raising their own little ones at home by day and coaching by night (often with littles…

Coaching Advice Inspired By My Darkest Moments

Dear dance coaches, Sometimes we all need a little pick-me-up and reassurance that we’re on the right track. We all have those dark days where it feels like we've failed. Like we aren't meant to do this after all. Over my years of coaching,…
judge

3 Quick Things To Do When A Judge Gives You Difficult Feedback

The day of a competition is filled it excitement, anticipation, and probably some stress too. But for many coaches, the stress doesn’t end at the award ceremony. Regardless of the outcome, many of us pour over the judges feedback sheets with…
positive reinforcement

The Special Power of Positive Reinforcement

Whenever I discuss the negative side to punishment, and why you should always avoid physical punishment I get questions about what to do instead. The focus is usually on the side of consequences. Coaches want to know, how do I get them to stop…

Tough Love: Why it's so hard to be hard on them but you need to do it

A few years ago, we were just days away from our tryouts, which includes tryouts for captains, and I was dreading it. Not because of the actual tryout process, but because I had one particular girl trying out for captain and I knew she needed…