I have been sitting on this article for months. To be honest it has been chewing at me the whole time. I loved it from the jump but wanted to wait to share it until I felt it would have the most impact. With spring football practices starting, I think now is a good time.

Coaches often say they will learn from anyone, anywhere, so I find it brilliant when inspiration strikes from unexpected places. I actually learned this tool from the USA Fencing Team. Exposure to other sports and National Governing Bodies is one of the best parts of my job. The honest debrief is a tool for coaches to use, an exercise to do with players and a productive way to debrief post practice. 

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In my opinion, there is no better single tool for developing both investment and caring in your teammates plus performance development and individual skills.

Here is how the exercise works. At the end of practice, you block five minutes for players to work with, share and learn from each other. You ask each player to be completely honest with themselves, to strive to get better – no fake tough guys stuff. Each player will think of a play where they got beat that day in practice. It could have been a play within a team period or a drill such as one-on-one pass rush or coverage. When did a teammate beat you? Find the player that beat you on that play and ask the following questions:

1. From an opponent’s eyes, how did you beat me?
2. What did you see from me?
3. What did you do?
4. Why did it work?

Here is the key. You tell the player being asked the questions to also be honest as there are no secrets on our team. It’s about getting better. Tell them you want the explanation to be so good that they will not be able to win using the same move/technique/fake tomorrow.  Teach your teammates.

To paint a picture, imagine a defensive back and wide receiver going over a route. What the WR did, how the DB reacted and what option that opened for the receiver leading to a completion.

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Think of an offensive linemen and defensive end discussing how a sack occurred and what could have been done to stop it. Imagine the players teaching each other and walking through dynamic situations and the little things that make the difference. Identifying each other’s strengths and weakness as teammates fosters greater learning and team building. Give players a bit of ownership in their development through learning and the team’s development through teaching.

The world is not all sunshine, rainbows and unicorns so players might need some guidance on being vulnerable, on asking for help or on being open. Some may want to hide their secrets while some may value a position battle over helping teammates. There are no silver bullets, but with the correct leadership and the right environment, this is an incredibly powerful tool to help athletes get better by learning what went wrong and how they can improve.

It’s also a huge team builder when the members of the team begin to take pride in helping their peers reach their full potential.

Like all tricks and tools, I often go over these early with USA Football Master Trainers and ask them to test with their teams. This one has got great reviews, so I hope it can help you and I look forward to hearing from coaches that implement the honest debrief within their teams this spring.

Photo Courtesy: The Associated Press