10,000 Hours or Ten Years of Deliberate Practice

               I posted the question on my facebook if 10,000 hours of deliberate practice made an expert or a master. Out of the votes I got the results broke down to 63% saying no. We can debate the correct answer for years but to me, based on my research, this was the correct answer. Let's face many parents, coaches, and players are great to throw the phrase out, "10,000 hours of practice makes perfect." This is based on the research based on Ericsson (1994) and Gladwell (2008) where both of these physiologists did research on experts in music, chess, and sport to figure out what made an expert. Their studies found that all of the greats had these 10,000 hours of deliberate practice. Deliberate practice is the key to mastery however it isn't the only factor in making someone great. The poling results from facebook gave me 63% agreeing that 10,000 hours doesn't make a master. That 37% that is completes the 100% is what I believe is the amount of natural talent an athlete needs for the sport he or she wants to be a master in. Nature plays a larger role in being elite then most people want to believe. Remember we are talking masters and elite players here. Deliberate practice makes up the rest of the athlete to be elite. Deliberate practice isn't just practicing in your back yard. This style of practice is defined as:

Deliberate practice refers to a special type of practice that is purposeful and systematic. While regular practice might include mindless repetitions, deliberate practice requires focused attention and is conducted with the specific goal of improving performance. (Ericsson et al., n.d.).

            Deliberate practice is the key part here. If an athlete isn't doing deliberate practice then he or she most likely isn't getting better. As a coach, it is our job to make sure the athletes are getting pushed to the limit in deliberate practice. Knowing how to set up a strong practice that is based in excellence and pushing the athletes to be the best. As parents, it is your job to select programs that have smart talented coaches that are going to push your athlete in deliberate practice. Parents it is your job to select a job that isn't just pretending to be a coach and just filling space. Coaching education is important and is easy to access. Allowing a coach to coach your athlete that is just breathing body (most likely a parent wanting to be a coach) is not acceptable. Demand coaching education from your coaches. Get what you pay for. After all, practice isn't enough. It needs to be deliberate practice and if it isn't then the athlete is messing out.

Question: Why so many clubs?

When I was in high school (2002-2006) there was only a handful of clubs for travel volleyball in Western NC. If I didn't go in Charlotte the choices were only three clubs. I had to drive 30-45 minutes to get to these clubs. No club had their own building. They used high school gyms or church gyms which may be further away then 45 minutes. Now there is 30-45 clubs with in a hour drive for volleyball clubs. Baseball, softball, and basketball are have more in the area than volleyball (though volleyball is becoming a large sport in NC).  So what happened in 12 years? Why is there more travel teams or clubs then McDonald's in towns? Is there a need for so many clubs? Are there that many players needing a place to play? Are there that many outstanding coaches who need a place to coach? Let's look at these questions together and hear me out here. 

1. What happened in 12 years. Population change is important factor. There are more players to play. With that comes big business. There is a lot of money to be made in club / travel sports and charlatans want to cash in on this. 

2.  More teams then McDonald's in a town. Pure pettiness. That is why small towns have two or more club teams. Look at the roots of the clubs starts. Most start with a parent being mad their child didn't make the club or travel team they wanted to make or the parent got mad at the coaches for not making their daughter a super star even though the player was never at practice or just plain out sucked.  The parents then go start there on club or team. 

3. Is there a need for so many clubs? No. There is no need for this. In my area alone there is a watering down of talent. Very few clubs will be able to compete for a USAV or AAU national title because teams don't stay together. There have been some that have won recently but the point is how many more teams could go on to win high level titles. We are to watered down.

4. Are there that many players needing a place to play? The decline of high school sports have left athletes who want to get better without much support in the school system.  Who wants to waste time with a coach who is a math teacher and the school begged him or her to coach because they signed up for coed volleyball in college (just using volleyball as the example) or played in middle school. High school programs overall are starving players of the team spirit and the sport. Not all of these programs do this but most. Players need a place to be a family and grow in a sport.

5. Coaches needing a place to coach. No. There is not that many outstanding coaches who need a place to coach. In fact, I believe there needs to be a dramatic scaling back of coaches and more coaching education. Look at the travel teams or the clubs. The coaches are parents or the young adults children of who coaches in the club. Do they know how to coach? No. Do they know how to player develop? No. When I attend tournaments I look around at the clubs there and look at the coaches. Do that next time you go to an event. Look at the coaches and watch them. Do you think these coaches are outstanding? I bet you will see my point. 

Should there be higher education for coaches at the youth level?

Should club or travel team coaches have higher education? Often times in travel or club volleyball, coaches are chosen based off of playing experiences or past coaching experience. This can range from playing at the highest level in the USA which would be playing on the national team or international play to only playing in middle school. Most commonly coaches have played in high school. Coaching experience ranges from coaching in NCAA to coaching recreational team for the local boosters club. According to the USA Today article by Jason Smith (2017), Paying to Play: How Much Do Club Sports Cost?, travel or club volleyball can cost upwards of $8000-$10,00.00 a year for the elite teams. These are teams that do national tournaments and do travel out of the state a lot. To look at an average team. Not the elite top teams nor the less competitive teams but at a team that is ranked middle of the road so to speak.  The cost is between $3000-$6000.00 a season. 

Should club or travel team coaches have higher education? A normal club volleyball season runs for 6 months. These 6 months are filled with tournaments and practices. The article by Smith (2017) adds that most parents (40% of them) believe that their child will get a college scholarship that will pay for half of the students tuition. With these numbers wouldn't it serve to reason that higher coaching education should be required to coach club or travel teams? Parents are paying coaches to equip their child with skills to get them money for being an athlete and not only an athlete but a top athlete at that. There are many factors that play a role in an athletes ability to on a college roster. DNA makes up most of the factors (tall, explosive quickness, self-motivated, etc,) however, coaching and skills make up the rest. 

Club or travel coaches should have higher education. The reason is you get what you pay for. Does education make a coach good or bad? That is based on the person who is the coach; What education does is take a good coach and prepare him or her to be a better coach. A coach who understands methods of coaching past X's and O's. Knowing the game is highly important to teaching an athlete how to play but what about rest and recovery methods or off-season workout plans that are sport specific? There is more to volleyball and being an athlete than just sort of knowing how to play the game. There is more to coaching than being willing. Parents should call for higher education among club and travel coaches. Parents should get their moneys worth.  

http://usatodayhss.com/2017/paying-to-play-how-much-do-club-sports-cost