Watch the video above and talk about it with a group or mentor. Learn more.

Coaches can use the free mentoring resources at FLEXTALK.org to build a better team both on and off the field.

Want to build a better team both on and off the court or field? Here are five easy steps to get started.

Step #1: Establish Your First Circle

These are the handful of coaches and leaders that you will mentor. Here’s the idea: you mentor them with our simple online tools, and soon they will mentor others on the team. You’ll create a simple mentor tree for your entire organization, and you’ll model how mentoring works.

Step #2: Get Clarity on Team Fundamentals

Take your first circle through our Team Fundamentals series, working through mission, vision and values to make sure you’re all on the same page. This will take a few weeks or a leadership retreat, but it’s well worth the effort in laying a foundation for a healthy team.

Step #3: Establish Your Mentoring Tree

This is where your “first circle” brainstorms with you, making sure that everyone on the team has a mentor moving forward. Eventually, everyone will have the opportunity to become a mentor – but before they can lead they must follow.

Step #4: Give Clarity on Team Fundamentals

You’ve already completed the series with your “first circle” of mentors, and now they can bring their athletes through it to make sure everyone is on the same page.

Step #5: Keep Talking Every Week

Great teams have a conversational culture. Make a commitment to covering more topics with your first circle, and then make sure that they cover topics regularly in their mentoring relationships. Assign topics from our library or let them choose on their own. To cover topics specific to your team, send out a quick memo or video with your own discussion questions.

A mentoring culture will radically affect your team, both on and off the field. If you commit to the process, you’ll turn athletes into leaders as you challenge everyone to become a mentor.

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Key Points:

  • Step #1: Establish your first circle.
  • Step #2: Get clarity on team fundamentals.
  • Step #3: Establish your mentoring tree.
  • Step #4: Give clarity on team fundamentals.
  • Step #5: Keep talking every week.

Quote This:

Great leaders don’t just have clarity. They have a system for giving clarity. -Bryan Dwyer

See Also: Athletes, Coaching, Teams

Talk About It
  1. What is your initial reaction to this topic? What jumped out at you?
  2. Who is in your “first circle”? Are they willing to follow your lead? Are they willing to mentor others?
  3. What are some topics your team would benefit from talking about? In what ways would they benefit?
  4. Which of your athletes are ready to become mentors? Which ones are not yet ready? How do you make this distinction?
  5. How will a regular mentoring program grow your athletes? How will it affect the morale of the team? Explain.
  6. Write a personal action step based on this conversation.