In my last post, I discussed the significant role that a captain plays. In this post, I will cover how to develop your captain into a transformational leader. This process is ongoing, but once you have your first captain become a transformational leader, other players will follow suit and it will be easier to teach throughout your time at your program.

Step 1: Inspire a Shared Vision

In this activity with your captain(s), have them think about all of the past coaches, parents, and teachers who have had an impact on their life. Then ask them the following prompt: “What do all of those leaders have in common?”

This will allow your captain(s) to consider what type of leader they would like to aspire to be. When captains reflect on who they want to be, they often pay closer attention to how they interact with their teammates because they want to be perceived as a leader like the one who inspired them. In addition to this activity, ask them a few steps that would allow them to be like their chosen leader. Remind them that they don’t have to be that leader, but rather how they might be able to make people feel the way they feel around their favorite leader. This reflection will then help them think about exercises they can do to create the environment they want.

Step 2: Challenge the Process

In this activity, have the captains describe what they learned when they made a mistake. For example, the prompt could be “How did it make you feel? What lessons did you learn?” The purpose of this activity is to consider mistakes as a learning experience. This will help the captains create an environment of development because they will start to treat their teammates’ mistakes as a learning process rather than something to be upset about. This can help reinforce your captain(s)’ ability to influence your players in a positive way. No one wants to play scared, so why create an environment where that could happen? This will allow your team to play courageously and without fear of mistakes.

Step 3: Encourage the Heart

In this activity, have the captain(s) think about different awards and who won them. Then have them list the leaders who have influenced them in their life. It is likely that your captain(s) will be able to list many more leaders in their life than award winners. This will change the perspective on who can be leaders and how much impact they can have on other people. Once they start thinking that anyone can be a leader, it will be easier for them to step up and have a greater role in your program. This should not take away from your leadership, but rather help influence the rest of your program rather than just a select few.

These activities should take around 20 minutes to complete. I suggest doing something like this once a week after practice to check in on the team and develop your captains. While it is hard work, once it is established, it will become easier to implement into your culture.

Take your program to a higher level!