Mark Burik (00:00.206)
okay. Did you greet every each person by name when they got to practice? Did you force the players to learn each other's names? That's an important one. Did you force players to learn each other's names? Are you building a community within your club team or adult classes? If you don't have community, you don't have anything. Okay. Did you reward the players with bonus points for utilizing a new skill or play when you went live?
So here's what happens when we introduce new skills, right? We do a drill, we teach our players how to do something. And then when we get to scrimmage, these players think, finally the handcuffs are off. You I don't have to continue doing this or I can play the way that I want. And then the whole idea of the practice of them improving of us working on those drills, you know, it gets eradicated. So as a coach, you need to find drills that when you're going live,
find ways or point systems to reward the new skill or the effort at the new skill that that practice was working on. Questions for when the players arrive or when they're leaving is, did you ask the players a question? Ford is the acronym, I think that's the right word for family, relationships, occupation or school.
and dreams or ambitions. So did you ask them something about their personal life so that you can understand where they're at, where they're going from and develop a more meaningful relationship? Here's a really big one. Did you intentionally limit your talking and demo time? One of my pet peeves and one of the most common things that we see as coaches and coaches who coach coaches is people
who spend too much time talking. I can tell you how to play volleyball for a hundred years, but if you don't ever try to play volleyball, you will still suck at volleyball when you try it for the first time. So you talking at practice is not helping the players. Time yourself, have an assistant coach time you when you're talking.
Mark Burik (02:28.685)
I know that we think we have all of this knowledge inside our brain that has to be put into every player all at once at every practice, but having these long winded pre-practice, post-practice, mid-practice discussions and pausing the entire practice when one person did one technique wrong and the others all have to listen to your story. It's not helping you.
So did you intentionally limit your talking and demo time so that you can get them back into practice quickly and get them playing volleyball quickly? Another one that we do is, did you set specific goals for the team and for individual players? Were you thoughtful enough to choose and remember the things that each of your players are working on?
And did you let them, did you let the team know the goal of your practice and then set goals for them and then set milestones or places where they should be or how they should achieve so that they can know it. Okay. Here's another one that we have is did you incorporate a conditioning element into a portion of the practice? For me, I know that some of my best practices were the ones where I felt
I felt out of breath, you know, like I had physical action. That was always a meaningful part of practice. And I think having some form of conditioning at nearly every practice is important. So for our company, did you incorporate a conditioning element into a portion of the practice? It doesn't mean that they have to sprint every single time that they lose a point or anything like that. It just means, was there an opportunity for them to become faster?
become intentionally more agile, become intentionally, you know, increase their cardiovascular system? Did you create or incorporate a conditioning element into a portion of the practice? And then, lastly, there's a lot more on our coaches report card, but I just want to get through this. Next one is, did you create,
Mark Burik (04:53.315)
or mandate an opportunity for a player or a coach to lead in their power. So if you're a head coach, did you take center stage the entire time and then your assistant coaches just did whatever? If you're a head coach and you don't have any assistant coaches, did you create the opportunity for one of your players to grow, to become a leader?
Now, not everybody, and you should know your team, not everybody is designed to or should get in front of a group and take over a practice. But when I said that word, I said that word intentionally in their power, did you create or mandate an opportunity for a player or coach to lead in their power? Meaning where are they comfortable leading and how are they comfortable leading? Some people like to be in front of the group taking control.
Some people like to get things done. Some people like to be the glue. They enjoy when everybody's laughing or smiling with them. You know, they're part of the rowing team. They're not the coxswain who's yelling, right? So did you give them the opportunity to coach or lead in their power, which is going to make them a better version of themselves? They don't have to assume your role or your style of leadership.
But some way to let them know that they can be leaders how their personality wants to lead. Did you create that opportunity for them? Okay. So that's about a few good things to think about at least when you are considering if your practice was excellent.
whether it was something that you want to recreate or the practices that you thought were awesome in your life. We need to start by just like we start anchoring with our players. In other words, when we're trying to help our players become stronger mentally, we ask them to go back to a time where they were fantastic and when they were awesome and they were successful. And then we have them recreate that mental and physical environment.
Mark Burik (07:15.216)
So like the time when you won a championship and you felt like you were playing invincible, just as a small example, were you smiling? Were you angry? Were you flatlined? Right. We try to recreate their championship version of themselves just by putting in all of the elements that were there, including posture, breathing rate, internal talk. Now from a coach's standpoint, what were the best practices you've ever run or that happened?
for your team, we've got to hunt down the elements that created those awesome practices and those awesome years and those awesome seasons. And then piece by piece, we reverse engineer that awesome practice by inserting the elements that were present in the practices that were awesome in our past. So I hope that makes sense. I know I'm kind of talking in circles sometimes, but you've got to look back to your awesome practices.
to your best seasons and just start writing down the elements that made those happen or were present when those were happening. And then see if you can insert them into the future to intentionally create some fantastic practices and training sessions going forward. Now, for the players who are here in the Completed Coach Academy meeting where this is being recorded, we're going to discuss some of the things that we think
have gone into making practices fantastic for our individual teams. And we'll see if we can start getting them written down. If you're listening on the podcast or on YouTube, cool. If you ever want to check it out and get into our live meeting and have these discussion points with us, then you can just head to betteratbeach.com forward slash coach. And you can become a part of the complete coach Academy, where you get access to the complete beach volleyball training blueprint and our online meetings.
All right, this is Mark with Petra at Peach. Thank you so much. We'll see you on the sand for everybody here.
Mark Burik (09:24.316)
Turn on your cameras, let's get back to business.
Mark Burik (09:35.792)
Okay, cool. So we'll start with John, if you're willing to volunteer a little bit, John. I want to just ask an easy question. Like one thing that you think goes into an awesome practice.
For you? For me. Well, I started off, well, I've been coaching a long time, but I started off in beach just recently. And so I was really trying to use your blueprint, like exact. And what I was finding was that the girls were losing interest quickly because it wasn't quick enough. And so I had to, I had to switch.
I had to switch gears a little bit and become more competitive right away and then break down the skills as we were playing, which takes me back to my, how I coach indoor is doing six on six and then breaking the skills down during the six on six. So ever since I did that, incorporating your drills and some of my own drills.
practices became a lot more exciting, a lot more competitive. yeah, so we do a lot of competing and trying to keep as many girls active as possible all of the time. I don't like girls sitting on the side shagging balls. It's not fun for them. It's not fun for me. Yeah. Okay.
So it sounds like quick to compete is like one your big keys to making an awesome practice. Yes. I love that. I think some of my practices, when you start seeing the energy go down, especially with guys, it just goes, let's just get them competing.
Mark Burik (11:49.524)
Like, let's just throw 100 balls in the air and say, you know, match to 21 and just say free ball, free ball, free ball, free ball. Yeah. Yeah. Lots of watch games, lots of serving a toss, serving a toss, serving a toss, serving a toss. Quick, quick, quick. And the energy usually goes up right away. Great. Cool. Anything else? Anything that you've watched from your coaches?
or you've had assistant coaches or you've seen other practices where you're like, I don't, don't want to do that with my future teams, with my future clubs.
I don't have an assistant coach, so I can't watch an assistant coach yet. I'm working on it. I'm working on it. So if you know somebody that's willing to work for little living rural Virginia, let me know. yeah.
I haven't to be, I'd have to search mine. I'm so concerned about what I'm doing that I don't really worry about other people's. Okay. Matt, have you ever been a part of practice where you got bored or you're like, this is kind of wasting my time and I don't really like it. Yeah, there's a few coaches. I'm not going to say any names out in Hermosa that I really wrestled with their training sessions.
Whether that be too long of lines or you do like two reps and then you're standing in the back of line or you're the one initiating on a box for a while and you're just exhausted. You're just like, I'm hitting over and over and over again. I don't know how much more I can get from just hitting off the box. And so I got a very, I have a very short attention span. And so for me, I'm like, I need something new. Like I have this down, I have this down, I've done it.
Mark Burik (13:54.869)
done my turn, there's always in every drill, there's always that one spot that can be more boring than the others. And for the most part, and so whether that be targeting or initiating, for me, I just feel like there's I need I need to switch up. so whenever I'm part of a big practice that has a lot of people in it, and I'm standing in the back of the line or on the target for too long, I get bored.
And then another one, I was in a practice down in Florida where I'm probably not going to block too often. And it was me, two other defenders, and then one full-time blocker. Uh, and our first 30 minutes was spent on blocking footwork. And so for me, I'm like, ah, I don't think I need this as much as this guy. And so I think as you think about it differently as a coach too, where you're in that practice and you're like,
I don't think I would do this for the first 30 minutes of a practice with three defenders and one blocker. So it just, it throws me for a loop. So I, those are a couple of examples, but I love, man, I love the Brazilian motto of just again, and just you leave, you leave those Brazilian practices just drained. Like you're, you're calling it for a day and
So I did kind of have a good combo of technique. I was working with Megan Bergdorf for a while in Hermosa. so like with how new I was to volleyball, that was intriguing to me. just, I'm figuring out how the body is supposed to work on the volleyball court. And I'm okay with breaking it down with her when we're like two on one, one on one, and she crushed it. And then like, I would go straight from there to her practice with Dan.
And it was just the perfect combo for me because I got the technique from Megan and then I went over to Dan and he was just like, again, again, again. And it was the best way to spend my days. So, but yeah, there were some that I got bored in, not from those two, but from a couple of others. was just like, I could do much more with this time if I was by myself.
Mark Burik (16:18.878)
And it becomes different for everybody, right? Like you also actually know the players that are in your practice and then see if there's a different assistant coach or a way that you can speak differently to different learners so that they can all feel at least appreciated, touched, engaged. And then, you know, there are some people that need the rationalization. Like, like this is why we're doing this and this is why you work. And there's some people that don't care why it works or whatever. They just want to start.
Yeah, yeah, so you also have to like really learn the people around you the people on your team That are doing it. Well Yeah, the talking practices. I hate it. I mean we had Jeff Alzena, right? Jeff Alzena and Mike Dodd at our USA practices and they both got stories upon stories I'm not interested in the stories. I'm interested in like getting
back to the game. at some point, like when Jeff was coaching, and I'm not saying that he's a bad coach, I'm just saying his stories were too long. We would talk in the middle of practice. And then by the time more than 50 % of your practice is doing hip flexor stretches on one knee, like, you've got to pick up a physical like view that says, all right, they're kind of like,
They're not ready to physically engage anymore. But it was just like, okay, I've got to do something with this time. And I was starving to improve. So I just went into full mobility sessions anytime we had a chit chat. And we did the same thing. We relentlessly mocked my high school coach for his super long post-practice meetings where he's like, okay, we had a two hour practice. Now we also spent 20 minutes talking. Like why didn't we spend 20 more minutes playing?
Um, he was great at connecting with players and his practices when he's practicing. They're high rep, they're high rep and always competitive. Um, so he manages to get to like the New York state finals every time. But then the pre and post talks are just like, we could have had 20 more minutes of your brilliantly designed practice. Yeah. Yeah. I, uh, I, I spent my, this past, uh, indoor season coaching with Jake Elliott and his wife.
Mark Burik (18:43.671)
And his wife, do you know anything about his wife? Not much. Okay, so she played indoor at FSU. On a full ride, she played all the way around as a middle. And so she was a baller in indoor. And so now she's, I call them the king and queen of volleyball in Charleston, South Carolina. They're just bosses. But whenever it comes to indoor practice, they're almost complete opposites where like, Adria,
is very big in the technique and like building that, taking time with the same side of the net stuff. And, then Jake is just like, let's just get them playing like high octane. Let's go. So, so like whenever me and Jake would be in a huddle with our JV team, it was always just like, Hey guys, even for like a full minute timeout, Hey guys, lock in, get back out there. And that was it. And so, and then you come into Adrienne's and she's just like, all right, this and this and this and this and that and that.
And it was such a good combo of both. for juniors who were trying to learn the game. And then Jake's just like, let us just hit them on a box. And so it's just so funny to see them go back and forth with it. And then me and Jake would just always look at each other, hey, high octane, high octane. That's good. And it probably represents your styles too, what you would want in a practice.
And often we coach like that and we forget that the way that I learn is unique to me. It's not universal. So me creating this while it's good and it's important that I've actually written stuff down and I'm trying to recreate at least from an experience of standpoint. I also have to recognize that, hey, this isn't where everybody's at and this isn't what everybody needs. You when I started making videos for Better at Beach,
I was like, okay, advanced short ball passing techniques for two on two volleyball. And, you know, we got like hundred or 200 views on YouTube. And then you realize four years into it, dude, we got to make more how to bump videos. how to bump a volleyball is what most people are looking for. like where you're at.
Mark Burik (21:08.082)
is not where the majority of people are at and you have to recognize that and always like either slow yourself down or speed yourself up depending on that. And so the fact that most coaches like try to get all of their knowledge, all of their current knowledge into their players in one practice, know where they're at and what they need and what questions they're asking themselves at that
Right? And don't go way too far beyond that. Or if you decide to, like we did with our Long Beach camp, every time I like started saying, okay, this is where this technique gets. like, guys, I'll tell you it just because I'm here and we're meeting. But like, you can really just like push this out of your mind. So this will just be like a little, you know, theory session, but you're only going to use this when you start getting into the playoffs of open tournaments. And then I would go into this. I was like, so you don't need to know this. This is where it goes. So it's interesting, but, but then like wash it out of your mind.
and let's get back to what we need right now. And yeah, where you're at is not where everybody's at and the faster we can recognize that, the better it is for your coaching, leadership and content production. Especially our JV girls. Especially JV girls. We've got, so Selton is in here and he actually just finished up a camp in New York and after 22 hours he's apparently-
enough volleyball and Nicole, if she's around from you two guys, we've only got like 10 minutes left and I'm not sure if you're listening, Nicole as well, but I just want to hear from you guys experience of volleyball because I you guys both played a lot of volleyball. Things that you can pick out that that created awesome practices or things that were present when you guys were a part of awesome practices.
and then things that were present in practices that you absolutely hated or you felt turned your team or your teammates off.
Mark Burik (23:13.721)
Geez, you're gonna give me a prep before. Never. So let me start with the first part of question. Can you repeat the first part and then I'll go to the second part? Yeah. What's been present in practices that you were a part of where you're like, man, that was an awesome practice? Was there one thing or one part of it where you're like, yeah, that was definitely there when I was in a good practice?
as simple as it may sound, I, kind of talked a little bit about it in terms of the type of people, but reps, just getting a lot of reps, but not just reps, just because, reps that, that have, that have value in what I, what I mean by that is the coach or assistant coach or whatever is giving you information as you're doing the reps. Right. And so
Instead of just doing reps, just to do reps, you're doing reps and then correcting and then doing reps. Right. And so it's kind of training into the right form, I guess. That's something I've always, always appreciated because then it doesn't feel like I'm wasting my time and energy. feels like it's going and it's valued and it's valuable. Okay. If you were to suss out like the differences between, what you would vote for high reps only.
High reps and feedback, feedback. Like, where would you be or what would you error between? More feedback or more reps? More reps. Because I think there's only so much feedback. Because if you have too much feedback, then it just starts to get disoriented. And then you can't focus as much on getting better on one of the feedbacks, right?
So feedback is good, but I definitely hear more on the side of reps of a smaller amount.
Mark Burik (25:15.245)
Cool, okay. What was present at practices that you like hated or reasons or things where you're like rolling your eyes at the coach and like, come on, man, let's get going in one way or another. Exactly what you just said, let's get going. When things take too long, when you're like, everyone's there and maybe they're just.
going with the flow of the rest of the team where the team is slow and so they're slow to kind of get practice going and get moving. I'm like, I'm just wasting time here. Yeah, that's always pretty annoying to me. So I'll probably like, I'll probably try to like go on hit against a wall or I don't know, do something where I'm trying to get myself going instead of just sitting there. Yeah. Cool. Nice, Alton.
Yeah. Nicole, if you're there, I'll give you kind of like three seconds to answer. know sometimes you just listen because you're busy at work. Yeah, I'm here. I do use that podcast a lot. crap. I would say, let's see, things that I really admire. I coach little kids a lot. So a lot of structure is needed. Like when you bring them in.
say like, need you all to stand in a circle and put your hands at your side, or like, just little things like that where you're telling them exactly what you want them to do because I found a lot of little kids have never really been told what's expected at practice. So a lot of structure is really important to me in a practice. And then,
Also, just like the pace of the practice, just making sure it's like age appropriate and something that they can handle. like older kids like to play more, younger kids probably need more like actual practice time. You can't just throw like 12 year olds on the court and tell them to like play six on six usually. So that would be my two like things where I know that coaches are doing a really good job.
Mark Burik (27:35.03)
things that irk me are throwing kids in a drill and then not coaching them. Like just like setting the drill up and chucking balls in. I'm somebody personally who loves a lot of feedback. So I like to provide a lot of feedback and sometimes I think, well, you know, if you're not providing any feedback, I think there's a balance there, but if you're not providing any feedback, why are you getting paid to like coach a parent to probably like look up drills and.
run it and be just as good. So that's probably my biggest pet beef as far as practice does. Thanks, Nicole. Yeah. Yeah. It's a bummer to see people not engage. You know, they're, they're at practice, but you just kind of don't feel their energy. And the thing about that is it can be individual as well. You could feel like you're coaching a ton.
But somebody on your court can feel like they haven't been coached and then they'll, they'll get that same vibe or that same negativity. Like I'm not being coached. And so it's, it's why we focus. And one of the things in our report card that we didn't mention was did at some point you mentioned each player by first name. Like did everybody feel touched or appreciated or seen at your practice? Cause
If they don't or vice versa, if they feel like they don't like the spotlight, like, you kind of take it easy on them? But are you paying attention to each individual and do they know it? if you were an athlete and you ever felt ignored at practice or like you weren't seen, you started losing faith and passion for the game quick. And so finding a way where like, if there's one name or a few names that you don't think you
mention enough now that we're talking about it and today at practice or the next time you are at practice, paying attention to the names that don't typically get all of the noise in your gym or on your beach, then go ahead and start exposing that and start saying them a little bit more often and giving them some more high fives and giving them some more spotlights.
Mark Burik (29:52.561)
Okay, I think that's barring any other questions. We're gonna cut that meeting here and everybody can go start cooking their Thanksgiving feasts a couple days early.
Mark Burik (30:06.468)
Any questions before I hit out?
Mark Burik (30:12.636)
Thanks. Just wanted to say thanks. Sorry, at work in Swamp today, but always good information. I really appreciate it. You're welcome, Megan. Thanks for coming.
Mark Burik (30:24.398)
All right, guys. Toodaloo. Have a great holiday. See you guys. See you next week. Well, I'll see you in two weeks. I will be in the Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, all inclusive. So if you guys want to come, I know that we still got a couple of cancellations. So if you want to come hang out, some people couldn't come. We got some injuries, slate and everything. But if not, catch you on the flip side.
Bye.
