On this special episode of the podcast, Mike sits down with his younger brother Chris Quintas who is an incredible athlete, coach, and teacher to talk about all things coaching and the best practices for working with Gen Z athletes. Coach Chris Quintas is the head baseball of the Sun Valley Vangaurds and defensive assistant football coach at Sun Valley high school, as well as a high school math teacher.

Coach Chris focuses first and foremost on creating a community environment based on showing his players that he cares about them, not just on the field, but in life.

Coach Chris has all his players and students take Myers-Briggs personality tests so they can better understand themselves and their teammates. There are benefits to being able to put students in groups with others with different personality types.

He also puts a strong emphasis on building leadership skills in every aspect of life through leadership meetings with his athletes. Goes through each of the chapters in The Team Captain's Leadership Manual: The Complete Guide by Jeff Jansen. There are about 50 evaluation points that cover both vocal and exemplary leadership.

“You are a leader somewhere in your life”

You may not be the leader on the field, but you can learn to be a better leader in the classroom, in your home, or in your community. The skills are about so much more than the four years of playing high school sports, they will carry on into all aspects of your life.

Both Mike and Chris put a strong emphasis on leading by example and believe in “never tell someone to do something I wouldn’t or am not doing”

Seeking instant gratification is often seen as a flaw of Gen Z, but if coaches and teachers can better understand how to work with Gen Z students in a way that feels right to them, you’ll team will be better for it.

The number one mistake coaches make with Gen Z is publically embarrassing the athletes and failing to make amends. Publically humiliating a student or yelling at the athlete in front of the whole team is not going to be an effective way to coach, it will only lead to the athlete disconnecting and losing respect for the coach.

The best approach is focusing on what the team is doing well and highlighting athletes that are setting an example for the rest of the team. Be their biggest fans and biggest source of encouragement.

“Teachers are coaches, coaches are teachers”

Gen Z athletes have a deep fear of failure, so normalizing failure and encouraging them through the tough moments is absolutely necessary.

Millennial coaches need to remember that the end goal is developing the athletes as people and creating a stronger community. It’s not all about wins and loses.

Find people with skills different from your own and find people who are really going to care. The most important traits to look for are that they are hardworking, forward-thinking and community-oriented.

In order to find the best additions, networking with other coaches will be essential.

The Team Captain's Leadership Manual: The Complete Guide by Jeff Jansen

Sport Psychology for Coaches

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