In this episode, Rob welcomes back Mitch Hull for a honest conversation about how to fix youth sports. They explore the root causes of parent conflict, why playing time dominates every sideline conversation, and what coaches and athletic leaders can actually do to shift the culture. From parent meetings to post-game behavior, Mitch shares practical, field-tested advice on how to create transformational environments rooted in purpose—not pressure.

This episode is for anyone who’s tired of the noise around youth sports and ready to do something about it.

• Are parents the disease or the symptom?
• Why every conflict eventually comes down to playing time
• How to run a parent meeting that sets the tone
• Why kids quit—and how coaches and parents unintentionally push them away
• What it means to “coach the experience,” not just the outcome
• Simple tools to humanize the game and build real connection

• Parents judge what they see, and if coaches don’t show value beyond playing time, that’s all parents will care about.
• Playing time is finite—so give parents something infinite to hold onto: their child’s experience, character, and growth.
• We can’t wait for others to fix youth sports. Coaches must lead—early, often, and intentionally.
• Small, consistent moments of connection (thanking officials, affirming opponents, celebrating effort) transform culture more than any policy ever will.
• The best programs teach kids how to respond to adversity—not avoid it.

• Build trust early: share your “why” with parents and athletes
• Train coaches to lead, not just manage
• Normalize mistakes and model healthy response to pressure
• Reinforce values through routines (trash pickup, handshakes, put-ups)

• 🎧 Listen to more episodes: https://beyondcoaching.alitu.com
• 📰 Coaching insights, articles, and tools: https://impactfulcoachingproject.substack.com
• 📚 Books:
• • Coaching and Leading the 21st Century Athlete
• • Athletic Department Leadership and Developing Coaches
• Available now on Amazon.

In this special Best of edition, we revisit some of the most meaningful conversations from August on Beyond Coaching. These highlights capture the real work of coaching—leading people, shaping environments, and creating cultures that last.

• Jason Schmidt on Early Coaching Lessons
• Jason reflects on stepping into a head coaching role at a young age, learning the hard truth that leadership isn’t about the title—it’s about serving athletes where they are.
• Balancing Care and Competitiveness
• Jason unpacks one of coaching’s hardest tensions: building a culture of care while still demanding competitiveness. He explains his 80/20 roster philosophy and how transformation happens when competitiveness and culture coexist.
• Generation Z and Coaching Today
• Jason shares insights on working with Gen Z athletes—why they test everything, how attention spans are shaped by technology, and why intentional systems of care and relational leadership matter more than ever.
• The Messiah Method and Creating Environments
• Rob and Dustin dive into The Messiah Method, discussing why the coach’s primary role is to create an environment where athletes can grow and thrive. They explore how environment becomes culture, why nothing should be left to chance, and what daily habits give programs meaning beyond wins and losses.

• impactfulcoachingproject.com
• impactfulcoachingproject.substack.com

Keep an eye out for the upcoming Impactful Coaching Project Online Coaching Class—a new way to develop as a coach through our proven frameworks, resources, and conversations.

In this episode of the Beyond Coaching podcast, host Rob Ramseyer talks with Jayson Schmidt — a branding consultant for college athletic departments and a former Division II women’s lacrosse head coach — about the realities of leading in today’s sports landscape.

Jayson’s journey took him from corporate marketing into coaching, where he quickly learned that leadership is less about titles and more about intentional relationships. From earning just $5,000 as a part-time assistant to running his own consulting business, Jayson has built his career on understanding people, serving them well, and creating cultures that balance competition with care.

1. Lessons from the Early Coaching Years

Jayson shares what he “didn’t know he didn’t know” when stepping into leadership as a 23-year-old coach. He talks about the difference between thinking you understand servant leadership and truly living it, especially when coaching former teammates.

2. Balancing Relationships and Winning

How do you recruit athletes who not only fit your culture but also bring the competitive edge needed to win? Jayson explains the “80/20 rule” for roster makeup, how to handle strong personalities, and why some of his most meaningful relationships came from players in that 20%.

3. Leading Generation Z

Jayson works daily on recruiting, marketing to, and leading Gen Z student-athletes. He offers insights on what’s similar across generations (youthful skepticism, testing boundaries) and what’s different (shorter attention spans, higher expectations for intentional connection).

4. Building Systems of Care

From setting phone reminders to reach out to athletes, to keeping an open-door policy, to adopting a “double exclamation” text system for urgent needs, Jayson shares practical ways to make players feel seen, valued, and supported.

5. Redefining Toughness in Sports

Drawing from Do Hard Things and his own coaching experience, Jayson breaks down the three pillars of team toughness:

• Psychological safety — an environment where players can mess up without fear of exclusion.
• Opportunities to get better — skilled coaching and intentional development.
• Shared adversity — going through hard things together, on and off the field, and maintaining relationships through them.

• “This isn’t about you. This was never about you.”
• “The moments that create toughness aren’t always on the field; they’re in the hardest moments of life, when people come around you.”

This episode is for:

• Coaches looking to deepen relationships while staying competitive
• Athletic directors seeking cultural alignment in recruiting
• Leaders of Generation Z in athletics, education, or business
• Anyone interested in intentional leadership and team culture

• Connect with Jayson Schmidt: https://www.hellopreseason.com/brandingforathletics
• Book: Who Not How by Dan Sullivan & Dr. Benjamin Hardy
• Learn more about the Impactful Coaching Project: impactfulcoachingproject.substack.com
• Visit us at: impactfulcoachingproject.com
• Subscribe on Substack: impactfulcoachingproject.substack.com

This Best of July episode highlights the most impactful moments from recent conversations on Beyond Coaching. The theme that emerged again and again: congruence. Luke Jones of Reclaimed Today reframes authenticity as the alignment between what we say and how we live—something Gen Z athletes are craving more than ever.

We also revisit core pillars of the Impactful Coaching Project: competence and care. From filtering meaningful content in a noisy world to building real systems of care for your team, this episode offers practical takeaways for any coach committed to leading well.

Presented by:

The Impactful Coaching Project, in partnership with Friends University. We develop coaches who coach the whole person.

For more, visit:

impactfulcoachingproject.com

impactfulcoachingproject.substack.com

In this episode, Rob and Dustin dive into The Messiah Method—a book that explores how Messiah College built one of the most dominant college soccer programs from 2000 to 2010. But this isn’t just about winning. It’s about the why behind the success: building an intentional environment where athletes grow, thrive, and represent something greater than themselves.

Key Themes:

• Environment > Scoreboard – What makes your program worth being part of if you take away the scoreboard? For Messiah, it was all about culture, intentionality, and relationships.
• Culture Is Built, Not Hoped For – Every program has a culture. The question is whether you’re shaping it on purpose. Great programs are intentional about how they do what they do.
• Systems of Care – Tied into the "3 C’s" framework from Rob and Dustin’s work, this episode emphasizes that great environments are supported by systems—particularly systems of care that reinforce team values.
• Relationships Drive Motivation – Their own data shows that teammates and family are the top motivators for student-athletes, not just coaches. Coaches have to build environments where these relationships can flourish.
• The Recruiting Test – If a recruit's parent observed your team for a week, what would they say you value most? That’s your real identity.

Quote of the Episode:

"Take away the scoreboard—what still makes your program worth being part of?"

Coach Reflection Questions:

• What do your daily habits say about your team culture?
• Are you building something that will last beyond one season?
• Do your players live out your values—or just hear about them?

Beyond Coaching is a podcast developed by the Impactful Coaching Project in partnership with Friends University. We help coaches develop the whole person and lead the 21st century athlete with clarity and purpose.

For more resources, articles, and training:

Website: impactfulcoachingproject.com

Substack: impactfulcoachingproject.substack.com

In this episode, we dive into Congruency Coaching for Gen Z Athletes as Rob speaks with Luke Jones, Partnership Liaison for Reclaim Today—a division of Our Daily Bread Ministries focused on engaging millennials and Gen Z. Luke shares valuable insights into the challenges Gen Z faces, including information overload, skepticism towards authority, and their deep craving for authenticity.

Together, they explore how coaches and leaders can engage Gen Z athletes more meaningfully through techniques like reverse coaching, competence, and the power of honest apology. Discover how 'the ministry of presence' can help connect young people with God in ordinary moments, potentially key for both spiritual and identity formation. Key topics include the importance of authenticity, navigating information overload, building trust, and the challenges of mobilizing Gen Z from awareness to action. Listen in to learn how to foster genuine relationships while coaching the whole person in a holistic approach.

Key Topics Covered:

• Why authenticity and congruency matter deeply to Gen Z
• Navigating the information overload: competence vs. laziness
• Reverse coaching: mutual learning between athletes and coaches
• Why Gen Z may be skeptical of authority—but still deeply hungry for mentorship
• Coaching moments that build (or break) trust and character
• Identity and sport: why coaches must help athletes discompartmentalize
• The challenge of mobilizing Gen Z from awareness to action
• How presence, silence, and vulnerability build relationships

Notable Quotes:

• “Authenticity is huge. To miss that is to miss the heart of the student and the heart of the athlete.”
• “We’ve been trained in the arts of filtering. So we recognize filters easily.”
• “The life of a disciple is a planned, intentional life. And coaching can mirror that.”
• “Don’t get mad at Gen Z. Get busy with them.” —Tim Elmore (via Luke)

Resources Mentioned:

• Reclaim Today: reclaimtoday.org
• Books: Emotionally Healthy Spirituality, Renovation of the Heart, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, Celebration of Discipline

Connect with Luke: [email protected]

Reach out via reclaimtoday.org

The Impactful Coaching Project (ICP) seeks to develop coaches that coach the whole person. ICP is the thought leader in coaching the 21st century athlete and produces training, information, and research to help coaches develop. For more information, check out https://impactfulcoachingproject.substack.com/ or contact us at [email protected].

In this short episode, Rob and Dustin revisit the foundational framework that launched the Impactful Coaching Project: The Three C’s—Competence, Care, and Constant. Originally introduced in an early Substack post, these three traits remain core to how they think about leadership, coaching, and building trust.

Whether you're a new coach trying to build credibility or a seasoned one navigating the emotional rollercoaster of the season, this episode digs into the real meaning of each "C" and what it looks like to live it out—not just talk about it.

Topics Covered

• Why competence today is as much about filtering noise as it is about knowledge
• How care becomes transformational only when it's planned, consistent, and intentional
• The role of constant in high-emotion moments and how it builds lasting trust
• Why the best coaches do hard things the right way even when it hurts
• Simple, practical systems you can implement now to care for your players

Key Quotes

Mentioned in the Episode

• Tim Elmore’s thoughts on authenticity and competence
• Post-game systems of care (90-second rule, locker room walks, gratitude in weight room)
• The power of handwritten notes, one-on-ones, and consistent body language

Subscribe & Learn More

▶ Get full access to all articles, podcasts, and resources at

impactfulcoachingproject.substack.com

In this "Best of" episode, we revisit the most compelling insights from June's conversations on coach development, support systems, and navigating the changing landscape of youth and high school sports.

1. Why Coach Retention Matters

Dr. Pete Van Mullem shares why coach turnover is more than a staffing issue—it’s tied to the overall health of sport participation and athlete experience. He unpacks how assessing coach readiness, providing structured support, and rethinking evaluation practices can keep great coaches in the game longer.

2. Building Real Support Systems

What does it look like for coaches to build intentional communities—not just for athletes, but for themselves? We explore how everyday habits, peer networks, and programs like Snow Valley Basketball School create lasting mentorship and mutual support across the coaching profession.

3. Standards vs. Situations

In a conversation between hosts Dustin and Rob, we dig into the gray areas coaches face when enforcing standards. What happens when team rules meet real-life nuance? Through personal stories, they explore fairness, consistency, and the emotional toll of tough decisions.

4. Leading with Care

We close the episode with a reflection on leadership, empathy, and what it means to discipline within a culture of care. How we respond to a breach of standards can reveal whether we've built true community or just compliance.

For more coaching resources and episodes, visit:

impactfulcoachingproject.substack.com

Dr. Pete Van Mullen joins Rob to explore the intersection of coaching, teaching, and long-term retention. A former college basketball coach turned professor, Pete shares insights from his research on coach support systems, readiness assessments, and why teaching skills are essential for coaching success. The conversation offers practical takeaways for administrators and coaches looking to build sustainable, growth-centered programs.

Topics include:

• Building coach support systems
• Assessing coach readiness and development
• The role of teaching in effective coaching
• Rethinking “winning” in youth and high school sports

• Coaching and Leading the 21st Century Athlete
• Athletic Department Leadership and Developing Coaches
•  → Available on Amazon: Visit Rob Ramseyer's Author Page

impactfulcoachingproject.substack.com

beyondcoaching.alitu.com (Spotify & Apple links)

Learn more about Pete’s work at Sport Coach America.

In this special "Best of May" episode of Beyond Coaching, Dr. Rob Ramseyer revisits some of the most insightful and impactful moments from recent episodes. With guest experts Mitch Hull, David Shapiro, and Dr. Wendy Moehler Seib, Kelli Wegerer, and also parts of a recent podcast interview Rob did talking about team unity and culture with Matt Barker on "Playing With a Purpose" podcast.  We dive deep into the psychology of coaching, the science of stress, and the importance of trust and belonging in building cohesive teams. These discussions highlight the core principles of the Impactful Coaching Project and offer valuable takeaways for coaches, athletic directors, and leaders in sports.

Resources:

• Impactful Coaching Project Substack (impactfulcoachingproject.substack.com)
•  Subscribe to the Impactful Coaching Project Substack for weekly insights, strategies, and research that helps coaches coach the whole person. Stay updated with new content to support your journey in impactful coaching. Subscribe Here
• ICP Books Books 
•  Leading and Coaching the 21st Century Athlete and Athletic Department Leadership in Developing Coaches offer actionable strategies for coaches, athletic directors, and leaders. These books provide a comprehensive framework for coaching in a holistic, effective way.  Get the books on Amazon.

Thank you for listening to this episode of Beyond Coaching.

 Beyond Coaching is a podcast developed and produced by the Impactful Coaching Project, with the support of Friends University. The Impactful Coaching Project seeks to develop coaches who prioritize the whole person, and it is a thought leader in coaching the 21st-century athlete. Visit our Substack for more information and resources.

Listen to More Episodes:

•  Catch up on past episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts!