I've been talking about the fact that coaching is much more than understanding how to draw X's and O's on a drawing board or teaching kids how to kick a ball for a long time. The future of coaching in general is so much more than teaching a sport. It's about developing the whole child. In this article, I'm going to share my experience as a coach from earlier this week. I spent the day with The Aspen Institute and several thought leaders in the youth sports industry. What I heard there was promising and offers hope for parents, players and coaches that we can have more for our children than we have previously imagined. I'm talking about wins beyond the scoreboard! Stay with me as I explore the "Calls for Coaches" report and presentation. The GistTwo years ago, the Susan Crown Exchange commissioned The Aspen Institute to explore the role that sports can play in developing young people's social and emotional skills. In turn, the Aspen Institute's Sports and Society Program formed a partnership with the National Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development and brought in experts from the EASEL Lab the the Harvard Graduate School of Education and produced a white paper titled Coaching Social and Emotional Skills in Youth Sports (see below). About a week before they were scheduled to release this brief, I got an email from one of my soccer moms (who also happens to be a child psychologist and a member of my Character Committee), suggesting that i might want to go to The Future of Coaching presentation. I registered immediately and showed up eager to hear what they had to say. They didn't disappoint. In a nutshell, they determined that it is possible for coaches to do the things we've been talking about on this show since it kicked off in 2017. I was thrilled to hear many of the same kinds of things reflected back as I sat in the audience. While I'm pretty sure none of these participants have ever listened to an episode of this show, they were up there on stage, backed by money and some Harvard intelligence, talking about exactly what you've been listening to on this show. They created a framework and even a simple checklist for those coaches wishing to put this into action. What a great sign of things to come, I thought. We're going to make a difference and we're going to make that difference in my lifetime!Calls for CoachesListed below are the seven Calls for Coaches. I encourage you to download the documents and read them for yourself to get more details about each of these calls. * Know Every Athlete's Story* Establish a Supportive Team Culture* Celebrate Effort* Focus on the Skills That Matter* Be a Role Model* Be Coachable* Join ForcesCan it get any better? Know Every Athletes StoryThe first point about knowing every athlete's story is really about getting to know every player. Coaches need to recognize that every player is an individual and things going on in their life affect their performance both on and off the pitch. This is accomplished through simple things like saying hello to them as they come out to play, talking with players and their families, asking questions, and allowing time for players to share. Listening is key for coaches and parents should be looking for coaches that can do this. Establish a Supportive Team CultureThe second point about establishing a supportive team culture is about creative a safe and supportive environment. I've talked about this in so many episodes from Episode #2 Entertainment vs Dev...