I know that most coaches do their best to help all students. In every aspect of life, I have always expected my coaches/mentors to answer the questions I had. But my coaches/mentors also served me best to keep me focused & a fire under me. When you see how many coaches work with team sports (such as rugby, football, soccer, etc...) you will see that they rarely cut their team any slack. In fact when I played Weak Side Prop for Utah Valley University (it was a state college at the time), the coach never accepted that I worked a 30 hour week & attended school at the same time as an excuse to not preform. There were 4 other guys who wanted my position on the team & if I didn't preform better than others, he would simply replace me & have me be the back up.
He kept a fire underneath of me & taught me a valuable lesson.
I always need to work my best to be the best, & if I was not pulling my own weight I could always choose to take a break from training but that someone else would fill the spot. Though if I had specific questions about how I needed to improve he would answer them.This is true in life & business as well, if I don't preform better than my competition they will fill my spot!
If I asked my coach, "How do I need to improve?" He would reply, "Push harder & dig down lower!" This didn't make sense to a guy who never played rugby before (as you are likely in the same boat when I tell you this.) Though when I asked, "What specifically can I do to dig lower?" He would take another 45 seconds to grab my shorts & push my butt lower to the ground & then widen my feet to give me more pushing power & stability. Then he would mock me stating that I needed to train my body to assume the possition naturally. I knew that he was doing this to make sure that I was the best prop I could be.
With this said, coaches are here to give you guidance, but many times you will need to ask them to clarify & be specific with the changes you need. If you don't understand still ask, "Why?". This will allow the coach to know that they need to grab your shorts & show you exactly how to take the stance, so to speak.
I would communicate with your coaches & ask them for specific help, stating you don't understand exactly what is needed & more importantly Why it is needed to focus & thrive! This will allow you to do it under your own direction later.
Andrew
