🏛️ Pillar Tracking
Live feed of nominations from the Pillar Tracking Form, newest first — no spreadsheet needed.
01
Head vs Assistant Coach Expectations
We are the best women’s wrestling staff in the state and one of the best in the country. Our girls are lucky to have such a good and dedicated staff.
Head Coach Expectations
- Create practice plans
- Take care of or delegate whatever needs to be done — schedule, weights, Track, roster, Matboss, or anything else that needs to be done
- Put assistants in a position to succeed
- Make the final decisions
Assistant Coach Expectations
- Assist in practice and meets and complete any delegated tasks
- There is a checklist to go through in the preseason to make roles clear
- Go to Coach Carl first with questions/concerns regarding anything about the program
- Direct parents, wrestlers, and other coaches to Coach Carl if they have a concern
02
Shared Expectations
- Love and care about the girls, follow For Her, and help create a fun, positive, and relaxed environment.
- Know why — point of emphasis.
- As head coach, Coach Carl needs to explain more of the why behind how we do things. There is now a “why” section to our practice plan, and we will go over a practice goal for each day.
- Coach Carl expects all assistants to know why if asked by the girls.
- Create and develop leaders on the team through our leadership meetings, and be a good leader yourself.
- Give good feedback.
- Improve as coaches.
- Disagree and commit while supporting each other.
- We want open and healthy discussion among the coaches. We won’t agree on everything, and that’s okay. Even when we disagree, we all commit and let Coach Carl make the final decision.
- Participate in a weekly coaches meeting every Monday after practice.
03
Leadership Keys
The leadership skill set is based on our ability to execute two fundamental aspects of leadership: 1) building trust, and 2) getting results with our wrestlers and guiding them to their full potential.
Building Trust Keys
1) Connection
- Listen to the girls and value their feedback — one of the best ways to show them we care, even if we don’t use the feedback. (There is also a limit to how much we take in, so they don’t feel like they can run or overrule things.)
- Connect with wrestlers on a personal level. Be positive. Get to know them. Create lollipop moments for them. Reach out to them when we don’t see them. Ask how they are doing, and talk to every girl every day.
- Use resources to help the girls with things off the mat (Coach Beyond Training).
2) Character
- Display ethical character and trust. Follow our pillars.
3) Competence
- Have the competence, knowledge, and skill to help them. Use resources such as email newsletters.
- Know why — point of emphasis this year. As head coach, Coach Carl needs to explain more of the why behind how we do things. There is now a “why” section to our practice plan, and we will go over a practice goal for each day. Coach Carl expects all assistants to know why if asked by the girls.
Getting Results Keys
1) Clarity
- We are all on the same page. Know all information sent out in emails. Turn on SportsYou phone notifications.
2) Accountability
- Provide accountability for our wrestlers so that they do what they say they will do. We set a good example by being accountable ourselves.
3) Expect and navigate adversity
- Things will go wrong sometimes. We don’t flinch — we handle it. Have an elite mindset and follow the mindset practical applications.
Cain, Brian. (2019). Mental Performance Mastery Coaching Certification Course Manual (2nd ed.). Brian Cain Peak Performance.
04
Learning vs. Performance Practice
Not every practice should look or feel the same. Most of our practice time should be learning practice, with performance practice reserved for specific moments close to competition.
Learning Practice
- The goal is long-term skill development, not looking good today.
- Wrestlers are allowed a higher degree of error — mistakes are part of the process, not something to eliminate immediately.
- Lower pressure, lower stakes. This is where risk-taking, experimentation, and trying new moves should happen.
- Feedback is often delayed or given in summary form so wrestlers build their own internal feedback instead of relying on us for every rep.
- This should make up the majority of our practices.
Performance Practice
- The goal is to simulate competition — pace, pressure, and intensity should be close to match speed.
- Wrestlers are held to a lower degree of error. This is a time to execute what's already been learned, not to work out new technique.
- Higher pressure, higher stakes — closer to what they'll feel at a dual or tournament.
- Feedback is immediate and direct since the priority is short-term performance.
- Use this sparingly and intentionally — for example, the practice right before regionals or a big dual.
Summary: If we treat every practice like a performance practice, wrestlers never get the room to make mistakes and actually learn. If we treat every practice like a learning practice, they won't be ready for the pressure of competition. Know which one you're running, and coach it accordingly.
05
Giving Good Feedback
Constructive and Positive Feedback
- Consistent positive feedback helps build a culture of psychological safety — an environment where wrestlers feel safe to take risks, be themselves, offer up new ideas, and make mistakes.
- Giving short-term achievable goals improves self-efficacy and gives motivation.
- Clearly point out improvements. Even if a wrestler isn’t improving in wins and losses, she is probably improving in something else, like her technique.
Learning Feedback
- 1) Quiz them. Ask them how they could improve on something instead of just telling them. Making them think reinforces long-term learning.
- 2) Summary feedback. Feedback provided after a series of no-feedback attempts. Wrestlers retain more with summary feedback — we don’t correct every rep, especially with new wrestlers. When the goal is long-term learning, they need a break in feedback in order to develop their own internal feedback.
- 3) Bandwidth. Give feedback only when the wrestler reaches a certain degree of error. Let them make small mistakes without being overwhelmed with feedback.
Summary: During learning practices (most of them), allow some degree of error and let wrestlers make mistakes without providing feedback. Ask questions first before giving feedback.
“Your double leg set up is awesome. I can tell you’ve been practicing it. What do you think about the finish?”
“I don’t know…”
“Where should your head be when taking the shot?”
“Um… up as high as possible.”
Performance Feedback
- 1) Immediate feedback. Tell them directly right away, which leads to more improvement in short-term performance.
Summary: During a performance practice — the day before regionals, for example — let them know right away with less degree of error. There’s no need to ask questions.
“The double leg set up and shot was great. Keep your head up on the finish.”
Elite Mindset Feedback
- 1) Praise the process and effort (what they can control).
“Wow. Your double is explosive. I can tell you’ve drilled it.” — instead of, “Wow. You’re a gifted athlete.”
If she is a “gifted” athlete, maybe she’s actually not — maybe she is the athlete she is because she’s been working at becoming an athlete her whole life, and all that time and effort can be praised too.
Summary: Providing effort- and process-based feedback consistently can make a big impact.
06
Improve as Coaches
All of our coaches work to improve, both for ourselves and for the program. Coach Carl wants to know every coach’s coaching goal(s) for each season and beyond.
See our Technique Philosophy & Library section further down this page for our approach to technique and the full video library.
Resources
- NHSCA (National High School Coaches Association)
- Coaches Insider
- Wrestle Like a Girl
- Wrestling Mindset
- All In Wrestler’s Journal
- Coach Beyond
- Brian Cain Mindset
- LuchaFit
- Coaching Her
- Fanatic Wrestling
- Flo Wrestling
Coach Carl Recommends
Any training or clinic will be paid by the club or school.
- Attending the Wisconsin Wrestling Association Clinic in November each year
- Attending online WWA meetings / Girl’s Advisory Meetings
- Becoming a USA Wrestling Member and becoming Teal Certified
- Coach Beyond Training — this will help us support athletes with mental health and/or other issues they are experiencing.
Other Opportunities
Coach Carl is a WWA member (Jason Lullof is the president too), a member of the Wisconsin Girl’s Wrestling Advisory Group, a USA Wrestling freestyle/Greco official, and Wisconsin Wrestling Federation Girls National Team Coach. Let him know if you want to get involved in any of those. Subscribe to Flo or use Carl’s login.
Weekly Coaches Meeting Check-In
We will also improve during the season using a short weekly assessment during our coaches meetings.
Leadership Strategy: Start, Stop, Continue — choose one thing to start doing to improve leadership/coaching, one thing to stop doing in order to be an effective leader, and one thing already going well.
- Start: ______________________________
- Stop: ______________________________
- Continue: ______________________________
Cain, Brian. (2019). Mental Performance Mastery Coaching Certification Course Manual (2nd ed.). Brian Cain Peak Performance.
More coach resources — practice plans, roster tools, and more — will be added here next. Let Coach Carl know what should go here.