November 11, 2019
Hello Everybody,
So… I’ve been thinking… and I realized I had quite a few thoughts I wanted to share with you, the early adopters. I’d classify most of these ideas as only partially baked, perhaps only partially mixed, the finishing heat and ingredients must come from you, the coaches.
From a mechanics point of view, I am swirling between a newsletter, a blog, or a forum. I have not yet made up my mind. In the meantime I am hand-rolling emails, and thus, this email stream has been born. I have dubbed it ”So… I’ve been thinking…” (SIBT for short 🙃 )
I appreciate your patience while I find my footing here.
Purpose of SIBT
The main purpose of this email, is to share my thinking about the product (in the broadest possible sense). Sometimes I’ll be asking for explicit feedback, sometimes I’ll want to plant a seed to see if it takes root.
I expect this stream of communication will evolve. I am not sure what future form it will take, but I wanted to share some information sooner rather than later. As a result, I thought I would improve upon the production quality of the email, so SIBT emails would be somewhat separate from my other emails. I hope a dedicated structure and format will make it easier for you to manage flow of emails from me.
I know this is dangerously close to a newsletter, but since the frequency is “When I have something to say,” I don’t feel like it’s there yet… but if it stays in this form, I’ll convert to a better tool. If you have any preference: Blog, Forum, Newsletter, let me know. For now, I ask you to bear with me. Thanks!
Season Canvas Thoughts
I want to share some thoughts, and let them steep in the background of your minds for a while.
I was reviewing my notes over the weekend, reconnecting with earlier inspirations for what is now the Season Canvas. I want to share some of the origins, to let you absorb and reflect on it. The plan is to revisit during our 1:1 calls in the weeks ahead.
Headwind / Obstacles
One of the concepts that has been bubbling in the background for a while is the pairing of Obstacles and Habits. The big idea is that the key to overcoming most obstacles is frequently establishing new habits or practices. I like how the Season Canvas actually names obstacles, but does naming obstacles without also naming new habits or key practices create an incomplete picture of the season ahead ?
In the original sketch, these were closely paired.
I am leaning towards leaving this open ended (not introducing a box tightly coupled with obstacles on the Season Canvas). A single coach can always add Key Habits / Practices to the season overview, or the focus on a given block of work.
Questions for your consideration:
- What role does habit forming have in your coaching process / relationship with the athlete ?
- What frequency do you discuss habits with your athletes ?
- Does it make sense to bundle conversation about habits into other coaching materials ? If so, what other materials would you include ?
Bonus food for thought:
Clearly you can see the emphasis I am placing on “obstacles to progress.” I think for many age-group endurance athletes, it is these obstacles that will be limiters of performance. However, for many age-group athletes, they are nowhere near their ceilings, so understanding the limiters might not matter as much.
Push & Pull
As you know, I am blending my experience in technology with what I have observed in the Triathlon space to hopefully arrive at useful tools for coaches. The Push & Pull box is one of the amalgam concepts I’m not sure has crystalized.
I haven’t yet formulated any question to probe any potential confusion of the Push & Pull box, so I’ll restate some high level concepts I was aiming at. Again, no immediate action, let the concepts steep, and we can discuss it in the future.
PUSH
- Desire to make progress (change from current state)
- “To do” or “To have” something
PULL
- Attraction of the “new way” (or goal)
- “To be” or “To experience” something
I recognize it’s fuzzy and I may have added confusion. There is also a discussion to be had around “Transactional” athletes. Those who sign-up in winter / spring, do a race or two in summer and call it quits for another year; and are mostly looking for a stream of workouts. The goal right now, however, is to make the Season Canvas as useful as possible for the athletes who are a good fit for the tool.
Well, this is the inaugural SIBT, I hope it’s not a catastrophe. Thank you for you help, I could not do this without you.
Cheers,
Tyler
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