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Originally Published in: The Leadership Playbook

One person can have such a strong effect on the world such as Martin Luther King, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Michael Jordan, and Mother Teresa. In the same way, one player can have a strong influence on a team. You never know what kind of result your actions can have. You might not be able to do everything, but you can do something. Your something might be just what is needed to begin changing things for the better. Gandhi said, "Be the change you want to see in the world." There is no telling what can be accomplished when you decide to use your influence in a positive way.

It is like the butterfly effect, which was first theorized by Edwin Lorenz in 1963 to help explain weather patterns and chaos theory. It states that one small change can result in a large change later on. For instance, a tornado in Texas might have been caused by a series of weather events that all started off with a butterfly flapping its' wings in a Brazilian rain forest. The butterfly didn't power the tornado. The flapping of its wings was just the beginning of a chain reaction.

One thing happened which leads to another thing happening which leads to another thing happening. If the butterfly hadn't flapped its' wings at that exact time, then the weather system might have been different. Here is one such example that Larry Gallegos points out on his Mortgage Cicerone blog. This story highlights a chain reaction of events that changed history,

One day in the countryside of Scotland, a common and poor farmer was toiling in his field when suddenly he heard a cry for help. Startled, he recognized someone was in trouble and the plea was coming from a nearby bog. Immediately he dropped what he was doing and ran to the source of the plea. When he located the voice calling for help, he stumbled upon a terrified boy up to his waist in black muck, screaming and sinking deeper and deeper into the bog as each minute passed.

The farmer calmly retrieved ropes from nearby, pulled the boy out of the bog and saved his life.

The next day, an elegantly dressed nobleman arrived at the farmers small and simple home. When the nobleman stepped out of his carriage, he introduced himself as the father of the boy the farmer had saved.

Emotionally, the nobleman thanked the farmer and asked to repay the farmer for saving his son's life. The farmer waved off the offer and informed the nobleman he could not accept payment for doing what was right.

At that moment, the nobleman asked if the farmer had a son in which the farmer replied he did. Subsequently, the nobleman insisted he provide the farmer's son an education on par with that he would provide his own son. Upon leaving the farmers house, the nobleman told the farmer, "if the lad is anything like his father, he'll no doubt grow to be a man we both will be proud of."

The nobleman's prediction concerning the farmer's son proved to be prophetic.

True to the nobleman's word, the farmer's son attended the best schools in the world and eventually graduated from St. Mary's Hospital Medical School in London. More importantly, he went on to become known throughout the world as the noted Sir Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of Penicillin.

Years afterward, the same nobleman's son who was saved from the bog was stricken with pneumonia.

What saved his life this time? Penicillin.

The-name of the nobleman? Lord Randolph Churchill

His son's name? Sir Winston Churchill, the great British Prime Minister who saved England from being taken over by Nazi Germany and Adolph Hitler.

Small things can make a difference. Everything that we do matters. A well-placed smile or much needed encouraging word might brighten someone's day to the extent that they treat someone else better. We can make a difference in the world and on our teams just by being the change agent and starting a chain reaction of positivity.

Tracy Archuleta was previously a coach at University of Southern Indiana.

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At all times we must remember the influence we have on the players we coach. If the way we act toward them and the way we communicate with them are done properly, the effect will be very positive now and for the rest of their lives. If not, the effect on their mental health can potentially be negative and lead to self-destructive behaviors.

Here are some tips and guidelines for better communication and teaching methodology to protect the mental health of your players which will have positive impacts on and off of the field or court.

For Coaches to Protect the Mental Health of Their Players They Must Remember and Teach:

• "When things do not go well, look first in the mirror with honest intent."
• What you do not say or do not do can be more powerful than what you do say or do. Be very careful (and have your assistant coaches monitor very closely) your non-verbal communication, (i.e., your body motions and gestures, your physical appearance, social distancing, touching behaviors), as well as your voice characteristics (e.g. volume and tone).
• Reward adherence to the process, effort, and the demonstration of life skills twice as often and much more than sport skill results.
• Keep the ratio of positive to negative comments 99:1.
• Always start your comments about the results of a drill, a part of practice, practice itself or of a game with as many positive things as possible and always start with feedback from the player(s) first. In your mind, always start with giving yourself credit for what went right, too.
• Keep and reward the energy and feedback from the team and teammates positive.
• "Motivate by catching the players doing something right."
• Motivate by inspiration, not intimidation.
• Role model at all times, in practices and games, what you are asking your players to learn, particularly "staying positive, staying present".
• Give praise publicly and constructive criticism privately.
• Constructive criticism is always about the play and never about the player.
• Never breach a player or team confidence.
• In games, coach forward, not backward. Do not micromanage them. Let the players play.
• After games, give and receive only positive feedback. Save the "teaching moments" to the next practice.
• Become a master teacher. Spend 85% of your time teaching your players skills to help the team get better as people, athletes, and players and only 15% on praise and discipline. "When you teach them they can be good at something, you will give them the confidence they can be good at anything."
• Teach them to appreciate what they already have and have already accomplished as a stepping stone to what they can achieve in the future.
• Teach them to fully appreciate when good things happen and to believe they will happen again even when bad things happen.
• Proactively conduct a meeting of the minds between coaches, players and players' parents regarding expectations relating to wins, losses, attendance (tardiness and absences for personal matters, vacations, etc.), being fans, conduct/temperament during games and practices, playing time, etc. at a pre-season meeting.
• Discuss life lessons using quotes, acronyms, role plays, and guest speakers about work ethic, attitude, adversity, leadership and accountability at the beginning of practice and about life lessons involving character, personal integrity, and success at the end of practice to teach the players about how what they are learning on the field translates to their lives as sons, brothers, daughters, sisters, friends, students, and future business and community leaders.
• Learn generally about what is happening in the players' lives at school and at home so you can connect with, understand, validate, and support them as persons on and off the field or court, too. "The first step in making an athlete believe they can be a good player is to first make them believe they are a good person."
• All parts and aspects of practice must include competitions so players can learn the critical lessons of learning to control what they can control and being comfortable being uncomfortable.
• Educate players about the difference between who they represent and are responsible to versus not being responsible for those people's lives and feelings.
• Do community service without the expectation of monetary return.

When we do these things, we coach not only champions, but Champions for Life.

Adam Sarancik is the Author of Four Amazon Top 100 Best Selling Baseball Coaching Books:

• Coaching Champions for Life – The Process of Mentoring the Person, Athlete and Player
• Takeaway Quotes for Coaching Champions for Life
• A Ground Ball to Shortstop – How and Why Coaches See Their Game Differently Than Anyone Else.
• Teacher, Role Model, Mentor: Lessons Learned From a Lifetime in Coaching.

  ]]> https://coachesinsider.com/baseball/tips-and-guidelines-for-communication-and-teaching-methodology-to-protect-mental-health-5/feed/ 0 117206 https://coachesinsider.com/baseball/1st-baseman-ladder-drill-for-making-picks-on-low-throws-with-travis-henson-blue-ridge-high-school-sc/ https://coachesinsider.com/baseball/1st-baseman-ladder-drill-for-making-picks-on-low-throws-with-travis-henson-blue-ridge-high-school-sc/#respond Tue, 21 Apr 2026 15:33:56 +0000 https://coachesinsider.com/?p=127168 Watch as Coach Travis Henson explains, and a player demonstrates a first baseman ladder drill for making picks on low throws. The first baseman starts at the end of the ladder and moves forward one step after each catch from a low throw. They work on backhand and forehand catches as they cycle through their steps to enhance their skills in fielding ground balls.