Bring out the dragon in you

You have been elected or appointed to be your team captain or vice-captain. What are your responsibilities? What do your teammates and coaches expect of you? Being a team leader involves many responsibilities, often without much recognition. In fact, some of the best team leaders do it because they understand it is important for the team and don't even care if other people know they are doing it. Believe it or not, some athletes do not want to be known as a team leader because they believe that it puts too much pressure on them to make the team better or feel they are being singled out as being responsible for whether the team wins or loses. This is not the way it should be but it does happen, usually because some people do not understand what a team leader's job is!

What is the team leader's job? It is to help make his teammates better athletes. It is about understanding that a team is only as good as all of its members are, from the best to the worst. Being the team leader does not make you the boss nor does it make you a coach. Much of what the best team leaders do they do without even thinking about it. They do it by setting an example for other team members. It is about being at every scheduled practice, getting to practise on time, and working hard during all of the activities that your coaches include in practice. Being a team leader is about helping teammates work on their skills, encouraging them, supporting their efforts to get better, but never criticizing them or giving them a hard time. Team leaders want each of their teammates to become better athletes so the team does better.

Leaders are generally the hardest workers on the team. They are the first to come to practise and the last ones to leave. Leaders know the team’s goals, and know what needs to be accomplished. They realise that practice is the key to future victory. Real leaders hate to lose more than they enjoy winning. They are always willing to pay a price. Their work ethics and their attitude become contagious. Leaders are individuals, who know where they are going, and that is generally where the team wants to go – to the victory stand, the rest of the team will follow.

Being a leader is a tough and demanding job. Sometimes the pressure falls only on their shoulders. When you invest much, there is a lot at stake. Most team leaders will tell you that the rewards are worth the risk. Any leader realises that they can’t do this alone – that is what team is all about. Together Everyone Achieves More!