To the Protege: Coaches Tap Your Superpowers
I have a friend named Brett. Brett is an amateur UFC cage fighter.
I don't know what you think when you hear the word "amateur," but this is not that. Amateurs tend to be hobbyists, they merely dabble, and their interests are such that most of us would not take them too seriously.
However, if you want to get into the ring with my friend… Pictured above… And believed that his view of amateur was that a "dabbler," you would be sorely mistaken. Emphasis on the "sorely." I think that was the mistake his opponent made before entering into the ring with him on a ranked fight a few months ago. He found that some amateurs should be taken quite seriously.
Brett works out with professional fighters on a regular basis, has several coaches, manages his weight and exercise regimen, with all of the focus of someone entering professional ranks. I asked him the other day, "Tell me about a lesson your coaches have taught you, a lesson you could not have gotten in any other way without someone outside of you observing you, coaching you into learning it."
"I learned I have some of the hardest kicks ever seen or felt," he offered. That's what my coaches have told me. To put it into perspective, his two coaches are professional fighters who have trained lots of professional fighters and their experience of him is not mere opinion. It’s backed up by being on the wrong end of many kicks over their fighting careers, as well as trying to get their up-and-coming fighters in the best shape for wins in the cage.
They can boast on his superpowers because they have lots of comparative experience. Coaches collect examples of the best and the worst, and they drive their learners to be the best. In a recent fight, his coaches advised: "if you get in trouble, lay a few kicks on your opponent. They won't know what hit them. It's your secret weapon."
Coaches may have a better idea than you yourself as to what your secret weapon may be. They may have the best insights on how to best deploy it too. Coaches have one advantage you don't have—they are not inside you. They have the distinct privilege of an external vantage point. They see what you can't.
The word “coach” is most closely associated in English to the word "coax," often provoking the image of someone drawing something out of you, using words to help you see, help you move forward. A "coach" also comes from the transportation world, like a wagon drawn by horses, or "makes easy" the trip from point A to point B. Coaches do the same thing. Their special point of view, if it can be harnessed, can save hours, perhaps even years of mastering developmental goals.
Have you been looking for a way to make a lasting contribution? Have you wondered what your secret sauce is? Do you wonder if there's anything special about you, or the things you do?
Ask a coach. Ask a mentor. Ask a sponsor. Ask a therapist. Ask friends.
Ask a coach to help you master your superpowers!
