Making a Great First Impression with College Coaches and Why it Matters (Part 1)

As the parent of a prospective student-athlete in Volleyball and former College Basketball Coach, I understand firsthand the importance of making a great first impression. One of the areas I work with my clients on is communication with College Coaches and how to maximize the few opportunities  a prospect will get to make a first impression. While we are all human and make typos and grammatical errors when we write a letter or type an email, I can’t emphasize enough the importance of having someone you trust proofread EVERYTHING before it is sent. I think most College Coaches are very forgiving when it comes to the communication they receive from a prospect and understand these communications can be wordy, lengthy and may contain some misspellings.

I am the parent of an EXTEMELY shy prospect and as a Dad I’m concerned on how this shyness could make a terrible first impression with a College Coach who is interested in recruiting my daughter. While this is a work in progress, I’ll share the advice I give my own daughter Kaam and why.

Last year our family was exploring a new Volleyball club for my Kaam to tryout with. One of her high school teammates recommended another local club in the area. At this time my daughter was looking for a 15-1 team to play for and the coach of the 15’s for this club was also a local high school volleyball coach coaching a team that just happened to be on our schedule. We marked this game on the schedule and  started rehearsing how we wanted the introduction to go because we knew Kaam was extremely shy to the point of creating some awkward interactions with new people she meets. As parents we know our kids and I knew the potential for Kaam to freeze, mumble, speak so softley she would be asked to repeat herself, or just shut down entirely was a possibility.

The night before the game we role played how the interaction Coach Shelly should go emphasizing that Kaam, should just relax, breathe and be herself. We went over the basics, maintaining eye contact, a strong handshake, a solid greeting and introduction beginning with her name. I told her to sincerely talk to Coach Shelly about how she had heard great things and wanted an opportunity to tryout and join her team. I also suggested Kaam share a couple ways that she could contribute to Coach Shelly’s team and that she was very coachable and a hard worker. My wife and I stressed to Kaam that no matter how much we practice the interaction she just needed to be herself and not be nervous.

Well game day arrived and Kaam’s team lost 3-2 to Coach Shelly’s team. A couple of minutes passed after the conclusion of the game and both coaches had addressed their respective teams. At this point I told Kaam that I’d would help ease the stress for her and go introduce myself first and then introduce her and she could take it from there. I introduced myself to Coach Shelly and mentioned that we were referred to her club by one of her current players and then proceeded to introduce my daughter Kaam who was  standing by my side. Coach Shelly says, “ Hi Kaam, I was told you may have some interest in joining my 15-1’s team this season, you played really well tonight and have a ton of potential.” Kaam then sheepishly extends her hand to Coach Shelly and gives a very weak handshake while not maintaining eye contact and in almost a whisper “Hi Coach it’s nice to meet you.”  I could tell by the look on Coach Shelly’s face, she was NOT impressed. She attempted to ease Kaam’s nervousness by asking a few of what I thought were easy questions. Coach Shelly asked, “What club do you play for now and what is your primary position?” Kaam again slowly and shyly responded  with her current club name and primary position.  I jumped in and thanked Coach Shelly for taking a few minutes to talk with us and wished her luck on the remained of her season and the nightmare was over.

Well fast-forward to the third day of tryouts for the 15-1’s Club team that Coach Shelly coached and was holding tryouts for. She called all of the girls together and said that the team would be posted on the office door in the gym. Kaam had made the team! A few months later during one of our Club season tournaments I was talking to Coach Shelly between games. She says to me, “I was not impressed with Kaam when we first met at the high school game a few months ago. She did not come across as the type of player I would want to play for me. She is very quiet, but works extremely hard in practice every day and is very coachable. Her athleticism and potential are a joy for me to coach.” Now in this example things worked out for the Mitchell family, however I’m not so sure we would have been as lucky with a college coach with whom Kaam or any prospect typically will only have one opportunity to make a great first impression. This week I wanted to share our experience. Next week I’ discuss how Parents can help build their Child’s confidence and help them make a great first impression with Colleges coaches and anyone they meet.

To learn more about PrepSearch and how I’ve helped over 1,700 students attend college through sports since 2007, please explore the rest of my website. For more information about my seminars for high schools and clubs or to inquire about my recruiting advisory services for prospective student-athletes and their families, feel free to complete the contact form on my website at www.prepsearch.net.

EM