My husband and I were at the checkout counter at Dick’s Sporting Goods yesterday and I saw this sign on the wall behind the register:
It got me thinking about the impact coaches have on young people. If done right, kids are going to grow up always remembering the coaches who had a positive impact on them. And a negative one for that matter.
I can picture myself in both positions of this picture. As an impressionable person taking guidance from someone older, and the coach. My years as a teacher certainly helped me interject wisdom into my students, both textbook knowledge and overall life lessons.
But now that I’m middle-aged, does that mean I’m done having a coach in my life? Is there a point where we are too old to have a “coach” give us guidance? Certainly we are never going to reach a point where we know everything about everything. But who are the people who are going to answer our questions and guide us through this part of our lives?
There are, of course, people in our jobs and chosen vocations that mentor us. Long-time readers of my blog know that I had one of those. In fact, she “mentored” me right out of the profession and into a world full of anger and hurt feelings. Granted, that anger was very justified and with it came a lot of freedom to express that anger. But in my job now, I don’t have someone like her. Not that I need one. I finally have a great supervisor and a very supportive team who are available to help when I need it.
Another question might be, do we even need coaches at this age? Thinking about turning to older family members makes my anxiety twitch. I think it’s accurate to say I don’t have older family anymore. I have two big sisters who are trying to figure things out as they go along like I am. There’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, I’ve been told what to do and how to think by many people for a big part of my life. I like the idea of thinking for myself and deciding what’s right for me. Trial and error is not a bad thing.
Just some random thoughts that popped up as I noticed that display. What are your thoughts on “coaches” at our age? Let me clarify…our age range given the fact that I may be younger than some of my regular readers (talkin’ about you Squiggle Line Cafe). Who are the “coaches” in your lives? How have they helped you?
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