All-Star Mom's List For Coaches (spinoff Of Coaches List For Moms)

[Just-a-Mom]

OK. drewpate nicely made a list for us moms on how to not be so annoying, so I thought I'd make us a list as well.

1. Remember that I'm paying you, not the other way around.

2. Remember that despite how annoying some of us are, we are doing the best we can with limited money, limited time, and limited patience. It's really not all glitter and Uggs for us - it take a LOT of dedication to be a cheer mom.

3. Please stop eating in front of us. We're starving too. We also just came from our day jobs, so we also haven't had 5 minutes to eat.

4. PLEASE STOP MISSING PRIVATES - and if you're going to, let me know BEFORE I drive to the gym. I've had this happen more times than I can count. And it's ALWAYS that they put it in their phone and forgot. I've called one coach from the gym and he was in NEW YORK on vacation. I think you'd like me to notify you if we were going out of town, please do the same.

5. And on the same token, when i am paying for a private, please stop helping other kids in the gym - I know they're Level 5 and are reeeeeally important, but their moms can pay for privates too if they need help. I'm paying for your undivided attention for an hour. Please give it to my child.

6. Lastly, and I think this is my biggest one. There is more than 1 team in your gym. Level 5 isn't the only one you have. When you have time to SIT in the parent area and talk to Suzy 5's mom for an hour ... it kinda makes me doubt your whole "I'm too busy to talk to you" stance. And it kinda makes my daughter feel bad when you treat your level 5's like they are the only ones that matter. And I know every coach on here says "That's not how we are at our gym - we love all our teams equally," but you are. You may not even realize it, but you ARE. Just like we sometimes don't realize how "Suzie's Mom" we're being...you don't realize how "Suzie's coach" you're being. Every time you start a sentence with "Woot! Senior 5 just did...(insert wonderful thing your level 5 team did here)!" think of a mom saying "I'm not that mom but..." Maybe once a week try to say something about another team? ***And NOT as the end of a Senior 5 praise (eg. "Woot! Senior 5, 2nd place!!! Way to rock it!!!!!...oh and Youth 2 got first. wtg"

Sorry I'm offending probably every coach on here, but we've just spent the last 2 days talking about how annoying we are as moms, I thought I'd give a little back.

 

[purpleblue&white]

I am bowing down to you now, this should be fun to watch this thread all day

 

[Fameous MOM]

I agree with the level 5 post alot!!! That is why my 9 year old is killing her self to make a j5 team. They get their own personalized sports bras, practice wear and warm ups. She sees the glam and is dying to be there. (she knows she is not old enough to be on senior 5) She was on j4 this year and the coach did a great job making them feel special but her youth and mini teams did not get as much attention!

I can't stand when I pay for a private and a kid gets all up in my lesson!!! I am paying a dollar a minute for the lesson so if another kid gets 5 minutes of our lesson can I give you 25? Tell the other kid that you will work with her when our lesson is OVER!

I love our coaches and know that we have some of the very best out there. I try to behave as a cheer mom and often bite my tongue!

 

[TheVipersMom]

I agree with the level 5 post alot!!! That is why my 9 year old is killing her self to make a j5 team. They get their own personalized sports bras, practice wear and warm ups. She sees the glam and is dying to be there. (she knows she is not old enough to be on senior 5) She was on j4 this year and the coach did a great job making them feel special but her youth and mini teams did not get as much attention!

I can't stand when I pay for a private and a kid gets all up in my lesson!!! I am paying a dollar a minute for the lesson so if another kid gets 5 minutes of our lesson can I give you 25? Tell the other kid that you will work with her when our lesson is OVER!

I love our coaches and know that we have some of the very best out there. I try to behave as a cheer mom and often bite my tongue!

Wow, that's alot for a private so maybe I would be a little more annoyed if that happened to me.
Plus my daughter wouldn't have so many! Lol
At our gym every coach charges different prices but I've had 3 different things for the people I'd have do it.
1st coach I let do it made it 8$ for 30 mins and $15 for an hour.
2nd coach I let do it made it $10 for 30 mins or $20 for an hour.
And the most I ever paid is the person I'm paying now-
15$ for 30 mins or 30$ for an hour!

 

[Just-a-Mom]

I agree with the level 5 post alot!!! That is why my 9 year old is killing her self to make a j5 team. They get their own personalized sports bras, practice wear and warm ups. She sees the glam and is dying to be there. (she knows she is not old enough to be on senior 5) She was on j4 this year and the coach did a great job making them feel special but her youth and mini teams did not get as much attention!

I can't stand when I pay for a private and a kid gets all up in my lesson!!! I am paying a dollar a minute for the lesson so if another kid gets 5 minutes of our lesson can I give you 25? Tell the other kid that you will work with her when our lesson is OVER!

I love our coaches and know that we have some of the very best out there. I try to behave as a cheer mom and often bite my tongue!

I am almost to the point where at the end of the private when it's time to pay I want to short him the dollar a minute for what he spent with the other kid and saying something like "Oh, her mom is over there. I think she owes you $13"

Note: Our coach right now is actually AWESOME about this. When the other kids approach him he almost always says "Give me half an hour. I'm doing a private right now, so I need to work with only her."

 

[Just-a-Mom]

Wow, that's alot for a private so maybe I would be a little more annoyed if that happened to me.
Plus my daughter wouldn't have so many! Lol
At our gym every coach charges different prices but I've had 3 different things for the people I'd have do it.
1st coach I let do it made it 8$ for 30 mins and $15 for an hour.
2nd coach I let do it made it $10 for 30 mins or $20 for an hour.
And the most I ever paid is the person I'm paying now-
15$ for 30 mins or 30$ for an hour!

Wow - enjoy that. You won't see that anywhere else probably! We've always paid the same as Fameous MOM - $30 for half, $60 for hour.

 

[notimeforthat]

ohhhh the memories.....
at our old gym a 1 hour private would include the coach showing up 10 minutes late and then having to eat before... come on...you start work at 4 pm and end at 9 you cant eat before or after??
and of course....anyone else that may be tumbling needs to be corrected or spotted...are you kidding me??
these coaches are spoiled!! Where else are you going to make 40-60 per hour doing a little coaching????
I actually heard a coach say that he was not going to do privates for anyone learning a back handspring because he was above that.... really??????
And please..... put the cell phone away.... you don't need to update your status on our time.

Some coaches are wonderful and professional. Some of the younger immature ones really need to get a grip.

 

[SandeRae]

I really have to agree with you on this. I read the other thread and agreed as well. I see both sides of this matter.
Right now I am not at a gym nor have I had any experience recently at the gyms I go to for tumbling with any of this. What I do think though is that gyms where this kind of thing is happening between coaches and parents ( "I dont have time to talk right now", not showing up, etc, etc) should remember that this is a product they're selling.
I know I will probably get criticized for saying this but Im going to anyways. The fact of the matter is, is that these gyms are in it for the business. Yes there is a passion for the sport, a love for the kids, a strong sense of family in the gym. I dont doubt that. The gym wouldnt have been created in the first place if it wasnt for all of those things but what I am saying is that these parents dont get to send their kids to the gym for free. They are paying, most of the time a lot of $, to send their kids to this well resepcted gym and be on this amazing team and get the opportunites that they wouldnt get if they went to XYZ Allstars.
Say for instance that you wanted to open up a pet shop that sold puppies (just go with me on this one). You want to open up the shop because you love puppies and think they are the most adorable things and want to make money doing something you love. Well your not giving the puppies away for free so the money aspect comes into play. People have to pay for the puppies along with puppy supplies in the store. People cant just walk away with a sick puppy and no crate to put him in. You, as the owner, are making sure your turning out quality product here and you wouldnt want to offend or upset the people buying the puppies right? You dont want the people to end up buying their puppies else where. You certainly dont want to "forget" to open the store to sell puppies. You dont want to make people feel that the puppy theyre buying is not as good as the puppy in the crate right next to it. You running a business and it is your job to make the customer ( and the puppy) happy.
Same goes for cheerleading. You open the gym because you love cheer. You want to make money giving people a place to cheer. You get athletes and parents paying for a product (cheer) so you want to make sure they are getting the best product (experience) at your gym. You dont want to offend parents by not answering their questions, showing up late or not at all, and you certainly dont want to make someone feel that their child is less important. Thats just the way business is. Coaches, owners, and instructors alike need to remember that these parents and athletes put a lot of time and certianly a lot of money into your business and they deserve to be treated with respect and get their questions answered or else they most likely will take their business else where.
That being said I think parents have a HUGE say in what goes on with their child in the gym. No parent should be coming up to you saying "Put Suzie there" and " Why isnt Suzie doing that". Parents should, repsectfully let the coaches do their job. I think parents should, though, get the respect from the gym to answer a serious question about their Suzie, their money, the coaches coaching their Suzie, or anything else that is a personal matter.
The other thread talked about what she would like the parents to do and let her coach instead of them. Thats is compleatly understandable and this post wasnt directed at her or anyone else in that thread. It is just a general statement about the subject. I agree with both parties on this matter.
Let the coaches coach, Let the players play, and if you have a question about your Suzie then bring it up at an appropriate time (and if the question isnt about your Suzie, please dont bring it up at all). The main thing is that both the customer and the manager need to work together or else nothing will get sold.

 

[dawgshow]

Oh, I'd like to add one. Please be honest with me. If I ask you about my daughter's (lack of) progress and it's not happening please don't spew rainbows and puppy dogs just to keep it positive. If she's not getting something, let me know. I want to know the truth.

 

[Mamarazzi]

Anyone have any sweet tea?

 

[cpsmom]

Let's see....I'd like to add:

-Don't call a parent meeting to talk about the team's "lack of motiviation"....sorry but that's a coaching issue! You need to figure out what's going to motivate them not me.

-Don't put a sour face on and look miserable at the front of the mat when something goes wrong. This one drives me crazy! The kids that know something happened are looking at you to help them get through the rest.. and the one's that don't know are cheering their hearts out until they look at your sour puss! Is it easy to put on a brave face and keep cheering for them when you know they just blew it...NOPE.... but that's what being a great coach is all about.

-Do not sit in the parent room and talk about kids/parents that have left your program. It's just plain unprofessional! While you're at it you might want to stop talking about gym XYZ down the street because that's wrong as well.

 

[Just-a-Mom]

I do feel like I should clarify that we've only had ONE practice at our new gym. So this is not directed at them really. So far we love love love it there. These are more observations I've made over the years.

 

[hopskipandjump]

ALMOST NONE of the above applies to ME/my daughter or the other unpaid coaches in my gym! Wooo Hoooo!
1. we don't eat in front of anyone. It's rude. Anywhere. Anytime.
2. we do all our tumbling for free.
3. none of us get paid.
4. my level 1s, 2s and 3s are treated like ROCK STARS! That is our future!
5. its hard to not have a funky face during bad moments on the mat, but we suck it up and hide it with a fake smile.
6. sometimes the only time we hear about other kids leaving is out in the parent room. After hearing from that family how they will be back. gee, thanks!!!
7. TEAM MEETING ABOUT LACK OF MOTIVATION: um, well here is where we differ. We do everything we can to motivate our teams, but sometimes, we do need help from parents. There may be things going on within a team that we have no idea are happening. You won't believe how much can be said between kids in a practice that we don't even hear! And quite frankly, sometimes your kid is just lazy. Of course, I would never actually say that. But sometimes it is true.

 

[imrichhowboutu]

Maybe i'm in the minority of coaches here, but when I'm working, I'm there to work. I'm not there to talk to the children and make friends. Or try to waste as much time as possible. I personally can't stand coaches that get to the gym and make the kids do something stupid so they can talk to one another. While they are stretching, talk all you want. But once it is practice time get down to business.
(I feel this way about everything. Like when I go to mcdonald's and bon qui qui is too busy talking to lashonda)

I also think that a majority of coaches are concerned with the younger teams. Most gyms would be no where if it wasn't for their level 1-4s. I am genuinely happy for lower level teams that kick butt. And i feel they should receive the same praise the upper levels get.

 

[imrichhowboutu]

Let's see....I'd like to add:
-Don't call a parent meeting to talk about the team's "lack of motiviation"....sorry but that's a coaching issue! You need to figure out what's going to motivate them not me.

This past week another coach and I used Ice pops to motivate the girls to be super clean with motions/jumps and it worked like a charm!