3 simple ways to make sure your players are happy

1. Think themselves happy

You have to be the eternal optimist as a coach. If someone is looking forward to something, they tend to be happy. Help your players see the good side of things. Make the glass half full, not half empty.

Also, don’t set them up to fail. “We must win today” will surely lead to them being unhappy if it all goes wrong. Instead say: “Let’s put in our best effort today and if we win, that’s a bonus”.

Set them goals which will give them a sense of achievement. If the team has had a bad first half, see if they can at least win the second half.

Again, fitness has easy gains and when someone is fitter, he will feel happier.

Finish a session by getting the players to list their successes in small groups. Remind them of what they have done if needed. Ask a couple of players for their feedback and then congratulate everyone on a good session.

2. Friends and family make us happy

The more you help foster good relationships between players, the more secure they feel. Constantly encourage positive feedback. Be harsh on negative comments. Even the slightest criticism can hurt some players so make a point of saying that anything that is not said to support another team-mate is not worth saying.

Happy players also come from supportive families. We cannot control parents but can create an environment on the side where voices only give praise. You should have a code of conduct from your union and this should be clear to all parents.

3. Make them think deeply

Many of our players spend a lot of their time “Tweeting” and “Texting” and little time thinking. But deep and meaningful conversations can have a profound effect on the individual. Focus them on the moment. Ask them how a pass felt, what they might do differently in another situation.

You can also further develop this by making them more part of the team organisation at training. “Can you come up with a different way of teaching that sort of pass?” or “How can we set out the cones in a more realistic manner?”.

Players who are disengaged with training are probably not happy with what is going on.  Asking lots of questions gives players strong feelings towards their purpose, they enjoy it more and feel they have some ownership - when it goes right they take pride in their effort.