Learning Styles

As promised, I want to expand on my previous post about the 4 different learning styles according to the VARK model.  VARK is an acronym for Visual, Aural, Read/Write and Kinesthetic as the four main learning domains.  My first year as a head coach, I decided to have each player take this quick 5 minute test that helps me see how they best learn.  As I went on through the years of coaching, I studied them so well, now I can pickup on someones learning style simply through conversation and hearing their tendacies.  I have also become more observant and I watch when the light bulb goes off so I can make a mental note to help with teaching those individuals.  You can learn more about the VARK learning styles here: http://vark-learn.com/

For creating a positive learning environment, it is important that as a leader, teacher or coach you are aware that everyone learns in different ways and at different speeds.  I want to write this blog to be more about how to implement and apply these learning styles.  Have each player and coach take a learning style survey so you can better understand how to get information across to your team.  What is the value in understanding your player's learning style?  Most of the time, there is a short amount of time that a team has to get everybody on the same page or to make a quick adjustment in a time out or half time, so knowing your player's learning styles will help with how you communicate.  Once you discover your learning style as a player or coach, here are some tips for coaching each learning style:

1. For the Visual Leaner, make sure to draw the play up for them to see first.  Also, in practices when introducing drills - have someone else do a walk through so they can see what it looks like first.  Also, watching film is the best teacher for the visual learner.  Film of them in practices or games helps this learning style a ton!  So the more visual aids you can find to get across the play, lesson, scout etc.  --- the better!
2. For the Audio Learner, you will need to perfect your ability to articulate exactly what you mean.  You know the saying - "Say what you mean and mean what you say."  This is so vital for the audio learner because they learn based on hearing.  One thing in particular that I have learned with this learning style is that open dialogue and discussion is so necessary to limit and control when bringing forward new information.  Here is why - this is their primary form of learning and they will learn the wrong information or get confused if there is not a clear concise message they hear.  These learners probably enjoy songs with lessons or even audio books as a form of learning.  
3. Read/Write Learners can retain information better the more they read or write it.  These learners are almost self taught and probably enjoy online classes as they are able to read information and comprehend it without anyone actually reading it to them.  Another thing that helps this learner is TAKING NOTES!  The more they write or read over the notes, the more they will understand.
4. Kinesthetic Learners are at their best learning when they can actually do something or engage in it.  Now - do not be deceived, just because they are kinesthetic does not mean they can do something once and learn it.  For instance, when coaching a kinestheic learner, they may have to do the same drill multiple times before they can understand how to do a particular skill.  The kinesthetic learner's best friend will be repetition!!!  For these learners - homework can be so beneficial for them to do because the more they do it, the more they will comprehend it.

This blog was written with the intent to help anyone that is in a leadership position as being someone that needs to teach or coach people from different backgrounds.  Please keep in mind that all people learn at different SPEEDS as well!!!  So just because an audio learner hears something once, does not mean they get it.  Remember that no matter what learning style your team has - they all need repetitions.  

As a coach, once I got a hold of really appreciating these learning styles I was able to create environments that would accommodate these different learners.  Another reason my teams play so hard for me and my players give me such great effort is because they UNDERSTAND what I am saying.  Not because of me being a "great coach" but really more because I am compassionate and understanding that not everyone learns the same way.  So I must be sensitive to them individually.  Preseason is so vital to teams bonding and really understanding my expectations as a coach.  So I must intentionally create practices, meetings and film sessions that engage all learning styles so that each one of my players is able to grow and learn our team identity and style of play. 

HOW?

We give each player a hard copy of our first 5 plays to start the season.  We will have a class where we walk through drawing up each play and each option out of the plays based on how the defense guards it.  This really appeals to the read/write learner.  Then we would show the team video footage of practices and how we see them and ask a very plain question - "Is this your best effort?" They would always say no.  So this is an opportunity to show more raw film and they get to see themselves from a third party perspective.   This appeals to our visual learner and trust me, in our next practice, their effort is on a different level.  Another thing we always do the day of learning any new drill or play, I always verbally explain what is about to happen (for our audio learners) then we walk through it  (for the kinesthetic learners) which helps everyone get another visual of our new play.  I hope that these nuggets help somebody improve in some kind of way. 

Creating a Learning Environment

I just want everyone to know that we are extremely grateful for the opportunity to take some time off from blogging and be renewed mentally.  This time as allowed both Kevin and myself to be able to reflect on KBJ Academy and our current needs we see.  We noticed that our audience has expanded beyond the sports world and we have gained attention from not only players or coaches but also college students, children, teachers and parents.  The fact that you read our blog is a blessing to us and we do not take it for granted.  We appreciate your continued support.



During this time off, Kevin and I have been able to travel hosting various camps such as the men's Top 100.  We have also been serving on a 1 on 1 level with our skills training sessions.  Our most recent visit was to the University of Texas at Arlington for a team building retreat.  The staff there is truly first class and the team is amazing!  Check out this video for some high lights of the day:

Special thanks to @KBJAcademy for working with our team today! #TeamBonding #DecideToDance pic.twitter.com/jD0ptO0YvJ

— Lady Mav WBB (@LadyMavHoops) October 23, 2017

We are about to have our second empowering conference that we really believe is the beginning of some powerful things God wants to do through us.  Our goal with this conference is to Empower Men to win in the mind, body and spirit so they can be confident to be the man God has created them to be.  You can look at our Empowered Men's page here to read more about it or reserve your seat: kbjacademy.com/empowered but trust me, you won't want to miss it this Friday!

As we travel and help other people WIN in their goals and aspirations, we had a very interesting dialogue that I want to blog about and share:

Creating a Learning Environment
I have more than 10 years of teaching and coaching in various environments ranging from Pre-Kindergarten all the way to college.  So my youngest child I have ever taught was 3 and in PreK and my....most seasoned student in college was 63.  I must admit that I have quite a unique perspective on the learning environment and I have been able to create it in classrooms, locker rooms, basketball courts and meetings.  I found that certain tools help me in running businesses such as KBJ Academy and TRSS Mentoring as well as coaching players and teaching students of various ages.

1. Connect with each PERSON and Create a Sense of Belonging: I love the quote "People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care" by Theodore Roosevelt.  As I am on a quest to create a learning environment I want each person to belong and know that they matter to me. I try to get to know their names, immediate family and something unique about them that they love.  Another way to connect is:
2. Listen Actively: Most people listed with the intent to refute.  I listen with the intent to hear you.  This helps with giving the most accurate response or in the case of my Kindergarten class - those sweet babies just want to be heard!  So most of the time they just want my undivided attention.  So I give it to them.  I start each morning with allowing them a few minutes to play a game of their choice, then gather them on the carpet for circle time and they get to tell me all about their favorite thing they did last night.  THIS SETS A STANDARD!  It is an unspoken message that says what they have to say matters.  As I begin any lesson or instruction I have shown them what respect looks and sounds like.  So if they do not reciprocate this to me, I remind them "Remember when you talked about how much you loved going to the fair yesterday and I listened to you and gave you eye contact the whole time you spoke and never interrupted you?"  They answer "YES."  So I can finish with "Now its my turn to teach a lesson and I need you to show me the same respect as I showed you."  Almost 99% of the time, they comply immediately. 
3. KNOW Your Audience: I heard my Pastor - Sheryl Brady say this at her annual Mentorship Moments conference this past week and it confirmed the value of this concept.  Even in her setting as a professional speaker and pastor she understands she is a teacher and one thing she taught was "KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE."  I typically start my day working as a Kindergarten teacher serving 4-5 year old children.  After work, I may have a skills training session with high school level student-athletes ages from 15-17.  On weekends I serve at church in the 7-8 year old class.  So as you probably guess, each place that I transition in and out of, I must know the audience that I will be teaching for that time. I cannot teach my 17 year old the same way I would a 4 year old.  Besides ages - you have to consider learning styles and frame of reference. 
4. Accommodate EACH LEARNING STYLE in some way in every lesson:  I plan to dig deeper into the LEARNING STYLES and how knowing them can make or break you as a teacher/coach in the next week.  Be looking out for that blog because it is something that I keep circling back to when mentoring other teachers or parents - each person has a difference learning style.  You cannot lecture a primarily visual learner for long and expect them to retain most of the information.  The visual learning needs to see it.  So find a way to incorporate at least the four primary learning styles: Visual, Auditory, Read/Write or Kinesthetic (According to the Neil Fleming's VARK model)  THIS WAS A GAME CHANGER FOR ME AS A COACH!  This helped with teaching plays and scouting reports - understanding my team and coaching staff's learning styles. While considering learning styles also take into account that even once you grab a hold of their style, we all learn at different speeds.  Consider possible disabilities and be mindful of language barriers for students who's first language was not English.  Teaching can be overwhelming to someone who does not know to make room for all these variables. 
5. Have a PLAN: As a teacher you have curriculum, as a coach you have a practice plan, as a business owner you should have an agenda for every meeting you conduct. Not having a plan opens the door for chaos!  It opens you up to possibilities of being sidetracked or going longer than expected.  It is also a measuring tools for you to have record of topics discussed.  I'll switch gears and tell you about my experience coaching.  Five years I lead three different college programs and changed losing cultures to winning cultures.  I was instrumental in the hiring of my successor at each school I left because they trusted my input.  More importantly than my input, I left a notebook and clear cut plan of how I navigated my time at each program to the next coach along with a blue print of how I planned each season, game and practice.  These tools were valuable in making sure that these programs were in better condition than when I started there.  Making a plan is not to keep you in bondage and control you - instead it is to help guide you and give clear cut direction to everyone that is with you!  Players would come into the gym at least an hour prior to practice to get warm and get some shots up because they knew that when practice time started - we were rolling and we had expectations from the tip!  I noticed that players looked for this plan and would ask questions like "Any new drills today coach?"  When you hear these kinds of questions - you have set a standard that learning is the expectation and they come in looking forward to the day.
6. Articulate the GOAL:  One things I know is that the season is long!  Yet in the blink of an eye its over.  You may set goals formally with your team, you may just verbally say "We want to win."  In whatever way you choose - I think it is necessary to set goals for not only every season, but also for every game and we even broke it down by quarter.  So by the end of the first quarter we wanted 10 defensive stops!  We even had goals in practice.  We want to make 100 lay-ups in 2 minutes.  These players know that they can't walk to meet this goal.  The same is true for my classroom.  I tell my 4-5 year olds what the goal is "Today I want everybody focused and engaged for our reading lesson because I am going to ask a few questions afterwards and I'm going to pick somebody to answer.  So lets pay attention to this story." You would be surprised how simply articulating a goal will captivate CHILDREN and grab their attention.  No punishment attached and no incentive either - simply a GOAL to FOCUS!When dealing with children I believe that talking to them and have the same consistent expectations creates a normalcy that they will adjust to and live out.  I believe they learn best when it is made clear to them that running inside is not safe for them or anyone else.  
7. Evaluate and Give FEEDBACK: Now I wrote about feedback almost a year ago and I still hold true to my beliefs on the necessity of it.  Please read this post about the difference between feedback vs. constructive criticism because I truly believe it will broaden your perspective on how you engage with your students, players or employees.  Feedback is necessary for creating a learning environment because a huge part of the learning process is oftentimes re-teaching.  Feedback given with love can open your students up to want to learn more.  This is going to either strengthen or break your trust how you handle it so be cautious.  As you assess and evaluate each person's execution of your direction, be ready to give them accurate feedback on their ability.  

As always, my goal is to help teachers, coaches, managers, maybe even parents create a learning environment where learning is expected by your subordinates.  I hope that you believe in life long learning because as you continue to grow in knowledge so will all those who follow you.  Please share this article with somebody and feel free to comment back your thoughts.  

#BeBlessed 

The Play

 A "play" in sports is nothing but a standardize way to play the game of the sport that's being played.  Within a play, there are a lot of elements that go into performing a play.  Different elements that go into performing a play is formation, what action is being performed in the play, and what are all options in the play that should be looked at in attempting to reach team goals in the game.  Coaches, what is your play?  How does your team learn all elements that make up the play?  For example, any business or organization you work for have policies.  Policies are the "plays" within an organization.  Procedures are the elements that employees learn to make policies work and without procedure, there is no policy, without policy, there's no reason for procedure.  How will your team be successful?

Formation
What are your formations within your play?  Your players must know the bases of your plays so they can get a clearer picture of how the play should be ran.  For example, in basketball on offense you may have a play call based on a 3 out 2 in formation.  Can your players articulate that the formation of the play is 3 out 2 in? Strengthening a player's IQ in this area will always help for better execution of the play being ran to reach team goals.  Different ways to help players with this would be film, repetition in practice, or constant teaching of different types of formations and the breakdowns of them.

The Action Performed In The Play
What's the action you are trying to accomplish within the flow of your play?  This is another IQ stretcher right here.  Your players need to understand what action is going on within a play they need to read and react to.  For example, in basketball, ball screens may be the action that you want to accomplish within your play.  Can your players articulate it?  You must break down all different areas of the action, (ball screens) you are looking for to your players.  Repetition is key with this as well.  The more players understand, the more effective the play will be.

What Are The Options Players Can Use
What options are you looking for your players to find within your play?  It's always good to have multiple options to hit within the flow of plays for your players to execute at a high level.  Before players can understand options, they must understand the formation and the actions within the play.  Here again, increasing a player's IQ with teaching and repetition will help your players know all options to hit within a play.  You can't put all your eggs in one basket!

     Now that we have discussed three elements within a "play," remember what was mentioned in the first paragraph; "a play is nothing but a standardize way to play the game."  As much teaching and repetition that goes into players being equipped with all the different elements of a play to run that play to perfection, a key phrase to remember is "play the game."  Coaches, players can run plays more freely to showcase their talent within the play if you break down the play so they can "play."

Positioning to Win

Have you positioned your team to Win?

The worst feeling in the world, is to feel alone.  Especially in battle.  Could you imagine going out for the biggest fight of your life.....alone?

That's the mindset of a person who has not yet embraced the team mentality.  In sports - unity and teamwork is often discussed but not as frequently achieved.  In the recent trends of increased transfers, there is an epidemic of not feeling a part of a team.  Think about it - if they truly embraced being a part of a team, would the words "transfer" ever come across their lips?

How can you as a coach position your team to win?  Of all the great intrinsic values gained from playing sports, the top quality that every player and coach gain that will serve them in the rest of their lives is TEAMWORK!  Teaching your team how to WORK as a TEAM is easier said than done but once achieved can yield great results.  Here are some tips to teaching TEAMWORK:

1. Discover what your player's strengths are? - Position each player based on their strength.  This increases confidence, morale and commitment!  Helps players take ownership when they know they are trusted to do something they are good at.  Win-Win situation!
2. Discover what your player's learning styles are? - Try to reach each learning style in everything you teach.  For instance: When teach new plays, we always give hard copies of the plays in each player's playbook, we talk about how to execute each play in practice, we allow each player to get multiple repetitions in practice then we go back and watch the film of the plays to study together.  
3. Determine who your leaders are.  This may take some trial and error as some players tend to be one way in front of you and another way when you are not around.  Once you find authentic leaders - you will need to develop their leadership to lead to YOUR expectations.  Everybody's idea of leadership is not the same but once you get on the same page, this will benefit you because True Leaders ensure the team is a team on and off the court!  For example: My sophomore year in college, I was voted team captain and we were on a strict curfew all season long.  My teammates asked me to ask our head coach if we could all go to the club to celebrate our record breaking season, which I did.  The head coach allowed us to go and told me that I was responsible for everyone going and coming back to the dorms.  I didn't understand it then, but now I see that my coach was showing me that the BEST teams stick together on and off the court!  
4. Decide what your goals are as a group and who is willing to step into necessary roles to achieve these goals.  Goal setting is so much deeper than saying "We want to win."  Once goals are outlined, ask players who is willing to do what it takes to reach this goals.  If your team wants to average 40 rebounds per game, then make it personal right then ---- ASK "How many rebounds are you getting as an individual?" Each player should take ownership as their own contribution to these goals.  This is how you get commitment from players to give consistent WORK to the team's overall production.
5. Last piece of advice for teaching TEAMWORK: Incorporate camaraderie with your players.  Create a chant, cheer or secret hand clap to players to get excited about one another's success.  Set the standard by acknowledging when a player executes direction or a play that gives them success with a high five or clapping for them.  The more players see you get excited, the more they will get excited.  Camaraderie is a learned behavior but once developed will create a sisterhood that will help sustain you through the wins and losses to stick together.  

A lot of people say that winning cures everything, but it actually can cover up things that need to be addressed and give a false sense of success.  I believe that the true test of a team that is positioned to win is when you lose.  How do you respond? Are you blaming people?  Do you look for the quick fix?  Are you ready to give up?  A team that is Positioned to Win will respond to adversity by taking responsibility, correcting their mistakes and choosing to put the work in to change the results immediately.  They don't play the blame game, instead they encourage one another to make the necessary adjustments in order to Win Again.

Check out more blogs and motivational podcasts on kbjacademy.com for free!

Community

One thing that I always enjoyed about playing sports was being apart of something that was bigger than me.  I truly believe that anyone who has ever been apart of a team, understands how that dynamic can help you get through the highs and lows of life.  You draw closer together during loss and you celebrate with each other when you succeed. Things that seem impossible alone, become attainable when we know someone is there to support us.  It becomes your community.

As we continue to grow older, we move at times and join new communities.  We have some people leave our communities.  I believe one of the most valuable things we can create in any job, school or neighborhood is to establish a sense of community.  When you have a community, you have unity. You have people who care for one another.  You will also have people that support you even when you feel like giving up.  The best part about a community is that you are never alone.  You have people that look forward to seeing you and miss you when you are gone.  Who doesn't want to belong to a community?  We were created to connect with one another.

We at KBJ Academy are working on building our community and we want you to know what we are doing.  Your support is appreciated by both of us - Kevin & Brenita Jackson.  We want to support your business, family, work, church or school just as much as you have for us.

How can we stay connected?  You can E-mail us at kbjacademy to subscribe to our e-mail list.  You can also connect with us on Facebook.  Also you can call or text 469-844-8KBJ anytime.  Thank you again for supporting the KBJ community!

Training

One of the most under-appreciated acts of preparation in the work place today is training.  If you think about the typical year for an athlete, they spend all year long preparing for just a few games where they will actually perform.  With each college basketball season, teams have 30 guaranteed games to play.  The amount of training that goes into preparing players for the season is happens daily throughout the year!

College Basketball Season Breakdown:

Off Season: May - July

Weekly Individual Training; Weekly Team Practices; Weekly Weight Training and Conditioning

Pre-Season: August - October

Daily Individual Training; Daily Team Practices; Daily Weight Training and Conditioning

Season: November - March

Daily Team Practices; Team Meetings with Scouting Reports and Game Plans; Weight Training a couple days per week; Games twice a week or more

Post Season: March - April

This is the time of the year every team has prepared for.  PLAY OFFS!  Win or go home.  The teams that win - advance in the regional and national tournaments.  This is the most important time of the year to every team.  

My question is, what if we prepared our employees in the same way that coaches prepare their athletes?  What if training our team of employees took priority to leadership all over this world?  Our businesses would thrive if they were being conditioned the way that athletes are.  Companies would have much higher morale and unity among their staff members IF the value in training was understood the way coaches use it.  

Think about it.  Coaches never schedule a game without first practicing.  So as a business owner, you cannot expect to put an employee on the job and expect high performance regardless of their experience or background without training them first.  No matter someone's credentials, they still need training on your company's expectations and processes.  As a coach, we don't say "this player was an All-American in high school so she/he doesn't need to practice."  Those kids still need to learn our way of playing the game.  They need to learn our system.  

In conclusion, I encourage all companies/businesses to review their value in training their employees with the following strategies:

1. Train like a coach: Training should be consistent and practical.  Make each expectation clear and concise to your subordinates.  Coaches need to be present and engaged at all practices just like managers should be.  Keep expectations fair and attainable.
2. Lead by example: Do not expect your subordinates to be organized and meet deadlines if you do not first give them all the necessary tools to succeed.  You cannot expect a person to make lemonade out of bananas - so give them what they need which is your example to them.
3.  Give Feedback: In a post back in November, we published a blog about feedback and the proper way to execute Feedback.  Please read the entire post, but the overall theme with feedback is to not to give constructive criticism because it is still criticism.  Instead, the objective is to feed them the knowledge or insight necessary to complete the task.  Remind yourself that they are not to the level of comprehension that you are - so be patient with them.  You are a teacher of the sport so teach and re-teach them what you know.
4. Affirm the good behavior to see it be replicated and reciprocated:  I'm telling you what I know!  When you give affirmations of correct actions, you will see it again and again.  Others will do it because they want to hear the same affirmations.  It will be reciprocated when players start seeing each other do the right things and acknowledge one another in their right actions.  I even had players tell me during a time out "good play coach."  This is the affirmation being reciprocated because I have set a tone that we don't just correct, we also uplift!  In running a business, your employees will mirror the behavior that is affirmed as correct.  Their confidence will increase as you acknowledge what they are doing right.  Still give necessary correction through teaching and training, but acknowledge what they have done correctly. 

TRSS Mentoring

Today was a blessing to see another chapter or KBJ Academy unfold.  This new chapter is called The Right Size Shoe which teaches young girls to trust God in all circumstances.  We are aware that young people are pressured by society to fit in.  We want to empower them to find their identity in Christ where they can find all confidence and reassurance in what God has created them to be.

If you want more information on the #TRSS mentor program developed by KBJ Academy, visit the following link. #TRSS

Rebound To Win

With March Madness in Full Swing and the Final Four Basketball Championship soon approaching, I wanted to put out a post that speaks to my passion for basketball.  My love for the game started over 17 years ago and one skill that always stuck with me is Rebounding.  I was taught by my first coach, that no matter how tall or small you might be, ANYBODY can rebound.  So I set my mind to rebound as a player.

A rebound is what we call a missed shot.  So after every missed shot, there is a rebound that players battle to get to.  I learned quickly, that by keeping my eyes on the ball, I was able to see the rebound quickly and get to it before anyone else.  I was taught by my coach in high school to assume every shot is a miss - so pursue the basketball expecting to get the rebound.  This strategy stuck with me even into coaching.  As a coach, I studied some of the best teams in the country - Tennessee's dynasty with Pat Summit was a great rebounding team.  UConn's dynasty under Geno Auriemma is still a great rebounding team.  These are just two of my favorite programs to study and watch play because they rebound so well.  I began to develop my rebounding philosophy and teach the craft in much greater detail.  These are the steps and techniques that can help any team improve by Rebounding to Win:

1. See the man and the ball at the same time!  
2. Say "SHOT" on every shot to remind your body and your teammates.
3. Box out by putting your body on your opponent's body with two hands high in the air.
4. Pursue the ball with two hands and two feet (Explode up and Land on Balance).
5. Finish it by chinning it strong with elbows out.  

These five basic steps will lead to better rebounding.  We would practice rebounding everyday, during every drill.  As sure as shots are going up, rebounds are coming down.  We need to train our body to get to every rebound first.  Our goal was - no rebounds hit the ground!  If it does, we are not working!

To wrap up, I want to incorporate these same techniques into every day life because I believe that sports are a great way to teach life skills.  Lets say you take a "shot" which will simulate going to work, or maybe start a new job, take a test at school, or practice learning a new instrument.  In every thing we do, we may or may not succeed in it.  Let's say you go to work and get hit with a new project that seems overwhelming and you are off to a rocky start.  So in this situation, you can't just give up, walk away and give it to someone else to do.  You have to "Rebound" the missed assignment.  Let's break it down:

1. See your daily routine and your new project at the same time.
2. Say "I can do this" to remind yourself that you were given the task, because you can do it!
3. Box out any doubt in your mind that could prevent you from getting it right this time.
4. Pursue the project with confidence and commitment that you will succeed.
5. Finish it by reviewing and asking for help if you need it.

We all "MISS" sometimes in life, but don't give up and just walk away from what was meant for you!  Reevaluate your positioning, stance and timing then go back after it with these simple steps.  I hope you all continue to persevere on in life and remember to Rebound to Win!

Revamped - Sold OUT!

KBJ Academy is so humbled and thankful for all our supporters that believed God to do a mighty work through us.  It is with your help that we can move the Kingdom forward!  Our upcoming event Revamped for God's glory is currently sold out and only by the grace of God are we even able to have this event.  We have been chosen by the King of Kings and Revamped for His glory!

 If you want to be added to our mailing list to learn about future events so you do not miss out --- please email kbjacademy@gmail.com so we can connect.

Like us on Facebook for live updates from the conference this Saturday!  

#SupportTheMovement #KBJAcademy

The Art Of Defense On The Court

 In the game of basketball, the game between two opponents is and forever will be about who outscores who when the game is over.  Now with that being said, both opponents need to play some DEFENSE when one is on offense trying to limit their opponent's scoring to help with being called the winner at the end of the game because they outscored the other.  Defense takes pride, commitment, technique, will, and mentality if you want to be a good defender and when watching a game, if any of these are lacking in one individual or a team, the score of a game will reflect that. 

There is an ART to playing defense that can come out to be a beautiful picture when executed the right way.  My wife and I when we ran different programs started everything we wanted to do on the basketball court behind the bases of defense.  Our motto "You can't score unless you have the ball!"  We taught our players without telling them this specifically but training their mentality first to think these three things when it comes to defense:  1. Guard the ball. 2. What's our technique? 3. What's our scheme?  

 Notice I said, Guard the ball for #1.  It's a big difference between guarding the ball and guarding your man.  Some coaches use the term, "guard your man" when trying to tell their players to guard the ball.  Players understanding concepts were very big keys for us, so we talked and taught in a way of such thing.  Guarding the ball meant to our players, that if you are guarding someone who currently has the ball, then you are guarding the ball, eyes on ball using your technique to move with the ball.  Guarding your man refers to if you are guarding some one currently without the ball.  Now #2, What's your technique, simply is the defensive techniques you teach in whatever defensive scheme you are running from one possession to the next. For example, if you are defending the ball at the top of the key in a man defense, are you forcing the ball handler left or right sideline to baseline?  #3, What's your scheme, simply means what kind of defense we are playing during one possession or another and the actions we are doing out of them.  For example, in a 2-3 zone defense are we trapping in the corners or just playing an area?  All of these things would help us paint the picture for our players so they can display the artwork on the court. 

For coaches out there, I want to give some tips you can use with your team to prepare them to make some great DEFENSIVE ART on the court:

1. Make sure your players are conditioned to play the style of defense you want to play.  They are not going to play 40 min of press defense if they are only conditioned to play 2-3 zone all game.

2. Make sure your players understand the style, concepts, techniques, and the schemes in the defenses you want to run in the game.  Remember, a player's understanding is not just from them saying they understand but also showing they do.

3. Make your defensive practices become a mentality for your players so it becomes their habitat.

These tips along with a lot of other things my wife and I implemented within our programs helped us produce some great DEFENSIVE ART that led to a lot of success and I hope some of these things can help you as well.

 

We have a special Announcement! 

Our podcasts are now available on itunes under KBJ Academy!  To God be the glory for this opportunity and we give Him all the honor and praise.

We ask that you subscribe, listen and share the podcasts with someone you know.  Give us your feedback on your thoughts!

We are piloting a 4 week podcast called Hoops with KBJ Sunday nights where we will talk all things BASKETBALL!!!  Tune in on spreaker, Facebook live or itunes!

Coffee with KBJ cranks back up Monday, April 3 at 7:30 pm.  Season 2 is going to get you fueled up for work!  Get your coffee mug, take pictures and tag us!  We love to see your support!

Never Fight Alone

I have written several times about unity focusing on the value of it.  In today's selfie taking, social media liking society --- we tend to think we can do things by ourselves.  I can even say I fell victim to this when I first started in business management that I can get things done better if I do it myself. What I found was that I was overworking myself, getting frustrated and not embracing the potential team I had around me.  So I had to make changes within myself to get rid of the "I can do this better by myself" mentality to begin to find ways to use those around me to their strengths.  

I recently spoke to a group of start-up businesses owners here in the North Dallas area and gave them some simple business strategies that will help them win in their entrepreneurial journey.  I decided that the struggles I experienced were not just for me to improve, but once I share them with others --- they could avoid them and have success! So one main strategy I learned and want to share with you is the value of a SWOT analysis.  

Many businesses use a SWOT analysis to evaluate all aspects of their business operations and I actually used this concept with each team I coached and staff I managed.  The SWOT analysis helps you get an authentic evaluation of your team which goes hand in hand with goal setting.  I believe that goal setting is imperative to the team to understand the little steps we need to accomplish today in order to fulfill the vision at the end of this season.  

This video is something we use to break the ice in regards to team building and it really helps set the tone for our team building retreats.  This video gives animation to the basic concept players must commit to in order to have a "Successful Team."  Success is measured by your team's goals, desires and what they are willing to sacrifice.  You define what success looks like to you.

One thing in particular that I want to focus on for the point of this post is the part where it says that each person brings their BEST GIFT to the team.  How can we measure what is someone's best gift?  Coaches, I implore you to have your team perform a SWOT analysis of themselves and each other.  We have done this anonymously to see what players thing about each other and we have done this openly where players get to hear what their teammates think their strengths are.  

Our locker rooms were always a safe place where we told our teams there was no judgement, no negative talk about our sisters and absolutely no laughing at other's individuality.  I wanted to make sure our team environment first embraced diversity before we went deeper to allow an open forum for evaluations.  It is so necessary for growth and confidence building because most of our role players would struggle when they were the best player in high school and now they are being asked to focus on a specific role.  When we would have these SWOT analysis meetings and have each player talk about or write down the strengths of their teammates - you would be surprised how low they think of themselves.  So this is a time to openly correct and give feedback to the lack of confidence.  This is a time to empower your players to know how valuable they are not only to you - but to their sisters.  

This is a SWOT Analysis looks like :

            Strengths                 *                  Weaknesses

       *

______________________________*___________________________

       *

       *

     Opportunities                *                       Threats

First we would start with evaluating each player's individual Strengths.  We would have them write down their thoughts, then we would share.  Next we would address their Weaknesses.  Now this part can be hard for some players because they don't want their "friend" to be mad at them but I would always explain that becoming aware of what we need to work on is apart of growing so if you say it with love, then you are helping her.  This also helped us as coaches see where our team's IQ was and how realistic they were.  

After this, I would have the individual tell the team based on what she just heard, what opportunities can she think of that she can take advantage of to help our team win?  The usually gave answers such as "come to the gym early to work on my free throws" or "commit to getting better with my on ball defense."  We typically had real and authentic answers during this portion and for a moment they girls were vulnerable which allowed us all to deepen our respect for one another.  Finally I would ask what threats can you foresee that could hinder you from bringing your strengths to this team every day and developing your weaknesses?  They would usually say answers like "push myself when I want to give up in the weight room" or "make sure I discipline myself to keep working on my shot."  

Now the best part about this team building activity is seeing the girls open up, become more aware and increase their confidence in knowing that we ALL have things to work on and we are in this journey together!  So as my husband and I have stated so many times before, we believe in teamwork  and unity!  We believe in working together and bringing everyone's strengths together to make a dynamic team.  

The last thing I want to address in recruiting for coaches or even business owners that this SWOT analysis will help you connect with the right people.  Knowing and understanding your strengths and weaknesses is so important.  When you recruit a staff, make sure you hire people that are strong in areas that your are weak.  This will make your team more dynamic and stronger.  Understand that you should never fight alone and if you are a leader, develop those around you to identify their strengths so you can operate in your strength.  When you prepare others to effectively do their job - then your job is done!

If you would like some help with team building then I encourage you to reach out to us at kbjacademy@gmail.com for a customized quote within 24 hours to book us.  Having a strong team fighting together will cover up deficiencies or lack of talent.  Teamwork truly outweighs talent when you can get a group of people on the same page and committed to the goals!  Please share this article with someone you know and feel free to like us on FACEBOOK for a chance to win a KBJ Academy coffee mug.

#BeBlessed

Elevation without Preparation

Do you work for someone right now that was elevated without being properly prepared?  In the great world of sports, that's one of the greatest pitfalls to see coaches intensely pursuing elevation without proper preparation.  The unfortunate reality is, we have countless examples of leaders that were not effectively trained nor prepared for the position they are in and everyone suffers because of it.

I can approach this topic from several angles, but I don't want to just identify problems.  I want to stretch your thinking and offer solutions that would help with the problem.

GET PREPARED:

• Write down notes 1-2 pages of what you did the FIRST 6-12 months on your job.  Include important reminders that you learned the hard way so you can share with others so they do not have the same growing pains as you did.   What were your failures? What were your successes?

• Identify Key Points of Contacts which are people that are directly connected to you and the things you need.  Before I left each program that I coached at, I left a 1 page paper of POC's with their preferred method of contact, for example it looked like this:

                  Athletic Director: Prefer's E-mail - ABC@XYZ.EDU

                  *Send him an e-mail with final game schedule and appointment to finalize eligibility

                  Athletic Secretary: Send E-mail and follow up face to face - ABB@XYZ.EDU

                  *Send her and Purchase Orders, Room Requests and final game schedule

                  Academic Advisor: Call (Ext 0990)

                  *Set up time for individual academic counseling for each player by August 31

• Document what works well that you would continue if you were elevated to a higher role, and outline what you think needs to be changed and why.  It is important that you identify the why, because it could change.  So if the circumstances change, this "good idea" could actually turn into another concept that does not work well.  Keep in mind most things start out as a good idea, but as the time changes - we have to be willing to change with them.

• Describe in detail your job duties, description and include an annual calendar of your deadlines and expectations.  This is what I call a "Season Planner" which is something I have had since 2010 when I got my first head coaching position.  This helped me to train, communicate and effectively lead my teams and I still use it to this day with my business.  A Season Planner helps you outline peak seasons verses rest seasons.  As a business owner, it is important to know supply and demand based on the season we are in.  Know the trends of your industry and the same is true for sports.  Know the season and what the priorities are during each season.

• Last but not least - sit down and define your Core Values.  What are the top 5 things that you believe matter most to you and prioritize them.  These are your non-negotiables and no matter what opportunity or predicament comes your way - these are things that will not change.  It is important that you think of this write it down because as a coach, a player, career person or student, you are going to encounter many people that will try to tell you what you should do and how to do it.  You need to have your standards in place because if you don't, one day you will look up and find that you have compromised who you TRULY are.  

SPORTS: Within a team, it is necessary to constantly train and develop all players.  As the season progresses, you never know what injuries might occur so players need to be equipped to fulfill the missing role as necessary.  Any coach that blames losing games in injuries - really is saying "I did not train my back ups to be prepared for elevation when their opportunity came."  Train and prepare everyone on your roster because you never know what will happen tomorrow.  You must have everyone trained, prepared, equipped and empowered to step up when you need them!  

BUSINESS: As far as business management goes, this is something that could tremendously benefit the workplace morale and productivity.  Have your staff fully prepared for their current position and talk to them about what you do as their manager.  Tell them how long it takes you to prepare and how tough it can be to keep everyone on the same page.  Not in a complaining way - but to make those around you aware that you have responsibilities to fulfill, just like they do.

On the flip side, if you do not follow these steps and are elevated without preparation - then your subordinates will not have any respect for you.  Without respect, there is no buy in and without buy in, how will you win?  

I encourage you to PREPARE TODAY!  Thank you for reading and supporting KBJ Academy!

Guards Score From Anywhere

When it comes to the game of basketball and you think of scoring from the guard position, one of the first things that will come to most people's minds is scoring from the 3pt line. Guard play in basketball has become attached to the word "perimeter" especially in todays game because of high volume 3pt shooting. Over the years as a basketball coach, I have always believe that guards have the whole "94ft" to score the basketball and every guard that I have ever coached, I've trained with that mentality.

I know that when it comes to the make-up of a basketball team, every player has a certain role to fulfill. Some players play in the paint, some facilitate, some are go to scorers, some are a specific scoring specialist, or some may be a defensive stopper. When it comes to scoring at the guard position, if you have a willing and capable guard on your team, I believe you should train them to be a well rounded scorer. Even if your guard is a 3pt specialist, they can still develop to be a well rounded scorer. "They will just be a 3pt specialist who can also score from other areas" hints, Klay Thompson from the Golden State Warriors. Klay is the perfect example of a 3pt specialist who can also score in the mid-range, off the dribble, and get to the rim for a layup.

Here are some areas to work on with your guards when it comes to being an all around scorer:

1. Attacking the basket
2. Low Post scoring
3. Mid-Range jumpers
4. 3pt shooting
5. 3pt shooting off penetration
6. Half court shot
7. Full court shot
8. Jump shooting off penetration
9. Attacking basket off a ball screen
10. Jump shooting off a ball screen
11. Pick & Pop
12. Catch & Shoot off down, cross, flare screens

BE BLESSED!!

Who said Teaching was limited to the classroom?

Kevin Jackson and I have been blessed with the opportunity to teach basketball to players for well over a decade.  I know that coaching can include so many things, but to the heart of coaching is teaching.  Our experience of running summer basketball camps, or offering individual and group skills training sessions will now be made available to the DFW area by simply booking the date and time that works best for you!

Camps and Group Training Sessions will divide players up by age level in order to teach them.  Seed level (Ages 5-7) will teach basic fundamentals of basketball and ignite a love for playing.  Root level (Ages 8-10) teaches all skills and techniques focusing on proper form and execution of drills in a fun and engaging way.  Stem level (Ages 11-13) will teach more in depth sills, technique and increased basketball IQ.  Tree level (Ages 14-17) will engage players both mentally and physically to perform at their peak during training which will teach them elite level training.  

Training will always include honest evaluations and information on how to take your game to the next level!  

We believe in teaching life skills through basketball at KBJ Academy and our coaches Kevin and Brenita Jackson offer skills training for ages 5 and older.  

We have extensive experience training players in college looking to prepare for their next season.  We have also trained players preparing to perform at pro-combines or heading overseas to play professionally.  You can e-mail kbjacademy@gmail.com to book your skill development session at any level!  Happy Hoops to you all!  Go KBJ!

-Brenita Jackson

Adapting To Change Part 2

As seasons change - we must understand and prepare for seasons to change.  Change is inevitable and as surely as time passes, things will change.  People will change.  Relationships will change.  Jobs will change.  Finances will change.  Circumstances will change.  You have to understand that just as you celebrate the blooming flowers of spring and enjoy seeing them bloom -- there was a season right before it where mostly everything beautiful died.  What was once desolate has come into full bloom and is beautiful again but only for a SEASON!

How can we adapt to change?  Here are my recommendations to being prepared for change:

1. Be aware that change is going to happen at some point.  Be prepared for unexpected change.  For example:  Most financial planners recommend that you have at least 3-6 months worth of savings in the event of getting laid off, medical trauma or some unexpected life event.  This is a great example of being aware that change could happen and being prepared for it.
2. Know that not all change is good and not all change is bad.  I gave an example of an unexpected negative change to happen but lets say the exact opposite happens.  What if your job's administrators came in and said you were being promoted to Vice President of the company which would include a heavy increase financially but would require you to travel 50% of the time.  Is your household prepared for this change or would they have to get ready for the change?  If you have children and pick them up from school every day - you now have to find someone who can do that for you.  Don't be so focused on the money you would be making - understand that to whom much is given, much is required.  So your family and whatever other places you serve will be without should you take this job.  What would you do?
3. Sit down with your family and decide what are your core values individually and as a group.  This will help you making good choices when change happens.  Example: They hire a new coach on the team you play on that has no morals - are you willing to subject yourself to that for years or would you rather transfer to keep your morals in tact and peace of mind?  Your decisions will be in alignment of your core values and your core values should be consistent with your immediate family or household.  (There are some circumstances that are different.)
4. Once change happens accept it and make a decision on what you are going to do about it.  Don't just sit around complaining about the change.  Make a decision that you will do something about it that aligns with your core values.

In conclusion, I encourage each of you to read and share this article with somebody.  Know that you are going to see change at some point or another and be prepared for the change that comes your way. You can listen to our podcast that talks about adapting to change. 

E-mail kbjacademy@gmail to subscribe to our e-mail list for free.  We include updates and motivation to get you through the week!

Proper Conditioning & Stretching Decreases Lower Limb Injuries

Proper conditioning and stretching will minimize injuries when combined with effective strength training. Coaches all over the country have been trying to get to the bottom of the surplus of lower limb injuries -- especially with women's basketball players.  As a part of my graduate study, I researched leading causes in lower limb injuries and found the following to be prevalent: 

• Collisions around the rim 
• Landing off balance after a jump
• Changing directions suddenly
• Body anatomy - overweight and larger cup sizes can cause strain on the knees/ankles
• Previous injuries on one limb can cause overcompensation on the other limb

I found these causes in various articles on line and from asking coaches I knew.  Then my husband and I began to create an injury prevention plan that we implemented on every team we coached.  So we have found that after 5 years of using this injury prevention guideline we have only had 3 ACL surgeries out of 72 players that we coached.  Of those 3 ACL injuries - 2 had previous ACL injuries and admitted to not taking the rehab process serious.  

The injury prevention plan that we implemented consisted of daily attention to detail and observation of how each player's body was responding to drills.  Keep in mind that no two bodies are made the same.  So you must be aware of each player's body type and normal body movements.  Below are our daily guidelines to properly condition and stretch our players which helped decrease our lower limb injuries.

1. Stretching:  Every day we spent 20 minutes stretching starting with dynamic stretching (EX: high knees, butt kicks, walking lunges, high knee skips, knee grabs).  After a few down and backs of dynamic stretching, circle up for static stretching (EX: bend over and touch toes, hamstring stretch, pigeon stretch, butterfly stretch, groin stretch).  Resistance band stretching was next and players should be able to get deeper into each stretch by now.  Each stretch should be held for 15 seconds.  The last 2 minutes was for players to stretch any area that felt tight.
2. Agility drills:  We included a form of agility drills to warm their bodies up, such as speed ladders and cone drills to name a few.  With the ladders we would tell players to focus on their foot placement and making sure their feet were hitting each square - this causes them to not just go through drills, but focus on their foot movement and placement.  This is so valuable because where ever your feet go - your body will follow.  So if players can be in control of their feet, they can be in better control of their body.  With the cone drills - these were always short distances to practice breaking down and changing direction quickly.  Players were trained on how to have proper stance and chop their feet to prepare body for change of direction.  This is a great form of conditioning as well, but our teams always had fun doing these high energy drills.  Also include defensive slides to practice those quick changes of direction.
3. Sprints:  With women's basketball, full court sprints must be conditioned daily because that's what the sport requires.  These sprints should be consistent with your style of play.  For example if you like to press or play up tempo, a lot of sprint conditioning is needed to build endurance for this style of play.  Running a simple down and back is just not sufficient conditioning for basketball players.  Players need to run 5 or more sprints at a time.
4. Jumping and Landing on Balance:  Our belief is that rebounding is a great way to control possessions for your team.  So we taught and practiced rebounding techniques every drill of every practice.  A huge part of rebounding is jumping and landing on BALANCE!  We would practice this with basketballs, medicine balls and tennis balls by throwing the ball off the wall and having players pursue the ball with 2 hands and 2 feet.  We would practice landing on 2 feet at a time with bent knees on the balls of your feet.  One sign that players are off balance or landing too hard is how loud the landing is.  So I would always remind them - soft landing.  Bend those knees and use your whole body to absorb the landing.  

You can always e-mail us at kbjacademy@gmail.com to get a sample practice plan or season practice schedule sent to you.  We love sharing our experience to help others be successful.  You can always visit our website for free information and blog posts at kbjacademy.com. 

These are suggestions that we make based on our own experience and research.  We highly recommend that you as a player or coach would consult your doctor or athletic trainer before making any sudden changes to your normal work out routine.  Implement some of these strategies slowly and pay attention to what areas your body needs most.  

#BeBlessed

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