Why is it important for coaches to solve puzzles and mysteries? What sets them apart? And how does this relate to you, the coach?
In his compilation of short stories titled “What the Dog Saw and Other Adventures,” Malcolm Gladwell referred to Gregory Treverton, an expert in US national security, who drew a distinction: “A puzzle has a clearly defined outcome. It becomes a puzzle only when some information is unavailable. It can be solved if all the relevant information is provided.”
A mystery lacks a clear, definitive answer. It’s not about the absence of information but rather making sense of it. Solving mysteries entails making judgments and assessing uncertainty. You strive to solve a mystery by employing professional judgment to determine the most likely outcome in a given situation.
Puzzles have satisfying resolutions, whereas mysteries often do not. Put simply, puzzle solving can be seen as the science of coaching, while solving a mystery is the art of coaching.
Five Ways to Enhance Puzzle-Solving Abilities
1. Acquire a broad range of sport-specific and general knowledge. This may involve attending courses and workshops, as well as gaining insights from less formal sources like internet blogs. Challenge yourself to read articles unrelated to your sport, such as academic journals. While it may not have an immediate impact, this knowledge can prove valuable when confronted with a puzzle later on.
2. Gather data. The amount and type of data depend on the resources available to you. If you are fortunate to work in a well-equipped club or coaching environment, you can leverage specialists like performance analysts, physiotherapists, or sport scientists. If you lack such a network, you can still collect data. For instance, you could ask a parent to capture footage of performance using a camera, smartphone, or tablet. You could also request parents to track the frequency of specific performance elements, such as successful passes, steals, interceptions, or drop shots.
3. Adopt a systematic approach to solving puzzles. Create a checklist encompassing various knowledge areas, including tactics, technique, physicality, mentality, lifestyle, and social factors, to identify potential solutions.
4. Establish a network of coaching support to exchange thoughts and ideas. Puzzle-solving is most effective when multiple informed perspectives are shared.
5. Seek information from diverse sources. For example, ask parents for their insights, observe players’ interactions, or discover significant life events affecting your athlete.
The renowned Liverpool FC Boot Room provides several excellent examples of problem solving. Bill Shankly, Bob Paisley, and others were systematic in getting to the root of problems, eliminating potential solutions one by one. For instance, they traced a recurring knee injury in goalkeeper Ray Clemence to his use of the heavy clutch in his new Ford Capri (it was the 70s, after all). Another time, they attributed a string of poor results in matches in London to traveling by train in the afternoon and eating dinner too late at night. Once they rearranged the travel schedule, the puzzle was solved.
Five Ways to Enhance Mystery-Solving Abilities
1. Utilize your judgment to assess scenarios that may arise in competitions. This equips your players/athletes with strategies to achieve success. Consider various “what if” scenarios. A compelling example is provided by Sir Clive Woodward, who, along with his coaching staff, would discuss potential situations, such as being down by 5 points with 8 minutes to go, reduced to 14 players, and having a penalty kick at goal. The outcomes are uncertain, and the opposition’s behavior cannot be known with certainty. By engaging in this process, they strive to find the best possible solution for each scenario and solve the mystery.
2. Familiarize yourself with the personalities and interpersonal relationships among the individuals involved in the coach-athlete relationship. Accurately assessing their likely behaviors and actions in different situations is crucial for mystery-solving. Make a commitment to get to know your athletes, their parents, other coaches and staff in your club, and anyone else relevant.
3. Reflect and self-evaluate previous solutions to mysteries, whether successful or unsuccessful. This enhances your judgment and builds a reservoir of likely outcomes in a given situation. Consider keeping a logbook of all your coaching interventions, such as phone calls with parents, conversations with other coaches, or verbal instructions provided during competitions, along with self-evaluations of the outcomes. The more experiences you encounter, the more accurate your judgments will become in the future. If writing is time-consuming, you can make voice recordings as most smartphones offer this feature.
4. Engage a mentor to improve your mystery-solving skills. An experienced mentor can assist in developing your ability to assess situations accurately and predict likely outcomes.
5. Dedicate time to solving mysteries with other coaches. Infuse structure into your post-training discussions by deliberating on issues and devising solutions.
Puzzle or Mystery ?
Here are some examples for you to try and send your thoughts in to coaching@australia.basketball
Scenario 1
You have been provided with match data from the weekends game. It highlights that in the last few matches your most creative attacking player has a large drop in number of drives in the last quarter of a match (more than would be expected). This has coincided with the team’s loss of form. Fitness test results provided by the sport scientist don’t indicate any loss in physical capability.
Is this a puzzle or a mystery? What actions would you take?
Scenario 2
You have upped the intensity of the training for your under-14 squad in the run-up to the regional championships. Most have coped well with the change but one of them struggles for consistency. After a good session, it is usually followed by a poor performance at the next one.
Is this a puzzle or a mystery? What action would you take?
Scenario 3
One of your best players frequently turns up late for training. You have a code of conduct that highlights the importance of time-keeping and the other players adhere to it. However, you also know that this young player lacks the parental support to get him to sessions that the other players have. Playing for your team is one of the best ways to keep him from going down a wrong path in his life.
Is this a puzzle or a mystery? What action would you take?
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