C-Level Communication

Communication

Hand in hand with learning to concentrate is learning to communicate effectively with your partner or partners. Veteran officials are aware that new officials are out there treading water, trying to remember the rule or the enforcement or just trying to make sure they’re in the right position. Thoughts of maintaining eye contact with a crewmate or having a quick conference with a partner aren’t usually at the forefront of a rookie’s mind.

Official to official communication is vital. Let your partner know when you need help. Talk with your partner about who makes what call, who covers what base, who has the clock, the downs, etc. You’ll get better at that as each game goes by.

But there’s another, often overlooked, side of communication vital for rookie officials that veterans need to initiate. Officials who have been around for awhile need to be open with potential officials and rookies about what they’re getting into. “One of the things we do is we bring in new guys early and let them know what it’s going to cost in equipment and fees,” Murray says. “A lot of them say, ‘OK, I’m ready to officiate.’ Then it’s, ‘Oh, all this money?’ It takes an investment up front.”

Remember, to officiate you need the proper uniform, including whistles and hats and beanbags and ball-strike indicators and whatever else your sport requires. Some of the materials might be acquired as hand-me-downs through an association; most equipment must be purchased up front.

Swearngin says the other thing state and local associations need to tell officials is the amount of time the trade demands. “Sometimes we’re not up front with new officials,” he says. “We don’t show them the amount of commitment we need of them. We ask a lot of our officials in terms of time commitment.”

Football officials in Georgia, for instance, are required to attend one meeting a week (amounting to nine or 10 throughout the season) in addition to working as many as three or four games a week. Basketball officials have four to six meetings a season and can work four or five nights a week. In baseball and softball, umpires can work nearly every day.

“There’s a pretty good amount of commitment and we’re finding that driving time to get to games takes a lot out of people in terms of being away from family, things like that,” Swearngin says. “It’s harder and harder for officials to get time off work.”