Art Of Officiating
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Covering conflict management, the psychology of officiating, best practices and officiating/life balance.
Hone Your Edge in the Offseason
For many, the offseason is welcomed in the same way a teacher welcomes summer break — with open arms. You ’ve worked hard but now it’s time for...
6 Things You Never Say to a Coach
You will say all kinds of things when you’re having a conversation, conference, discussion, talk, debate or heated exchange with a coach. But are there some comments that should...
What It Takes To Get What You Want
S
ome years ago, Brian Tracy, one of the world’s leading experts in personal development, said, “Success is goals and all else is commentary.”
Imagine the...
Turn The Cast Away?
One of the hazards of being a sports official is that you quickly become an expert consultant to your friends when they have a question about a rule...
Conflict of Interest?
Conflict of interest. Whether it actually exists between an official and coach or administrator or family member or whatever the case, when that phrase...
Anti-Social
Social media and sports officials are increasingly colliding, creating new risks that officials at every level must understand and manage carefully. As officials, social...
Be a Rock, Not a Robot
When people say, “There’s no need to get emotional,” that’s probably more true for officials than for the average person. Put a regular guy...
Taking the Officiating Plunge in a Father’s Footsteps
If you were offered a job where you had to travel, sometimes long and far, got frequently criticized when you performed your duties and...
How To Develop The Mental Skills to Thrive as an Official
How to develop the mental skills needed to thrive and advance in officiating.
By Karen Swanner
D
o you have the mental skills to become one of...
Can Our Intuition Deceive Us?
By Rick Gaydos
A couple of years ago I was watching a local TV talk show. A panelist recommended a book that wasn’t typically sports-related but...
Tips on Handling Blowouts
Sometimes games are less than games; they are a mish-mash of horrendous play
and lopsided scores. Officials can either contribute to the mayhem or else...
Postgame Discussions The Right Way
It was a tough game and not much went as planned. Now it’s time to break down where it all went wrong. It‘s a stressful situation and...
Honesty, Integrity Keys to a Full Schedule
The ability to grow your schedule is a key component to your development. We all want more games because we associate the number of...
Dealing with Obnoxious Fans
Between the lines, sports officials have every right and can take immediate action to eject a player or coach from a game for unruly...
Warning Signs of Burnout
People officiate for a variety of reasons. Whether it’s love of the game, exercise, camaraderie or extra money (or any combination of those), too...
Get The Most Out of Camps and Clinics
The best way for you to judge the effectiveness of a clinic or camp is to count the number of habits or procedures that...
Pregame Meeting Etiquette
Pat the referee arrives at Hometeam High School for a basketball game. With Chris, the inexperienced partner, in tow, Pat approaches Hometeam Head Coach...
20 Inspiring Books For Sports Officials
If you had inside access to the bookshelves of college and professional officials and officiating leaders, what books would you find? Sure, rulebooks are...
What Supervisors Teach can be What Gets Called
In the local football chapter where I started officiating years ago, it has been the practice to have separate weekly training sessions for first-year officials. The feeling is...
Clinicians and Presenters Critical to a Successful Camp Experience
The best way for you to judge the effectiveness of a clinic or camp is to count the number of habits or procedures that...
Officiating’s ‘Workplace Guide’
Although officiating is an avocation for most of us, it is one that must be treated as a business. Officiating should be fun, but...
Getting the Play Right Is Not Enough
Many officials can cite large swaths of the rulebook from memory. Others know down to the inch where the mechanics manual says they’re supposed to be on the field or court. But...
How You React to Disappointment Defines You
Officiating is an interesting and challenging line of work, no matter your involvement. Whether you are an active official, assigner or administrator, decisions you...
Everybody Wants a Problem Solver
One type of person all businesses want is a problem solver. The same can be said for any type of athletic event. They want...