Art Of Officiating
Home Art Of Officiating
Covering conflict management, the psychology of officiating, best practices and officiating/life balance.
The Association Isn’t Backing You
One problem that officials can face is being unable to find dependable support, which is needed for a wide variety of reasons. For example,...
A.D.’s Who Officiate Give Tips On Working With Game Admin
As officials, it’s desirable to maintain quality working relationships with the athletic directors of the schools where we work. As in any working relationships...
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...
53 Things Every Rookie Should Know
1 You learn how to better express yourself so others understand exactly what you mean
2 You’re going to get yelled at.
3 You’re going to...
Impartiality in Addressing Coaches
I'm always ill at ease when an official with whom I’m working is on a first-name basis with a coach. Earlier this baseball season,...
Balancing Officiating with Family
My wife asked me, “Where are you headed tonight?”
My kids asked me, “Are you coming to watch my game?”
My response to my wife and...
More Than Words: Master the Art of Officiating Body Language
When people hear the word “communication,” they think of how one person speaks to another. A sometimes overlooked yet critically important method is body...
Lack of Family Support
Most officials at some point in the journey have to deal with family related issues, being away from home at key stages of the lives of their children...
Take the ‘I’ Out of ‘Quit’
It’s not always easy to be an official. That’s not anything you don’t already know. Sports officials are the targets of media, fans and...
Enhance Your Skills Fast With Repetition and Practice
Practice is synonymous with athletes, but practice can be as helpful to officials as it is to those playing the games. Whether it’s actually...
When Do Comments Go From Noise to Unprofessional Conduct?
Comments from head coaches, their coaching staffs, team supporters and fans can vary and deserve a multitude of responses. But when the comments go...
Creating Your Officiating Legacy
The average American can expect to live about 79 years. That’s roughly 28,835 days to leave your mark on the people you know and the places you go....
Ed Hochuli On Balance
It takes extraordinary strength to take charge of a Super Bowl – strength of will, of desire and of conviction. Ed Hochuli has done...
Does Appearance Still Matter If You Get the Calls Right?
Beards and tattoos have become much more prevalent and accepted in today’s society than in years past. You see them on everyone from CEOs...
Why R You Officiating?
Officiating is an avocation, and no two people come to it the same way or for the same reasons. I knew that whatever I...
Take the Bumps Out of Working Multiple Levels
Many Referee readers officiate more than one level of a sport or, at least, hope to do so. That could be middle school and...
Traveling Etiquette 101
There are practices that should always be followed when traveling with officiating partners to make sure everyone gets to the game on-time, and gets along with...
Always Time for Teachable Moments
Whether it is during the prematch conference or a postmatch debrief, a formal evaluation or a self-evaluation, or in a classroom clinic setting, we...
You Got Next
A
t a time when scrutiny of officials is greater than ever before, the need to get plays right is Job One. Most evaluators won’t...
Arrive and Shine With Good First Impressions
How you enter the arena, stadium, field or other facility says a lot about you. Do you casually stroll in? Are you laughing, confident,...
Oklahoma Referee Tackles Bad Behavior Using Social Media
Veteran soccer official Brian Barlow of Broken Arrow, Okla., believes a little public shaming is not necessarily a bad thing.
Especially if it results in...
Have No Officiating Regrets
Sometimes you can do everything in your power to get a call right and still blow it. That’s a tough regret to live with,...
Get Great Series: Better by Next Week
If someone told you a they had a way to get better by next week, would you do it no matter what it was?...