Thoroughly Satisfied

What does it mean to be thorough? It is defined as “carried through to completion, careful about detail, complete in all respects.”

Considering all that college coaches must accomplish these days with winning recruits and building team camaraderie, I often wonder what coaches think about the “Transfer Portal”.  A Student-athlete transferring schools is nothing new.  But kids placing their names in a database to “open-up” their opportunities to other schools is new.  An athlete can have legitimate reasons for wanting to transfer, but other times it is just because they don’t want to complete what they first started.  In today’s world of transfers, cancellations, and postponements, carrying out a responsibility to its completion is rare.

In every game we officiate, we should have a mindset of “thoroughness”—carrying our role to completion and being careful about detail. Officials that have not worked together in a crew should pay particular attention to details no matter the years of experience.  As officials work more games together, some communication, patterns, and tendencies become second nature to the crew.  Our individual responsibilities in crew meeting, uniform, pre and postgame, and obviously during the game, must be complete and detailed.  No cutting corners—the success of the crew depends on the individual detail.

Proverbs 13: 19—"Desire realized is sweet to the soul.”  When we thoroughly complete a game, we experience a feeling of satisfaction that does not even have to be expressed in words!  To further add to this proverb, Proverbs 13: 4 states “The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, but the soul of the diligent is made fat.”  Where does the desire to be complete and detailed truly come from? The desire comes from our soul.  It does not come from other people although other people can influence us.  True desire comes from within us.

Charles Swindoll stated in his devotion “Thoroughness” that “we need to move out of the thick ranks of the mediocre and join the ranks of excellence.” As an official, are you satisfied with average?  If you are resting in mediocrity, challenge yourself and your crew to be above average—to be thorough—to be complete in ALL respects.

The difference between something good and something great is ATTENTION TO DETAIL.

Charles R. Swindoll

Open or Shut (up)

You have most likely been in a situation where someone is calling you out or accusing you of something you should have done, but you know what the person claims is not the complete story. While they are speaking, you feel yourself becoming defensive and needing to interrupt to share your side. In many cases, if being wise, you realize the words you say in the moment will not make a difference. As officials, we have all been in situations where a coach shouts “you had to see that” or “what were you looking at?” Maybe the coach is right and maybe he is not. But it is human nature to have the desire to respond and defend.

In those situations, we must determine if a response is needed or if words are better left unsaid.  I like to refer to these instances as “in the moment” situations. What is our best path forward “in the moment,” not only to allow a coach to express his point, but also to give the coach insight on the situation? I have used these statements with coaches quite often.

1)    “Coach, you are right. If it happened that way, we missed it.”

2)    “Coach, that’s not where I was looking.” 

3)    “I hear you Coach.”

When is the right time to speak or NOT to speak? In her devotion “Knowing When to Speak and When to Be Silent,” author Meredith Hodge explained there are situations when SIILENCE can be helpful:

·         to avoid sin (Proverbs 10: 19)

·         to gain respect (Proverbs 11: 12)

·         to be seen wise and intelligent (Proverbs 17: 28)

By controlling our tongue…and our natural tendency to defend ourselves…we practice self-control and maintain our composure.

Now, when should we speak? It is typically in the face of fear, lack of self-confidence, or when feeling anxious, that we often lean towards being silent. But often, it is in these moments we need to be bold and speak in humbleness or petition.  

The key to know when to remain silent vs. when to speak is as follows: is the communication from the other person providing/seeking information or is it being said in anger to produce fear? The former tends to make me listen more intently, whereas the latter makes me want to speak quickly and defend.

Proverbs 10: 19: Sin is not ended by multiplying words, but the prudent hold their tongues.

Proverbs 11: 12: Whoever derides their neighbor has no sense, but the one who has understanding holds their tongue.

Proverbs 17: 28:  Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent, and discerning if they hold their tongues.

Simply put...we need to know when it is time to speak, and then speak those words wisely.

“A smart person knows what to say; a wise person knows whether to say it or not.”