Overview
There’s an old saying that goes like this:
You don’t teach your subject, you teach people.
Many times, as leaders and teachers, we struggle to remember that when we step in front of a team to help guide and lead them to better drill team performance, we aren’t there to teach DRILL, we’re there to teach the PEOPLE on the drill team.
This article will explore how to keep your focus in check as you teach and lead on a regular basis with your drill team.
The Goal of Teaching
The goal of teaching is not only to help others learn the skill or movement you’re trying to teach. When you step in front of a class of brand new cadets and need to teach them facing movements, the goal isn’t just to teach facing movements. Crazy, right?
The goal of teaching is to build relationships with other human beings.
What does this even mean? Every time you step up to teach something to someone else, you have the chance to form a connection with someone. How comfortable are they with you? How willing are they to ask questions? Will they be more or less likely to follow you later on? Do they know you have their best interest at heart?
One time teaching someone and they’ll have answered all those questions without you so much as asking. How they feel when practice ends will tell you whether you’ve done your job or not.
It’s very easy to prioritize learning the SKILL at the expense of the person. Let’s see how this plays out:
You’re the leader of the drill team and you know that you have a pressing deadline looming: the first meet of the season is nearing and you have a team that isn’t 100% prepared. There is still more to teach and if you’re going to lead the team successfully in competition, they need to finish learning all the movements in the regulation drill sequence. You’re REALLY feeling the pressure because you just left a briefing with the instructor where they impressed upon you the importance of getting everything done. And they’re right: you’re behind.
You come to practice and you’re clearly stressed. The tone of your voice is urgent and terse. As you work, your patience is clearly being tested and even though you teach everything you need to in the time you needed to do it, you can tell the whole team is stressed.
Pause. In this scenario, you did the job. But it’s possible you’ve done it at the expense of your individual relationship to each cadet. Go back to our questions above: How comfortable are they with you? How willing are they to ask questions? Will they be more or less likely to follow you later on? Do they know you have their best interest at heart?
If you had to poll a group like this and ask them, “What do you think was most important to that cadet commander?” the answer may be something like, “It was important to get the movements learned for the upcoming competition.”
That would be the less than ideal answer.
Why Value Relationships?
Building relationships is the cornerstone of all leadership. People follow others for many reasons but one of those most powerful is because they believe their leaders have THEIR best interest at heart.
When we focus on the people we’re teaching – even more so than what we’re teaching – we’re creating cadets who are far more likely to be communicative, strong learners, and, in the future, better leaders and teachers themselves.
Teaching is no different than allowing someone younger than you to eat first in the lunch line; it’s a moment to show someone else that you’re there for them and that you care.
The Benefits of Good Relationships
In almost 100% of cases, when we look at a drill team, we can correlate the morale and retention of the team to the teaching that’s done initially.
Because teaching is done so early on the the drill season, it’s one of the building blocks of creating a great team where everyone is motivated to work hard and together to achieve their goals.
Here is the cycle:
Essentially, good teaching builds good relationships. Good relationships builds stronger attendance.
When teaching, always ask yourself:
- Am I prioritizing the SKILL over the CADET in a way that would make the cadet feel less positive about our relationship?
- What am I doing to make those I’m teaching feel more comfortable learning from me?
- After I’m done teaching, do those I taught feel more or less confident in my ability to look out for them and their best interests?