* With permission of Coach "K" of Duke University Basketball, I used some of his concepts and ideas and intermingled them with my own. Each yea, we start over. I make the first team meeting of the season a "Big Deal." Here is my outline for this annual meeting. Incidentally, Coach "K's" daughter was a dance team member!
Cindy Clough

BRAINERD KIXTERS FIRST TEAM MEETING
THIS IS A GREAT DAY!!! It is the first day that the BHS Kixters team of 2002-2003 has come together. I love this DAY!! That’s the greatest thing about my job....starting over. I know from the past that every team has it’s own chemistry. Don’t try to compare us to last year. WE ARE NOT A TEAM YET!!!!! We are a collection of individuals.....the job that lies ahead for all of us.......is to make that collection of individuals become a TEAM.

WE’RE NOT ABOUT RULES....BUT WE DO HAVE ONE IMPORTANT RULE.
** Don’t do anything that’s detrimental to yourself. Because if it’s detrimental to you, it’ll be detrimental to the team, and it will be detrimental to our school.

Too many rules make the coaches constantly say “I caught you..I gotcha.” We want YOU to CARE and want to do the right thing....for the TEAM. You should WANT to make the right choices.

We’re all important! You are all special. Each and everyone of you make up the chemistry of this team. Play your role!!!! Don’t let anyone make you feel like you are not as good or not as important. Where you are starting out right now....is not where you will be in a few months. The improvement will be amazing.

When our seniors were sophomores, we had a disappointing finish to our season. This past year, we ended in 4th place. It is a great finish and if we end in the top 6 again next year I will be thrilled. Even though we finished 4th, when I watch the video, I know we can do better!!!!
Thinking back to 2 years ago, rather than put it behind us and start fresh...I want us to NEVER

FORGET THAT FEELING. I want you to bring it to mind off and on. Always keep it in the back of your mind when you are practicing. MAKE IT “THE FUEL” THAT FIRES YOU. Sometimes a “loss” can be a “win.” Our goals this year have to be to be more focused on PERFORMANCE. We have to mentally prepare ourselves, to PERFORM AS WELL AS WE PRACTICE. (Talk about Olympic Training site.) Imagery is IMPERATIVE to a great performance.

Time Management: Part of what makes a team strong is the behind the scenes organization. Let’s make sure that we all do our part. Keep a calendar/notebook in your dance bag and with you at all times. Write your commitments down. Save yourself added stress by asking off for work and dealing with commitments early.

School Work: I was so proud of our team’s academic success last year. (Academic All -State.) Lets keep that going. Make the dance team a positive force at BHS. Make grades a priority.

SUPPORT SYSTEM:
You are not joining a team.....you are joining a new family. A network of friends who will help you through the tough times of high school. Today we are passing out laminated cards with the coaches and the captains phone numbers on them. Keep them with you at all times. You will always have someone to call when you need it.

PERSONAL GOALS:
* Remember when Carlos (our Ballet teacher) told the story about when he was a little boy, how every single pair of shoes he wore a hole in the bottom because he constantly practiced his turns. (Maybe that's why he can nail 9 with no problem and has been known to go way higher!!)
* What are your GOALS for the year? Write them down. Develop a PLAN of attack.
You can’t WISH you were personally better....you have to put in the sweat.

COACHES PLEDGE:
We all say to you that we are going to give you 100%. We have spent time finding new ideas for you, lining up professionals to expand your knowledge, sending you to camp, and developing strategies that I hope will make you better....BUT, we can’t do it for you. You have to answer back with commitment.

FAIR BUT NOT EQUAL POLICY: We pledge to you that we will be as fair as possible. We can not promise that everyone will dance, because we don’t know how you are going to practice, how hard your going to work, etc. That’s why we make no promise except that we will be fair.

MUTUAL COMMITMENT WILL HELP US OVERCOME THE FEAR OF FAILURE. The most successful team I coached was a year when TEAM LEADERS worked diligently to bring up the level of our group. I don’t mean just the captains...I am talking about anyone who was good at a specific skill, helping those who aren’t at that same level....improve. Many days when I would arrive at practice, certain “team leaders” would be nurturing and helping other dancers. They would set up mini clinics for turns, kicks, etc. Some would help new dancers learn the steps in a routine, drilling them over and over. Small group practices, such as when a band has “sectionals” are VERY important. A Team Leader doesn’t have a label as such.....they just rise up and come forth. I jokingly refer to this as SPREAD THE LOVE.

TRUSTING RELATIONSHIPS: Almost everything we do will come back to TRUST. You have to trust that the coaches will be there for you and that we will be fair. We have to trust that we can count on YOU to always give 100% and work up to your potential. If we are to reach high levels....you have to TRUST the coaches and have INSTANT BELIEF in what we tell you. (You have to trust that what we do is always for the good of the team...though you may not understand it at that given moment.)

A WINNING ATTITUDE: I want to instill an attitude in you all that we eventually will win. Now that doesn't necessarily mean STATE. Our destination is to be SUCCESSFUL...it doesn’t necessarily mean a first place. There will be times when a team wins first place and everything wasn’t right. There will be times when we lose and everything isn’t wrong. Keep that in mind. The outside world will judge us that way. We have to be above that. If we are constantly looking at our win loss record....we are looking at the wrong barometer.
A real wining team is about standards of excellence, This can vary from year to year. One thing that must remain constant is being the BEST you can be and doing the BEST that you can.

ATTITUDE: Give yourself “mental makeovers.” Talk yourself into feeling good by giving yourself little pep talks. Positive talk and thoughts will make you look at things in the right mode. If you are constantly thinking negative, and crabby thoughts, you will not be able to get through the year......and even if you do...you will not have enjoyed the ride. Life is too short to not make the BEST out of each day. The journey!!!

DISCIPLINE DEFINED: Some people feel that discipline is a dirty word but it shouldn’t be. All it really means is doing what you are supposed to do in the best possible manner at the time you are supposed to do it. And that’s not so bad. But it isn’t all about “I Love You”, LET’S HOLD

HANDS AND SKIP.” Sometimes it will be “Get your rear in gear” or “what the heck are you doing” and “why weren’t you at practice?”

EMBRACE THE HELL OUT OF PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY!!!!!!!! Need I say more!
(Things such as turning in money on time, coming correctly dressed, knowing the schedule.)

YOU MUST HAVE THE DISCIPLINE OF PERSONAL HABIT which means practicing right all the time so basic, correct form becomes second nature. You also must have the discipline of GOOD SPORTSMANSHIP, BEING PATIENT, BEING ENTHUSED EVERY TIME YOU TAKE THE FLOOR. You also need the discipline to respect authority, of personal responsibility, and the discipline to be honest.

BRAINERD KIXTERS 2002-2003
You should live the journey.
You should live it right.
You should live it together.
You should live it shared.
You should try to make one another better.
You should get on one another if somebody’s not doing their part.
You should hug one another when they are.
You should be disappointed in a loss and exhilarated in a win.
It’s all about the journey.
It’s not about winning competitions or what other peoples expectations of us may be. We’re not going to fall into the traps that so many people fall into. That’s not why we’re going to dance. We’re going to dance for innocence. I’m ready. There are no excuses. Let’s go!!!!