Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Jesse Mermuys speaks about understanding your players body language, whether positive or negative, and how to look beyond the physical reaction.
According to Mermuys, coaches are always analyzing everything they can, and nonverbal cues are no exception. When a player is so focused on performing well, however, they may not always be aware of the body language they display to others around them. Mermuys urges coaches to help athletes be aware of their body language, but he also tries to keep in mind that even if a player displays poor body language, that doesn’t necessarily mean that’s how they feel. Rather than focus solely on how the body language looks, Mermuys instead focuses on getting to know his players deeply, so he can get a further understanding of the causes of a players’ body language, and know whether their body language is reflective of something problematic.
Positive Coaching Alliance develops BETTER ATHLETES, BETTER PEOPLE through resources for youth and high school sports coaches, parents, administrators and student-athletes. In addition to 1,000+ free audio-video and printable tips and tools at PCADevZone.org, PCA has partnered with roughly 3,000 schools and youth sports organizations nationwide to deliver live group workshops, online courses and books that help those involved in youth and high school sports create a positive, character-building youth sports culture.