Soccer shoes also known as soccer cleats or soccer footwear have been customized and improved over the years to fit the weather, field and player style. Designed specifically for the sport of soccer, innovations have undoubtedly been stylistic and glamorous that the upper material has been enhanced from the traditional leather to synthetics with the adaptation and incorporation of synthetic polymers. Synthetic uppers, so they claim, has it?s edge over leather in as far as durability is concerned for aside from giving the player total ball control and superior ball feel for being lightweight, they do not become stiff and out of shape when they become wet and improperly dried even though it?s credibility in decreasing the rate of injury is still in question. Out in the market for example are the latest Nike soccer shoes with external heel counters for added stability and heel fit, midsoles designed to enhance cushioning and outsoles designed for optimal traction and the new Adidas soccer shoes which have been created to be unlike anything else in the field with slip-in, sock-like construction for enhanced fit.

Still, nothing beats getting a good deal on a new pair of soccer shoes. Investing all your money on a new pair of Nike, Adidas, Puma or Lotto soccer shoes may not be reasonable especially for children as they will only be outgrown by them each year. It doesn't really have to be very expensive as long as it fits good, provides adequate support and meets the team regulations.

Hit it off during the summer before the season starts and look for regulation soccer cleats, soles of which should be made of rubber, since other sports footwear are not allowed in soccer. There are different types of soccer cleats namely: molded cleats, detachable cleats, indoor shoes, turf shoes and sandals. Molded cleats resemble the basic soccer shoe design made of non-removable rubber or hard plastic formed on the bottom of the shoe for optimal traction and control. This may be used on all field types and in all weather conditions making it ideal for beginners and players on the intermediate level. It is so safe that it has been required by many youth programs.

Detachable cleats vary in length and are usually made of hard plastic or plastic with metal tips. It is ideal for experienced players who can tailor the cleats depending on the field type and weather condition. The studs? length and type can also be altered based on the said conditions since it can be screwed on and off and replaced easily. This type is more appropriate to use on wet, soggy fields, or on well-groomed, soft grass fields. Turf shoes are basically good training shoes providing a back-up game pair for hard-surface conditions and on artificial turf as the bottom contains various raised patterns instead of studs. Indoor shoes are similar to low-cut sneakers or cross trainers. They are specifically designed for playing indoors in a gym or recreational facility for the flat, rubbery type bottom provides better traction on indoor courts or fields. On artificial turfs however they are preferred and required so that the turf won?t be torn up.

Sandals are worn before the game to preserve your soccer shoes from additional wear. It slips on easily even if your socks and shin guards are on and will allow your feet to breathe after a game. A must have for any player. When trying on a new pair, make sure to wear them with the socks and shin guards that you will be using in practice and at games. You should feel the way each item matches it's fit with the others. And when measuring, the wearer's toe should come within the width of a thumb with the end of the shoe when the wearer is standing. See Tips on How to Find Your Shoe Size for a perfect fitting soccer cleat. Also, it is common knowledge that girls and women's feet are narrower than boys and men's. However, there are a few exceptions. So, for girls and women who have wider feet, boys and men's cleats might probably fit them better. Boys and men, on the other hand who have narrower feet can wear girls and women's cleats. Don't worry, it won't make you less of a man if you do so.

Remember that the key to becoming a good player lies in buying the right pair of soccer shoes for a perfect fit will prevent foot injuries thereby leading to a player?s absolute enjoyment of the game.

Click here and check on the latest in soccer footwear and gears at shoedeals4u.com

Putting together a plan for training a time right takes time and knowledge about soccer. The best coaches have plan for what they want to teach their team, and they have a vast supply of drills to draw from that helps them cover each topic.

The drills at soccer practice should be fun and informative for players. A good practice plan maintains a certain excitement level for players at all times, rather than boring them to the point of not showing up. These free soccer drills would be great for any team between the ages of 11 and 18. They feature numerous small-sided games and some basic skills drills that your team would absolutely love.

Each of these free soccer practice designs comes from a soccer-coaching manual I have put together called ?Soccer Season Outsourced.? The book is designed to do a few different things for any youth soccer team, but most specifically it is designed to make sure that players learn and improve their game, regardless of how much knowledge the coach brings to the table.

Another goal of the book is to level the playing field between inexperienced and experienced coaches by giving the novice coach various pointers and coaching points, plus all the practice and drill designs the team will need to improve. In essence, the drills in this book are designed to be the teacher, while the coach is there to basically guide the team along, as opposed to over coaching them. It is all about letting them play!

Youth soccer leagues always need more volunteers to help coach. If you are a soccer parent who has not yet coached, I am confident that this soccer-coaching manual can help you become a great coach, even if you know nothing! If you are already a coach, this book will save you much time and heartache, giving you valuable drills that will turn your team into a dominate powerhouse.

Scott Carlson has just finished “Soccer Season Outsourced” a book designed to be the blueprint to any soccer coach's success. The instantly downloadable e-book contains 20 practices that will be equally fun and informative for players.

The concept of Customized T-shirts

A blank t-shirt with a specific, customer provided artwork or photo printed on it is generally referred to as a Customized T-shirt. The blank t-shirt can be chosen by the customer as per color, type, other requirements and quality considerations and the printing process can vary depending on the numbers required. The popular printing processes include screen printing for large batch sizes and heat transfer or direct to garment printing for smaller batch sizes. While the concept of customized printing on t-shirts for individuals is not new even in India, it has been largely restricted to a few small players doing this in malls and some photography shops having a few standard templates to plug in photos. For large corporate buyers with large order sizes, there are plenty of options but individuals looking at 1 or 2 T-shirts to express their passions have not had much to choose from. An easily accessible place, physical or online, where individual customers can try out their own designs (not just photos) and see what it looks like before deciding to buy it will be of immense help and this is where a site with an easy to use design creation application will have a role to play.

Creating a customized T-shirt

The design (also called artwork) is the heart of any customized t-shirt. While blank t-shirts are pretty standard, the quality and creativity of the artwork sets apart great t-shirts from ordinary ones. Depending on skill levels, an individual can design the artwork using software like Adobe Photoshop and then provide this to the manufacturer who will reproduce this on a t-shirt. Alternatively, for ease of use, there are design interfaces offered by some websites that can be used to arrange, resize, edit or reshape different images on a t-shirt. Whatever the method used to make the artwork, the following basic guidelines will ensure that it looks good when printed on a t-shirt:

* Texts such as slogans, names etc can be typed in one or many lines but ensure that the text is not too crowded. The size of the letters should be a minimum of 1 inch to ensure good readability on a t-shirt.

* Ideal text length should not be more than 4 words of average length in a line and not more than 4 lines in the 10 inch by 10 inch print area. This will ensure a text size of about 1.5 inches which is comfortable for reading from a few feet distance.

* Ensure that the quality of the artwork is excellent (300 dpi) as this will ensure high quality reproduction. Define a print area of reasonable size a t-shirt covered entirely in prints may not be ideal. Optimum print area would be about 10 inch by 10 inch maximum on the body of the t-shirt.

* High quality (300 DPI) photos, caricatures, cartoons, etc are great for printing. Lower DPIs can be used but the quality will be compromised a little bit.

Other customizable products

Apart from T-shirts, products like Ceramic coffee mugs and beer mugs, Mouse pads, Ceramic wall tiles and Coasters can be customized with whatever artwork an individual wants. The print area available for printing will vary based on the product that is used but in general, good quality printing can be carried out if the artwork is of good quality.

Conclusion

Evolving consumer preference and high level of competition is driving the world of manufacturing towards mass customization. T-shirts are no different and by their very nature, lend themselves to being a preferred means of expression for the passionate individual. As the customization process is made user-friendly and the cost made economical, customized t-shirt and other accessories market is expected to grow rapidly. While the online market place in India is presently small, the entry of many new players providing quality products is expected to contribute to explosive growth in the coming years.

Ravi Kumar is one of the founders of the Chennai-based e-commerce company, http://dilsebol.com. After graduating from IIMA, Ravi worked as Area Sales Manager with one of the world's largest beverage companies and as Business Consultant with one of the big 4 Consulting companies before establishing DilSeBol in 2007. DilSeBol offers an avenue for individuals to express their creativity and passion through their very own customized products. An easy to use design interface called “The Artist” allows individuals to easily create their own design and see a sample product. An order can be placed and the product will be custom-made and delivered in 3 to 4 days. Given this focus on the individual, there is NO minimum order quantity requirement. Each product is made to order and uniquely represents an individual. This gives a great chance for people to share and celebrate their interests, be it music, sports, arts, pets or anything else!

In previous posts, I have given numerous tips for working with younger aged youth football players. As mentioned in the book and in these posts, the 6-8 year old kids are very visual and we showed you many tricks on how use that to your advantage.

How do the other youth football age groups vary from each other?

These are generalizations that I have found have held true with my own teams as well as from what I have seen doing clinics and from feedback from other coaches:

Age group strata vary from league to league, these are some I have worked with:

Age 8-10: While our opponents rarely allow the eight year olds to play tackle football, we do. About 80% of our 8 year olds play tackle, the smallest and least mature 8?s play flag football. We have found with the right practice priorities like those detailed in the book and limiting most drills to tiny competitive groups and lasting no more than 10 minutes, even 8 year olds can be trained to be competent youth football players. That?s of course using the books practice methodology and not doing the 40-60 play playbook thing that many poorly coached youth football teams utilize.

This age group is the most fun to coach in my mind. They are eager to please, have few bad habits, they want to learn the game, they are enthusiastic and most of them still respect authority. This group responds real well to praise and rewards. They will test you like any group, but less so than other age groups.

Age 11-12: This group can often perform as much of the playbook or even more than the 13-14s because they still listen pretty well. Most have played at least 1 year and some as many as 3-4 years. This means you may have to break some poor habits or accountability standards that their previous coach did not address properly. They can test you and some of the top athletes may try and perform tasks ?their? way instead of yours. It is very important to require absolute adherence to the technique standards you set, otherwise it will be chaos with this group. Reward, praise and punishment are required to make this group perform to their potential. Now you can throw the waggle pass and use more motion.

Age 13-14: The most difficult, rewarding and frustrating group to coach. This age group historically has had the highest drop out rate in youth football. Players this age start to look to other interests like girls, work, other sports, video games and school to name just a few. Some kids this age with little parental support also go through stages of apathy where they don?t do much of anything. As many of these players go through puberty their bodies change, the big dominating kid is done growing and now low and behold, he is one of the smaller kids. The small kid that held his own at the younger age groups doesn?t grow a bit or goes into puberty later and is suddenly dwarfed by much larger and more aggressive players. Some players in this age group grow 5 inches and put on 30 pounds of muscle from one season to the next. They come back with deeper voices, facial hair and muscle tone, hardly recognizable from the previous year. These vast differences in maturity levels often drive slower developing kids from the game. Many weaker players by this time figure out that football is not going to be something they will excel at and stop playing. While passing accuracy is still spotty we have had players this age that can throw the ball 35-40 yards.

For us this group requires the most care, coaches are often coach and social worker to many kids this age. The one year I coached this age group with another friend, it was very rewarding. This was a “B” team where I fired the entire coaching staff 1 week before their first game. This youth football coaching staff had violated our ?No “B” stacking? rule as well as ?No Wednesday Football Practice? rule. They also failed to even remotely follow our football practice methodology template and going into their first game the base football plays and defense were not even close to being acceptable.

My friend and I were both head coaching other teams, so 2 days a week is all we had to make this group work. In addition, we moved 4 obvious ?A? level players off this “B” team and moved them up to their rightful place on the “A” team. We had a myriad of issues, tiny players, weak players, unconfident players but kids that wanted to be there. At the younger levels that is something you do not always see, some players are there because dad wants them to be a football player.

We started with 24 kids, we moved the 4 ?A? kids up, one player broke his arm skateboarding, one got taken off the team by mom for grades and one had to quit because he visited his dad in an out state prison on the same days as we played our games. We had just 16-17 kids in a ?B? league, to top it off the league decided to scrap the ?B? league that year at the last minute and just created another division where they put what they thought were weaker ?A? teams in. We were the only organization that had a true ?B? team in it, the other Orgs had just one team, so we ended up playing that organizations best team with the weakest 17 kids we had. We couldn?t afford to lose a single player that season, suiting up just 16-17 kids.

How did we do it? Lots of praise, lots of chalk talks, lots of players learning multiple positions, each player with an accountability partner like we talk about in the book in Chapter 4. To this age group, we explained both the hows and the whys of what were were trying to teach. Even with the small number of players, we did hold players accountable to practice attendance and technique standards. Some times we didn?t start the best player. Over time we got our points across and the kids knew we would not budge from the standard. After struggling early as we expected, we won out to take second place in a division we were totally outclassed in.

This age group can do it all, however they often will not be able to perform as well as some 11-12 year old teams. Even though they are physically superior than the younger age kids, this group often has to be broken of many bad habits previous youth coaches allowed to go on. While many of these players have great football intellect and athletic skills, many do have ideas of their own, that they will constantly try to use rather than correct technique. I enjoy talking and reasoning with kids this age group, but if you do not have a strong personality and the kids sense weakness, they will roll right over you.

This age group can tell if you know your stuff or not, if you don?t know it, you will not have their respect. If they don?t respect you, they will not follow you or play hard for you. They respect knowledge and expertise that will help them win games, that?s what they care about. They have to know you know your stuff, be confident and legitimately care about them. This is not the place for a first year coach, it would be a nightmare.

I?ve head coached 14 different youth football teams from age 6-8 to age 13-14. Each year I just took the team that did not have a qualified ?dad? head coach available. Over the last 6 years more often than not, this just ended up being an age 8-10 team. Today that age group is my preference, I just stay at the age 8-10 level and get a new team every year more or less. As I mentioned earlier, the kids this age are often eager to please and a blank slate. I prefer being the first one to write on those slates and mold these impressionable young football players. This helps our organization by sending well trained players to the older teams, where those coaches will now not have to break the players of poor habits. Since my teams have very high retention rates we end up ?saving? a few players that may have quit due to less aggressive coaching. Lastly I just enjoy coaching kids this age with lots of first year players and second year players coming into their own, it?s fun and rewarding.

The ?Winning Youth Football? System has worked at every age level in youth football both here in Nebraska and across the country. Chapter 7 of he book clearly states what play series and defensive schemes should be used based on each specific age group and experience level.

While there are 3 High Schools using my system as well, I do not recommend my System to High Schools. I have never coached at that level and hesitate to recommend anything to anyone that I have not thoroughly ?stress tested? in similar and multiple situations similar to theirs. I have coached 7th-8th and lighter 9th graders and our Eagle Teams at this age group have used this system the last 6 seasons, so yes I can recommend it for Junior High teams.

For those that have e-mailed me and asked me why I don?t coach the older players or even High School football As stated above, I have very good reasons for coaching the younger kids. I have no interest in coaching outside my own youth program. I have been offered (turned it down) a local paid head coaching job at a Junior High with over 900 students. I have had inquiries about assisting at the High School level as well. The time required to do those jobs well is huge and something I would not be able to commit to. My work responsibilities would allow for that easily enough, but the family time I would have to sacrifice would not be the right value proposition for me right now. The nice thing about running my own youth football program is I make the rules and have no interference from anyone, that would not be possible with a School team. I have zero aspirations of coaching anything but youth football, my impact is much wider and deeper in this arena than it could be anywhere else.

For more youth football coaching tips please stop by http://winningyouthfootball.comTo get Dave's free Coaching Youth Football newsletter, stop here: Football Plays

Copyright 2007 Cisar ManagementRepublishing allowed if links are kept intact

Dave Cisar-With over 15 years of hands-on experience as a youth coach, Dave has developed a detailed systematic approach to developing youth players and teams that has enabled his personal teams to win 97% of their games in 5 Different Leagues.

Dave is a trainer of youth football coaches nationwide. He has a passion for developing youth coaches so they can in turn develop teams that are competitive and well organized, while having fun and retaining players. His book ?Winning Youth Football a Step by Step Plan? was endorsed by Tom Osborne and Dave Rimington. His DVDs and book have been used by teams nationwide to run integrity based programs that win championships. His web site is Football Coaching

Hiking gear provides safety, convenience, and comfort. All the aforementioned hiking gear helps us in having a safe and comfortable trip. Some popular brands include Big Agnes, Black Diamond, Mountain Hardware, Sierra Designs, the North Face, GoLite, Gregory, Mountainsmith, Kelty, Marmot, REI, and much more. However, it is important to choose the right gear. Hiking gear is available in different types, colors, materials, designs, and makes, among other things.

A classic hiking boot is a must for all hikers. It helps protect the feet from getting blisters and sores. Depending upon our excursion, we can either choose a trail-walking boot or a heavy hiking boot. Clothing forms an important part of hiking gear too. Synthetic blend materials are always preferred over other materials, as they keep dry by evaporating perspiration. Brands like PowerDry, Coolmax Apparel, and Airtek make good-quality shirts.

Additional safety is also provided by hiking poles, which make hiking on slippery surfaces easy. Whistles are also important in case you get lost. Durable tents are required by all hikers for protection as well as comfort. Sleeping bags are needed by hikers too. While goose down is more durable, synthetic is cheaper and easier to maintain.

Companies which provide hiking gear supplies include Hiking and Backpacking, Altrec, REI, Patagonia, Campmor, Campready, Great Outdoor Depot, Northern Mountain Supply, Bent Gear, Just Hike, and The Camping Gear. Playing an indispensable role in our lives, hiking gear is a must for all hikers and adventure lovers.

Hiking Gear provides detailed information on Hiking Gear, Camping And Hiking Gear, Discount Hiking Gear, Hiking Gear Supplies and more. Hiking Gear is affiliated with Ice Climbing Gear.

If you are planning to start a new venture, a business lawyer with expertise and experience all of the fields affecting your business?such as labor or employment law, tax law, real estate law, banking and finance or intellectual property?would be your best bet. A business lawyer also helps you if you find yourself with a serious legal problem in the course of your business. A business lawyer helps in many areas from making business decisions to handling serious problems such as an injury caused by your product or an investigation by the SEC. If an inexperienced person handles these cases, he or she might cause serious harm to your business. Business lawyers play a critical role in several business activities, such as legal obligations and implications. If you are engaging in real estate acquisitions and dispositions, it is important to consult a business attorney. A business attorney can assist you with contractual drafting and negotiations as well as the acquisition and disposition of assets during a restructuring process. Thus, in every step of your business, right from setting up the venture to running it successfully, you need a business lawyer to help you take right decisions to run your business successfully without legal complications.

Finding a lawyer depends upon the state where you are running or planning to run a business. Since each state has its own code of law, it would be wise decision on your part to hire the services of a local lawyer well acquainted with the ins and outs of business law in the state.

To run a business in a state like New Jersey, which has strict business laws and norms, it is always safe to hire a well-experienced New Jersey business lawyer. Hiring an efficient lawyer is no easy task. It?s always good to seek references from relatives or friends, who can comment upon the lawyer?s track record and capability. Seeking a reference through the state bar of New Jersey is also a good idea. Setting or running a business venture is no easy game, so take the first right step by hiring the right lawyer, to move ahead towards growth and success.

New Jersey Lawyers provides detailed information about New Jersey lawyers, New Jersey bankruptcy lawyers, New Jersey business lawyers, New Jersey criminal lawyers and more. New Jersey Lawyers is the sister site of Louisiana Real Estate Lawyers.

The first soccer match for the United States was against the dangerous Czech Republic. The United States gave a lackluster performance and was dominated by the Czechs 3-0. This loss was a huge blow to the psyche of the American soccer team, but it would help them focus in their next match. One of the best teams in the tournament, Italy was next in line for the Americans, so things looked grim. It appeared that the United States team was going to disappoint again. However, the American soccer team displayed the skills and toughness everyone expected to see from them this year, and fought for a tie against the Italians 1-1. With Ghana beating the Czech Republic, American soccer once again had an opportunity. If Italy beat the Czechs, and the United States won against Ghana, the Americans would be into the Quarterfinals of the World Cup again. Italy beat the Czech Republic, but the United States suffered a very disappointing loss to Ghana, 2-1.

After the disappointing first round exit from the 2006 World Cup, the American soccer team fell from 5th to 16th in the FIFA World rankings. This was a huge setback in the American?s struggle to reach the pinnacle in soccer. However, we will not be disappointed for long, because the women?s soccer team is tuning up to make their run at the upcoming World Championships. Once again we will have to pin all of our hopes on the women?s soccer team to win on the world stage.

Check out the Football Manager 2006 Computer Game, the Definitive Football Manager Resource.

SUMMARY OF THE ISSUES FROM PART 1

• Success for today?s companies requires more than the brilliance of any individual.
• Leadership teams full of strong individuals do not produce high quality teamwork. If each individual just delivers on his or her own competencies, however effectively, the team is not truly functional.
• ?Synergy? created between talented individuals ? tapping collective potential ? lies at the heart of successful leadership teams.
• Research shows: 70%1 of executive teams lack clarity on what they are aiming to deliver to customers, effective strategy implementation remains a key concern for most CEOs2, and trust is a real issue in 65% of teams3.

THE BIG QUESTIONS

• Are you having the quality of conversations to make a significant difference in your business and markets?
• Does your team realise the commercial value of its collective thinking, or only its individual thinking?
• And, how could you ensure the time you spend together is transformational, rather than just transactional?

THE SOLUTION

• The ability to engage in high-quality conversations sets high-performing teams apart.
• Teams who engage in regular, quality, focused debate about their strategy, capabilities and behaviours are significantly more successful than those that don?t.
• The job of leadership is to ask and answer the right questions.

As discussed in part 1 of ?Team Leadership: Does Your Leadership Team Really Talk??, the job of leadership is to ask and answer the right questions about strategy and purpose. In part 2, we discuss the conversations about capability that leaders must use to ensure their teams are high performing.

CONVERSATIONS ABOUT CAPABILITY

1. ?What capabilities are needed to execute our strategy?? Clearly any conversation about strategy, working practices and resources also needs some objective discussion of team and individual capabilities. However, many teams fail to even consider these issues, let alone introduce objectivity into the process. This form of insularity, bred by a lack of self-evaluation and internal challenge, often lies at the heart of team underperformance. And even with the spotlight on important strategic capabilities, leadership and management teams rarely receive sufficient, targeted, development. While it is the leader?s responsibility to bring the right type and quality of talent into the team, the ability of teams to subsequently identify and close important capability gaps, as business conditions change, is crucial to ensuring effective strategy execution.
2. ?Do we have sufficient diversity in the team?? Many leaders recruit in their own image, rather than positively seeking diversity. And many teams put the lid on acknowledging let alone actively discussing their differences. Both these approaches limit the potential for ?synergy?. Whilst it?s a significant challenge for all senior teams to harness differences, the rewards are much greater when they do. Diversity of thinking style, experience and perspective can lead to more competitive products, services, strategies and business cultures. In practice, teams will need to consider whether they have an effective balance of styles ? for example ?drivers? (to push for results), more cautious thinkers (to play ?devil?s advocate?), creative problem-solvers (to help with unexpected challenges), detailed planners (to re-adjust operational requirements) and relationship builders (to help manage stakeholders). A diverse team working collectively not only creates a balanced business but one with many more opportunities.
3. ?Are we at the leading-edge of thinking?? Winning teams retain a high degree of strategic and tactical awareness that ensures they continually question their own approach and thinking. This type of self-challenge enables a team to determine whether it?s the right time to invest heavily in a new opportunity, withdraw from declining markets or continue its current approach. Teams that become too insular and self-absorbed can fail to recognise potential threats, challenge the status-quo or judge themselves by wider industry best-practices. A lack of up-to-the-minute commercial awareness can also contribute to teams losing touch with what actions drive results, and lead to a slow but inevitable decline in performance.

Case Study: A leading brand FMCG company was facing increasing competition in their core markets - leading to constant pressure on prices and an inevitable decline in margins. With new products some way off they needed to find a way of increasing the profitability of their traditional business, while driving greater productivity from their operations. Following a series of off-site working sessions to determine strategy, the leadership team decided to adopt a customer-intimacy approach that would involve them closely partnering with chosen multiple retailers. The core of the strategy involved driving up brand equity and prices, and sharing margin improvements with their chosen distributors. Success required a strong marketing and relationship strategy, supported by their ability to deliver a new, marketing-led, economic model for the business. Short-term success was good with the majority of major retailers supporting the new strategy. Extensive category-focused marketing campaigns were developed and launched ? with a combination of in-store and multi-media promotions ? and the re-branded products were selling well at the increased prices. However, margins did not improve and in some cases got worse. Six months into the new strategy the CEO was becoming very concerned about financial performance, and called the team together for a major review. Discussions highlighted a number of unexpected challenges. Firstly, the business was failing to meet its efficiency targets ? key projects to reduce costs were behind schedule. Secondly, marketing and sales were not working together effectively ? causing inconsistent communications with key customers. And thirdly, some key customers hadn?t bought into the new strategy at all. Following significant, impassioned debate about the causes of these various challenges, the CEO ? in a quiet moment ? realised that he had asked a traditionally ?operations focused? management team to execute a significant change programme. Despite their passion, enthusiasm and buy-in, they had not identified whether they had the capabilities to deliver.

Part 3 will discuss conversations about behaviour, and how a leader can create the environment for high performance.

REFERENCES

1: Kaplan &amp Norton: Having Trouble With Your Strategy, Then Map it? (2004)

2: Monitor Research Analysis: Survey of over 300 Senior Executives Across Industry Sectors (2006)

3: McKinsey: Teams At The Top (2004)

Philip Houghton (philip.houghton@cavendish2.com) is a founder Partner of Cavendish2 (http://www.cavendish2.com). This Bristol, England based partnership consults to leading brand organisations on team performance issues ? including Deutsche Post, DaimlerChrysler, Axa Life, Whitbread and Inbev.After studying Business Administration Philip worked within B2B services with a leading recruitment brand and subsequently DHL International. At DHL he held positions in Sales and Country Management and spent three years in the middle east including Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Kuwait.On his return Philip joined PA Consulting and operated as an Executive Head-hunter. Subsequently he moved into Organisation Development and held positions with Coutts, Deloitte & Touche and Sibson Consulting, working in all areas of Leadership development, culture improvement, talent consulting and team performance.

In 2002 We put the Single Wing in across the board with all four of our age 8-10 teams. Our coaches had zero experience running Single Wing yet we went a combined 38-8 that year and won 2 League Titles. The previous year we had had won 1 league Title and went a combined 19- 27. The following season our records were even better as we got better at coaching. Youth Football turnarounds do not have to take 4-5 years IMHO.

The best thing to do is get ahold of some youth single wing video of a well coached team and see for yourself. In 2001 I got ahold of Eric Strutzes State Line Comets video. Eric was a relatively young football coach and had not even played the game. His teams marched up and down the field with what appeared to be average youth football talent and average to small size. That sold me and then it was research and experimentation time.

There are countless coaches that have had great success right out of the gate with the Single Wing Offense including a bunch in my Testimonials page. But recent poll I asked the question of over 50 Single Wing Youth Coaches:

What was your teams winning percentage the first year you ran the Single Wing offense?
90-100——-16%
80-89——–21%
70-79——-16%
60-69——-21%
50-59——-5%
40-49——-5%
30-39——-3%
20-29——-8%
10-19——-0%
0-9———5%

So over 53% of first year Single Wing teams in this poll won 70+ % of their games. Not bad at all.Only 23% had losing records.

Here are poll results for the question: How hard was it for you to install the Single Wing Offense the First Year?

Easy, NO problem-46%
Somewhat Easy- 33%
Average Level of Difficulty- 15%
Difficult- 5%
Gave Up Impossible- 5%

There are countless coaches that have had great success right out of the gate with the Single Wing Offense.Take a look at our scores over the past 6 seasons.

Simple, easy to put in and it wins, what more could you ask for?

This article was brought to you by Dave Cisar. Dave is a nationally known expert in the area of youth football coaching. He is a featured speaker at the Mega and Nike Coaching Clinics and is author of the book “Winning Youth Football a Step by Step Plan” which was endorsed by Tom Osborne. His teams have compiled an amazing 97% wins in fall football using this system. For more info and Dave's book and DVD?s please stop here:
Football Coaching

Dave Cisar- Founder and President of Screaming Eagles in Omaha and Lincoln, areas in Nebraska a youth football program serving over 400 boys age 6-14. With over 15 years of hands-on experience as a youth coach, Dave has developed a detailed systematic approach to developing youth players and teams that has enabled his personal teams to win 97% of their games in 5 Different Leagues at all levels and age groups while retaining 90% of his kids.

Dave is a trainer of youth football coaches nationwide. He has a passion for developing youth coaches so they can in turn develop teams that are competitive and well organized, while having fun and retaining players. His book ?Winning Youth Football a Step by Step Plan? was endorsed by Tom Osborne and Dave Rimington. His DVDs and book have been used by teams nationwide to run integrity based programs that win championships. His web site is http://www.winningyouthfootball.com and he can be reached at dacisar@aol.com

While this is definitely not an all inclusive list, here are 5 graduate organizations that students should consider becoming a part of to add to their graduate student experience to help shape and refine them as professionals. This list is no particular order.

#1 Part-Time MBA Association

This organization is dedicated to representing MBA students that go to school on a part-time basis. Students who are earning their MBA on a part-time basis have different concerns than those who are attending a full-time program. This organization acts as the liaison between the students and the college or university. As a member of this organization students are able to take part-time MBA student issues to the school of business administration and its faculty. This organization works for the good of the part-time student body to help improve the quality of the education that they receive, the amount and quality of academic support, and the professional services and advice that students can receive. By joining this group MBA students will find a sense of community among their peers, while continuously trying to improve student relations.

#2 MBA Association

The MBA Association's goal is to provide a community where graduate students can interact through activities and services that allow their members to grow as students and as professionals in the business world. This group acts as a liaison between current students, Alumni and faculty to help students define their career goals, strengthen their skills, and develop a strong network of professional peers.

#3 Graduates As Parents

According to the Census Bureau the amount of graduate students attending college that are also parents increases by 60 percent each year. By becoming a member of this organization, graduate students will find a community of their peers that are balancing their family life with their school life. Through their peers members can pick up pertinent information regarding daycare, how to balance their lives, tips and trick for the juggling act, etc. With all of the stress that being a parent brings combined with all of the stress that being a graduate students brings, this group will allow students to de-stress their lives by surrounding themselves with like-minded people who are going through the same challenges that they are.

#4 Graduate Student Government

Graduate Student Government works on graduate student's behalves in the area of student affairs and financial affairs that affect graduate students. This organization is the liaison between graduate students and the university on matters with housing, parking, fees, and transportation. This organization also helps students to learn the ins and outs of running an organization, including problem-solving resolution skills. It also provides a place for students to interact with leaders in the organization and in the school to acquire and foster their leadership skills.

#5 Graduate Students in _____________ (insert specialization here)

Whatever the graduate student's specialization is, they should also consider joining the graduate student association for their specialization. The goal of these organizations is to provide a community where graduate students specializing in a particular field can interact through activities and services that allow their members to grow as students and as professionals in their field. These groups also act as liaisons between current students, Alumni and faculty to help students define their career goals, strengthen their skills, and develop a strong network of professional peers.

Kristie Lorette is a frequent contributor to CareersandEducation.com. Kristie Lorette is a feature writer that covers topics relating to MBA Programs and Online Colleges.