Amongst the practical skills I have learned during my internship at Burnley FC one of them has been professionalism and how to communicate with others.
Punctuality is a necessity as sessions often require extra time to set up prior to the players arriving. Being late could not only look unprofessional but the insufficient time to set up could jeopardise the sessions due to poor organisation.
Presentation is also a key factor. On the first day at the club I was provided with full kit which all staff are to wear when at the club. The way you present yourself reflects the club and its your responsibility to ensure that you present yourself in a professional manner. This doesn't just mean physically but also how you address other members of the team, the players, the staff and visitors at the club.
Communication is vital within the field as coaching requires effective verbal or visual communication in order to provide proper instruction as to what the players are to do. Communication needs to be clear, concise to provide the players with the appropriate information needed in a short space of time. Good delivery of instructions demonstrates confidence and instils trust into the players to know that the information given is of quality from a specialist within the area. In contrast, poor communication could be cost effective in terms of time management as explaining sessions or exercises could take time when this is often limited.
In order to effectively deliver aims to the players, written, verbal and visual forms of communication are utilised during gym sessions at the club. The session plan is written on a whiteboard for all players to refer back to if unsure, whilst exercises are individually demonstrated to the players with verbal coaching cue's. I feel this method of instruction thoroughly explains what is asked of the players and seemed to work very effectively from session to session.
Burnley consists of a large multidisciplinary team highlighting the importance of communication across the disciplines. As each discipline works closely with each other communication is crucial to ensure everyone is up to date with the current situation. Such team work is also a desired attribute for most careers within the industry and experience within such an environment will help me in my future career.
Communication within such an environment is priceless, asking questions can expand your knowledge greatly as generally other members of staff have followed the same route as you and can offer valuable information which could help you in future. I was speaking to a physiotherapist at the club who explained how he was currently undertaking his masters, which has always been an interest of mine. Through conversing with someone in a position where I wanted to be I gained information on pursuing further education which I otherwise wouldn't of known.
In contrast, although a good relationship with both staff and players is good, it is important to remember that you are there to do a job. Some of the other interns socialise with the players and although this may build a stronger relationship it isn't a working relationship which could possibly effect the way you perform your job, in particular with the players you have friendship with. This could lead to favouring a certain player or changing the way you look at the role of your job which could lead to diminished results.
Although practical skills are necessary for the strength and conditioning profession, my experience at Burnley has highlighted the importance of professionalism and communication which are vital components to developing a career within the field.
