Frogs in the Woods

A group of frogs were traveling through the woods and two fell into a deep pit. When the other frogs saw how deep the pit was, they told the two frogs that they were done for. The two frogs ignored the comments and tried to jump out of the pit with all their might. The other frogs kept telling them to stop, that they were gonners. Finally, one of the frogs in the pit gave up. He fell down and passed out.

The other frog continued to jump as hard as he could. Once again, the crowd of frogs yelled at him to stop the pain and just give up. He jumped even harder and finally made it out. When he got out the other frogs said, "Didn't you hear us?" The frog explained to them that he was deaf - he thought the whole time they were encouraging him.

This story teaches three powerful lessons:

1. Our words are powerful. An encouraging word to some who is down can lift them up and help them make it through the day.
2. A destructive word to someone who is down can be what it takes to destroy them.
3. Body language can often over power the real message.

Be careful what you say. Speak life to those who cross your path. Words have power! It's sometime hard to understand that an encouraging word can go such a long way. Anyone can speak words that tend to rob another of the spirit to continue in difficult times. As coaches, we're in a special position to encourage our players!

For more information on communication methods check out our book, A Coaches Guide to Creating Team Chemistry: Tips on Coaching Female Athletes.