WAG Speak up or stay out of it?

[NutterButter]

I've been in your situation before when our gym went through a particularly ugly time. I don't like to get involved in this kind of drama but I decided to speak up and share the positives that DD had. It's been a long time since then and the coaches (plural, I had only sent my letter to the HC and he must have forwarded it) will still reference my letter.

 

[munchkin3]

it is ALWAYS beneficial to say what is GOOD about a program! there are always enough people around to spread bad news.......spread some GOOD!!! your gym will appreciate it!!!

At my old gym, it never ceased to amaze me how much negative criticism and complaining CONSTANTLY went on.....I always made it a point to CONSTANTLY bring up the positive .....to the point where a little brat pack formed of 'bratty' parents that complained and actually did damage......no surprise that the ring leader was asked to leave, and the rest have crawled under the miserable rocks.......these people spread misery all over, not only in the gym!

 

[my4buffaloes]

I think dropping them a thank you note is very appropriate and will likely be much appreciated. I have done it when my coaches were going through a rough patch and they seemed to really be thankful to know that they had someone on their side.

 

[Anna's_Mom]

I think a thank you note is always appropriate, to both coaches and owners, especially at the end of the year or the end of the season. But really, any time you can start a note with something good you noticed and want to thank them for, do it. I was surprised the other day when I said thank you to HC about something that was nice and he was clearly touched and thanked me for noticing. I think they have to deal with so many complaints that a thank you really stands out.

 

[xxStumpyxx]

There has been a change to the girls groups at my daughters gym and a lot of the parents were not happy, even I will admit to being a little unhappy with the change, some parents emailed the gym voicing their concerns about some of the changes, I held off doing the same as I decided to give things a chance , I am glad I did. I ended up emailing the gym, not to voice my concerns but to give positive feedback and ask a few questions. The parents who complained didn't get a reply, I got a reply within 48 hours answering my questions and promising to pass the feed back on to the coach.

Because of the negative feed back from some parents the coaches evolved were starting to feel down, I decided to take the plunge and talk to them about how I felt about the changes, how happy I was about my daughters progress and how much I liked their coaching style and how it suits my daughter, one of the new coaches is young and inexperienced and the other is not used to teaching women's artistic but have shown he is great it.

To cut a long story short positive feed back either as an email or a quick word goes a long way.

 

[Byrd_USA]

That old saying. "Opinions are like aholes, everybody has one."
In dealing with emotional people, Try to stick with specifics. Keep an open mind.
Obviously if they are upset enough to make demands. Find out why.

Coaching can be a trying endeavor.
Sure, everyone welcomes praises.

Nothing makes me prouder than to run into an " old" student and know I was a small part of their path to a successful life.