Skip to content

Coach Self-Review

A structured template for evaluating your own coaching. Use this monthly or whenever you feel stuck.

The quick post-class reflection (“What went well? What would I change?”) should happen after every class. This self-review is the deeper version: a periodic checkpoint to assess patterns across multiple classes, identify what you’re consistently doing well, and figure out what to work on next.

How to Use This

Section titled “How to Use This”

Set aside 15 to 20 minutes. Think about the last month of classes you’ve coached, not just the most recent one. Be honest. The point isn’t to feel good about yourself or to beat yourself up. The point is to see clearly so you can improve.

Rate yourself 1 to 5 on each item:

  • 1: I rarely do this or actively struggle with it
  • 2: I do this sometimes but not consistently
  • 3: I do this most of the time
  • 4: I do this consistently and well
  • 5: This is a strength; I could help other coaches with it

After rating, pick one area to focus on for the next month. Not three. One. Chase one rabbit.

Game Design

Section titled “Game Design”

Do I pick games with specific, observable targeted goals, or do I default to “let’s just play from this position”?

Are my win conditions concrete and measurable? Could a first-day student understand them?

Do I communicate all five elements clearly (starting position, objectives, constraints, win conditions, switching)?

When a game isn’t working, do I change the rules or add constraints? Or do I just talk more between rounds hoping students figure it out?

Am I using the drill-to-game pattern when students need a movement pathway before they can play productively?

Self-rating (1-5): ___

Coaching Language

Section titled “Coaching Language”

Am I using external cues more than internal cues? If I wrote down my last ten coaching cues, how many would reference the environment/opponent vs the student’s body?

Do I use concepts and metaphors before resorting to step-by-step body-part instructions?

Do I ask perception-building questions (“What do you see?”) or do I default to telling students what to do?

Am I speaking in the common language (alignment, core mechanics, the canonical terms from the glossary)?

Self-rating (1-5): ___

Focused Feedback

Section titled “Focused Feedback”

How many teaching points do I make per stoppage? If the answer is more than one or two, I’m over-coaching.

After giving a teaching point, do I watch whether students use it before adding another? Or do I just move on to the next idea?

When I see something in a round, do I choose between the four responses (sustain focus, link to a related skill, fix an error, increase awareness), or do I just say whatever comes to mind?

Is my live feedback during rounds quick and external, or does it pull students out of the game?

Self-rating (1-5): ___

Time Management

Section titled “Time Management”

Are my breaks between games under two minutes? If I’m not sure, I should time myself next class.

Does each segment of class get its allotted time, or do I consistently run long on one segment and short-change another?

What percentage of class time are students playing vs listening to me? If I had to guess, is it 80/20? 70/30? 50/50?

Do my classes start and end on time?

Self-rating (1-5): ___

Room Reading and Adaptation

Section titled “Room Reading and Adaptation”

During games, am I actively watching and assessing? Or am I mentally planning what to say next while students play?

Can I identify the one or two most important things students are struggling with in a given round?

Do I adapt my plan based on what I see, or do I deliver the same class regardless of who’s in the room and how they’re performing?

Am I an adaptive coach (continuously responding to what’s emerging) or an adapted coach (doing the same thing every time because it’s what I know)?

Self-rating (1-5): ___

Entropy

Section titled “Entropy”

Does chaos increase within each segment of my class? Drill to constrained game to less constrained game to open play?

Have I caught myself stopping a game to demonstrate a technique? If so, what happened to the room’s energy?

When I want to introduce a new movement mid-segment, do I save it for the next drill-to-game entry, or do I interrupt the game?

Self-rating (1-5): ___

Energy and Culture

Section titled “Energy and Culture”

Do I set the tone at the start of class, or do I just start the warmup?

When someone is going too hard, do I address it? Or do I hope it resolves itself?

Does every student get individual attention from me during class (at least one positive comment and one constructive nudge)?

Am I engaged and present for the full class? Or do I check out during certain segments?

Am I modeling the culture I want? Playfulness, investment in loss, respect for all training partners?

Self-rating (1-5): ___

Kids-Specific (If You Coach Kids)

Section titled “Kids-Specific (If You Coach Kids)”

Am I picking partners deliberately based on timidity, size, and social dynamics? Or am I defaulting to random pairings?

Is my boundary enforcement consistent regardless of my mood, energy, or how much I like the kid? Am I “strict but silly”?

Are my instructions under 30 seconds between games?

Am I giving every kid specific, genuine praise during the closeout? Not “good job” but something concrete they did?

Am I handling behavioral moments calmly and consistently? Or do I avoid confrontation?

Am I communicating with parents when I should be (injuries, behavioral concerns, positive updates)?

Self-rating (1-5): ___

Summary

Section titled “Summary”

My highest-rated area: ___

My lowest-rated area: ___

The one thing I’m going to focus on for the next month: ___

How I’ll know if I’ve improved: ___

Something I want to ask another coach about or observe in their class: ___

Resources

Section titled “Resources”