Blog #18- Why do we fear scoring??

Today’s blog post is about scoring. This brings up a question for players and the crowd, why do we fear scoring? Why do players not take the ball into the net when they can? Especially the bystanders wonder why a player doesn't shoot? I believe this is about confidence issues, or in other words, the fear of failure. An article titled, “How to Conquer Fear of Failure” discusses how to work through this mental block. “Why do athletes sabotage their own success? You might assume this problem relates to a "fear of success." Fear of success does cause athletes to self-destruct. But fear of success is very rare compared to fear of failure.Both of these fears cause athletes to "get in their own way"--experiencing fear, anxiety, tension and worry about scoring and achieving results. However, these fears come from different sources.Athletes develop a fear of failure when they worry about not getting what they want and have worked hard to obtain, such as winning a championship. They develop fear of success when they worry too much about what comes with being successful in their sport. Most athletes experience fear of failure and not fear of success. Fear of failure manifests in many ways in sports. Athletes who are anxious or tense when competing are often afraid to fail or mess up. Fear of failure can also cause your athletes to try too hard, which leads to "getting in their own way" mentally. It's not enough to know that athletes experience a fear of failure. What's more important is to know what types of fears hold athletes back. As you can see from the list below, fear of failure often relates to what athletes assume they think others think about them (or social approval). Signs of fear of failure: Fear of losing a match, game or race. Kids badly want to win and are afraid they won't succeed. Fear of negative social evaluation. Athletes fear others will view them as a failure in sports. Fear of embarrassment. They're afraid to embarrass themselves in front of others if they don't perform well. Fear of letting others down. They do not want to let others down-- coaches, parents or teammates. Fear of putting in the effort and not ever getting the "payoff" or not playing to their potential. They don't want their hard work, talent and long practices to result in nothing (e.g. wins, trophies, etc.). Fear of not performing up to others' expectations. Young athletes worry about not meeting others' expectations. Fear of being rejected, losing respect, or not gaining approval. Fear of making mistakes and not performing perfectly after having worked so hard. To help kids with fear of failure, it's best to understand the specific fear and address it head on. Take fear of embarrassment, for example. If your athletes have this form of fear they worry too much about what others think about them. They need to play for themselves instead of being concerned about what others think. Help kids focus on success instead of worrying about failing. Many athletes with fear of failure focus on all the wrong things. They think more about not making mistakes than completing the pitch or gymnastics routine. These athletes need to set small goals that help them focus more on success. One option: kids should see a good result in their minds before they execute it. Athletes with fear of failure need to learn how to perform efficiently instead of perfectly. The idea here is that your athletes DO NOT have to be perfect to perform their best. They often want to over control their performance (due to their worries about making mistakes). They need to understand that mistakes are a natural part of sports. The goal is for your athletes to trust in their skills so they can play more freely and feel less tight or controlling.” The fear of failure is simply a mental block that we put up in our own minds. We don't shoot because we are scared of missing the goal, and of course you are going to miss every once in awhile, but you are also going to make them too. You need to have the confidence in yourself that you can score.

Blog #17- The Importance of Conditioning

Conditioning is a major factor in lacrosse. Because being in shape is so important for lacrosse athletes, learning how to condition your body is critical. There are several ways to do this. My team tries to strengthen our endurance and our speed by running at practice. It is a constant, everyday we run sprints and laps around a track. We run the length of the field to help us during games to be able to run it with less and less exhaustion. On other days we strengthen our body by doing push ups and sit ups and buried. This helps the strength of our arms and legs, which then will help us with our power behind our shots and our strength in defense. When we need to change things up we going swimming. This really helps our lungs stay in shape so we can control our breathing and endure running for longer periods of time. It also works your leg and arm muscles in a different way to strengthen them. This website discusses the importance of conditioning specific to the game of lacrosse. “When you watch a game from start to finish, you probably think to yourself, “Boy, they run a long way…we need to get our players to run that far.” And usually what happens is the players are asked to run distances of 1-3 miles “just to get in shape”. Although it may be true that certain players can run 3-5 miles during a lacrosse game, it’s how they run that distance that is important. I suggest the next time you’re watching a game, pick one player and watch how often they run, how fast, and how far. What you’ll notice is that the distance they run during a typical game is broken down into sprints ranging from 20-50 yards at a time. Between these sprints they will either be resting in the bench area, playing defense, or running their offensive set.While on the bench, you are obviously resting and recovering. But if you’re on the field playing either defense or offense, you’re body is accelerating, decelerating, changing direction, passing, shooting, checking, maintaining good defensive body position. All of these movements require expending a certain type of energy, and it’s NOT using the same energy system used while running long distances!” (http://www.athletesacceleration.com/conditioninglacrosse.html) This website is helpful to understand the type of conditioning that will be most beneficial. Yes, it is important to have the endurance and energy to be able to run for a long period of time, but what about when you need to sprint down the field to get the ground ball? Or if you need to sprint to get in front of your opponent that you are defending? This is why it is a smart idea to exercise bursts of speed. There are several articles, tips, and workouts to help the players strengthen their abilities personally. So, what are the benefits of conditioning? Thats easy. When you have the ability to run up and down the field without being exhausted, and when you can have those bursts of energy that are required from the intensity of the game, that feeling is the feeling of accomplishment. That is the reward! There is nothing better than being able to play your best because you have been conditioned and prepared, and on the contrary; there is nothing worse than not being able to fulfill your part as a player, or do what you need to because your physical body is holding you back. Now that might seem quite dramatic, but athletes feel it all the time. Some other benefits can be as simple as being stronger than your opponent, or being able to drill a hard shot because of your strength, or being one step ahead of your opposing player because of your agility. That is why conditioning is so important. That is why coaches push their players to do their best.

synthesis paper

“This could very well be a lacrosse world, and we’re all just living in it.” - Chris Rattey. Lacrosse is a fast, aggressive, intense sport and it should become sanctioned in the state of Utah on a high school and college level. Men and women’s lacrosse is one of the fastest growing sports across the country. It is major along the whole east coast and in the northeast, and is growing like crazy in the midwest. The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) works with US lacrosse to get its data from the schools and has reported that for the past 10 years lacrosse is the fastest growing sport. According to the percentages of growth rates for sports from 2009-2014 boys lacrosse is at 27.8% while the other sports like swimming, bowling, cross country, and water polo do not even reach 10%. Girls lacrosse is at 31.2% with the same rates from other sports. “It’s a virus in a good way. Once you pick up a stick, you’re with it for life.” - David Gross, Commissioner of Major League Lacrosse.” (Rattey, Chris. "Lax attack: Lacrosse continues to explode across the United States." Boston.com. The Boston Globe, 12 Apr. 2016. Web. 16 Mar. 2017). In Utah county it is becoming more played on a high school level and even in a junior high level. “From Cache Valley to the southern end of Utah County, there are currently 39 Utah boys varsity teams and 41 JV squads, as well as 30 girls varsity programs and 17 JV teams participating under the umbrella of the Utah Lacrosse Association. Last school year, Olympus' girls team had more participants than any other girls sport at the school and the boys team was second only to football. Together, the lacrosse rosters were made up of more than 100 Olympus High students. In the Olympus boundaries alone, there were 96 participants in Chase's eighth-grade group.” (Thomas, Sarah. "High school lacrosse: UHSAA, lacrosse proponents debate sanctioning the sport in Utah." DeseretNews.com. Deseret News, 25 July 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2017). The University of Utah has even been considering taking their boys lacrosse team to division I. They discussed the speculation and said that if it were to happen, Utah would be the first pac-12 school with division I lacrosse, and the western most division I program in the country. Division I lacrosse is mostly on the east coast, but with the sport becoming so much more popular, it only makes sense to start adding it into the school’s programs. It would be really great for the lacrosse program to be added into the pac-12 market. (McKee, Adam. "Will Utah Add Lacrosse?" Block U. Block U, 12 July 2016. Web. 16 Mar. 2017). Lacrosse has the potential to be one of the most popular sports, and it could create several teams across the state. "I know there are factors and hurdles for the schools, so I can't speak for them," Cuff said. "I think looking at the way lacrosse is being supported at a youth level and also at other states that have lacrosse, I think it's certainly a popular sport enough that they're going to have a lot of teams." ("Utah Considers Sanctioning High School Lacrosse." Utah Considers Sanctioning High School Lacrosse. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2017). Along with the expansion of men’s and women’s lacrosse in Utah, and across the whole country sanctioning would be great because of the support aspect of it. Sports are expensive, there is equipment, uniforms, travel, coaching, field use etc. With lacrosse not being sanctioned all these expenses are covered by fundraising and personal money. The coaches do not get paid, they do it out of their own free will. Finding a field to play on is a challenge to, we can not use the high school fields so we result to using elementary fields or junior highs, and even that comes with a $700 expense for the whole season. Our coach pays that right out of his pocket, and he even bought us nets to use and balls. It is the little things that are not thought about that would make a huge difference. If lacrosse stepped out of the club program and moved to a sanctioned program by high schools, it would reduce the costs for the teams, it would provide fields, uniforms, gear and equipment. Although if this were to happen, lacrosse would have to follow the regulations in the state of Utah. For example they would need to keep at least a 2.0 GPA, and paying the coaches the same amount as other coaches. ("Utah Considers Sanctioning High School Lacrosse." Utah Considers Sanctioning High School Lacrosse. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2017). Expenses are the biggest worry for sanctioning lacrosse, that makes sense. Lacrosse has more gear than most sports, and would have to start over with the purchasing of uniforms and nets and balls. But this is one of the main things, as athletes in lacrosse, are hoping for too. The support of the school would be incredible. But what about all the costs? This is a huge reason for why lacrosse has yet to be sanctioned. Lacrosse is a beautiful game, and it can be for any athlete. If the game were to get sanctioned it would create another option for multiple-sport student athletes to consider, and for those kids who are not playing a sport, it could be a great choice for them and something they could exceed at. Not only will it create more opportunities for those who have not entered into the lacrosse world, it will be great exposure for those who are. Recruiting is not easy for club sports. Lacrosse is growing on the college level too, so being able to take that next step into a higher more advanced game is something any high school athlete thinks about. But when you play on a club team, chances of getting exposure are hard unless you seek them out, which can have high expenses. From my personal experience the only way to get some attention from colleges is to apply online and send in videos and information, or get invited to go to tournaments outside of the state, which are usually a lot of money, and even then the chances are very slim. Other opportunities that would be great about the sanctioning of lacrosse is the fact that they get to experience what it feels like to be supported by peers, family, and school. ("ULA Sanctioning Letter." Utah Lacrosse News. N.p., 10 June 2016. Web. 16 Mar. 2017). Lacrosse is a beautiful game, and it is growing so fast across all the states. Several athletes, boys and girls, are hoping onto the lacrosse bandwagon. Lacrosse should be sanctioned because it creates opportunities for the players to feel supported by a school, by peers, and by family. It will help with all the expenses of playing lacrosse as a club sport, and it will continue the growth of the game by inviting whoever would like to come try the sport out. Sanctioning in the state of Utah would be very beneficial to the community of lacrosse.

Blog #16- heart

One of the most important things in any sport that makes a good player and a good team is heart. It is required and necessary for the game. Heart is desire. It's wanting the ball more than anyone else, its wanting to score more than anyone else, it's defending as hard as you can so the other team doesn't. If there is heart, there is aggression. It's being willing to run down the field as fast as you can to defend the other team, or being open for a transition pass to the offense. If there is heart there is high energy. High energy is confidence in yourself and your abilities, it is always running, always moving, being aware of the ball and getting open for it. And finally with heart there is love and support for the team. It is having love for them and trusting them and cheering them on. Heart is what gets players there early for practice and staying late. Heart is running before practice and doing wall ball. It is what makes the game go round. It is what makes the game so fun to watch and to play. It's why we play the sport, because we love it. Because our heart is in it. The thing about heart though is that it can not he taught. The coaches can not teach you to have heart, they can not teach you to be the first one to the ball or to want to shoot and score. That is what comes from within! I found a great article called “Creating an Inner Desire.” In it there were two paragraphs that talked about inner desire in a great way. “Without a true love for your sport and a burning desire to be the best you can be, you will never be able to push yourself to do what has to be done. It will be too easy to skip a workout now and then. A coach or parent can give you support and guidance, but you have to supply the rest. Only you can push yourself when you’re tired, or make yourself work out when distractions get in the way. After Steve Prefontaine had reached the height of his running career, he lost to Lasse Viren in the Olympic 5,000 meters in Munich. The loss led him to consider quitting the sport. His coach Bill Bowerman told him: “If you’re gonna run, be at the track and I’ll give you the workouts; or if your gonna stop running, then do that. You decide. I can’t coach desire.” So the drive must come from within, regardless of whether you’re a novice, a serious athlete, or competing at the elite level. The good news is that building and maintaining a high level of self-motivation is a learned skill that anyone can acquire. Motivation is energy, and that sense of self-directedness is one of the most powerful sources of energy available to an athlete. From internal motivation you gain the willingness to persevere with your training, to endure discomfort and stress, and to make sacrifices with your time and energy as you move closer toward realizing your goal.” Sports are a beautiful thing, as well with athletes. But an athlete that has heart, that is even more beautiful. ("Your Performing Edge." Your Performing Edge. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2017.)

Blog #15 - coming back from a loss

How do you come back from a hard loss? In lacrosse, such as with any other sport, you win big or win small, lose big or lose small. So how do you come back from a loss big or small and come back the next day with the win mentality? A great article titled, An Athlete’s Guide to Dealing with a Tough Loss, gives five great tips to come back from a loss. “1. A right to be disappointed: You’ve earned the right to be disappointed. Let’s face it, after putting it all on the line, competing with all your heart, it is prac- tically impossible to put on a smiling face and just forget things after a close loss. Give yourself some time. It’s OK to be disappointed. In fact, it’s even expected. Why wouldn’t you? You care, you practiced, you’re a warrior, and you fought like one! Disappointment is a natural emotion, it even hurts, and that’s ok too. It’s not something that needs to be fixed. It is time that usually heals it. Disappointment can be equated to mourning a loss. Allow yourself the time to decompress, feel your feelings, and settle down. Paradoxically, by allowing yourself the disappointment you also allow yourself the opportunity to release and resolve the painful feelings. One of the things that makes victory so sweet, and motivates us so, is knowing the feeling and experience of disappointment. 2. One step closer: Believe it or not, you are actually one step closer to your goals! The great Babe Ruth used to say every time he struck out, “I’m one step closer to hitting a home run!” Babe would learn from being up at bat, and change his strategies every time he stepped up to the plate. You can do the same. It took Rafael Nadal two years to gain the number one ranking. Each time he lost during this period he won- dered how he could improve and do better next time. It’s obvious he learned a lot after beating Federer on grass and hardcourts. Don’t forget, slumps fit in here too. It may look like you’re going nowhere, even backwards, but keep on plugging away and learning. Maybe the competition is getting stronger or the match-up is not as favorable. Remember the saying: it’s always darkest before dawn. In other words, the sun rises after the darkest hour! Keep plugging away. That slump may be a major learning curve that just needs to be ridden out, much like a wave. And just beyond the wave is smooth sailing. Hang on... 3. Failure provides feedback: If you listen you become aware. Failures, setbacks and obstacles always throw us for a loop, but it’s the true champion that can read- just and glean valuable feedback. Feedback should be viewed without judgment and as a learning opportunity in which you can make changes and adapt, adjusting to the situation next time. Think about it Was there ever a great champion, individual or team, that didn’t learn from failures, setbacks and obstacles? All great champions know why they are competing and use this big “Why” to get themselves back on track. How long did fans judge Federer during his early days? They said he was all hype. Federer was simply taking names and learning along the way. Soon enough he flourished and now has 14 Grand Slam titles. He used failure as feedback en route to his rise and now, as we watch, he has another opportunity to do the same as he tries to regain his #1 ranking. 4. Reframe it! Simply stated, after you have decompressed ask yourself the basic questions. What’s another way to look at this loss or situation? How can I find something positive from it? What’s the lesson here? Even though you lost, what can you learn? And don’t forget, at some point; give yourself some credit for showing up and putting yourself on the line. How many others are competing with such a heart as yours? 5. Focus on the process, not the outcome. This is probably one of the most important points and the major one that all other points can probably be folded into. While you lost this performance it is another step toward your ultimate goal. The match gave you valuable experience and exposed you to the situational pressure of match play. This is highly valuable and can’t be duplicated in practice. Remember, all great champions have to pay their dues and earn their experience. There was a time people were saying Nadal would be the best #2 player in the history of the game. Now people are saying this guy may win more Grand Slams than Federer.” (Admin, SEO. "Dealing with tough loss." Yips - Baseball Yips - Overcomng Sports Slumps - The Yips - Catcher Can't Throw - Golf Yips - Baseball Performance Blocks. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2017.)

Blog #14- Team Captains

What are team captains? Every sports team chooses players to lead out as captains for the team. Usually a captain is a senior. They are voted on by the team and the coaches. They have several responsibilities. “Captains embody 3 C’s in leading their team: Caring, Courageous, and Consistent. Being named a team captain is quite the honor. The position of captain is given to those athletes whom the rest of the team respect and trust to lead the team in the right direction. However, with this great honor also comes great responsibility. A captain must be accountable after a bad performance or practice. Captains are expected to perform in the clutch and lead the team to victory. It is also expected that captains will maintain control in the most pressurized situations and be the model of excellence for their teammates. Wow, coaches and athletes expect a lot of captains don’t they? Is it really worth it to be a captain? In our opinion, being a captain is one of the greatest honors an athlete can receive. Yet, many athletes take this honor for granted and do not understand the significance of their responsibilities as captain. In fact, in some situations captains may be selected because they are popular amongst their peers rather than being a suitable candidate for the captaincy. Athletes should take the captain’s role very seriously and put some thought on what it means to be an effective captain. In our opinion a good captain should embody the 3 C’s: Caring: Great captains have an undeniable passion for the game, for competing, and for their teammates. They put the success of the team ahead of their own needs and are truly concerned with the well-being of all team members. As a caring captain, you should treat all teammates with respect and recognize the contributions made by all team members. If you have a problem with a teammate, you should approach that teammate in private and in a positive way to address the situation and find a solution. The captain should be the one to stop rumor spreading and gossiping. These kinds of behaviors destroy team chemistry. Courageous: Captains are willing to step up. As a courageous captain, you must “walk the talk” and you cannot be afraid to compete in the worst of situations. Courageous captains set the example for the rest of the team. Your actions must embody the core values of the team, especially during times of adversity. Be a model of courage and dedication to your teammates by setting lofty goals and working hard to reach them. Finally, as a courageous captain you must show that you trust your teammates and coaches, and are also willing to hold teammates accountable to working hard and being prepared. Consistent: Effective captains need to be the model of consistency. To be a consistent captain you need to hold yourself to a standard of giving 100% effort in every practice and game. You cannot cut corners and earn the respect from teammates and coaches that is necessary to lead the team effectively. Consistent captains also have an authentic style of communicating. Some lead by their actions, while others are more vocal. Importantly, to be a consistent captain you must remain true to your own style of communication and not try to be someone else.” ("The 3 C's of Being a Captain." Association for Applied Sport Psychology: The 3 C's of Being a Captain. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Mar. 2017.) This is a great article that talks about captains on a team. In lacrosse it is important to have girls/boys that can step up and control the team on the field. They can get offensive plays going if they are an offensive captain,and be able to score in those crunch time moments. That is where courage is key. They can get the midfield to run down fast and defend in the middle of the field and hustle to the passes and ground balls if they are a midfield captain. If they are a defensive captain they can get the communication going and work on the double team or be in charge of taking the best player on the opposing team. Captain's can pull aside players and critique if needed, but they also need to be able to encourage and inspire the team. This is where the caring takes place as a captain. You need to care for the players you are talking to and go about it in a kind way. And finally consistency is key to being at practice every time, being there early for every game and doing everything the coaches ask.

Annotated bibliography

Jaret, Peter. "5 Nutrition Tips for Athletes." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 02 Mar. 2017. In this article, five tips are suggested to help you have better nutrition as an athlete. They are; load up on carbohydrates, eat enough protein, go easy on fats, drink fluids early and often, and replace lost electrolytes. After each of these tips is a paragraph explaining the importance behind doing so. The author did research for each one of these suggested tips from doctors and websites. It explains why each of these will help your body and your energy level so that you can participate in exercise longer. It uses these tips to help you with exercise that is more than 90 minutes. This is important into lacrosse because it teaches how to eat well before practice and games so that you can perform at your peak performance. Being able to run and being in shape is key to the game of lacrosse, therefore good nutrition is necessary to help with your strength. "The Importance of Good Nutrition." The Importance of Good Nutrition | Tufts Health Plan Medicare Preferred. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Mar. 2017. In this article it talks about the importance of nutrition. It discusses why nutrition is not just for the benefit of maintaining a healthy weight, but that it has several benefits outside of that. Such as; Reducing the risk of some diseases, including heart disease, diabetes, stroke, some cancers, and osteoporosis. Reducing high blood pressure, lowering high cholesterol, improving your well-being, improving your ability to fight off illness, improving your ability to recover from illness or injury, and increasing your energy level. Nutrition is important in all parts of our life, and it is important that even after season of your sport, or of exercise, we are still treating our bodies as best as we can. ThemeFuse. "Origin & History of Lacrosse | FIL." The Source for International Championship Lacrosse. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Mar. 2017. This website is all about the history and origin of lacrosse. It explains how it started and why, and how in the present day it has come to be and how it is growing across the country. Lacrosse was started by the indians and was typically a game just for the men. It was used for the purpose to toughen up the men that played it. It started to begin again in canada and england and then in 1904 and 1908 in was in the olympics. It then goes on to talk about the parts of the game that has been adapted since the original one was played. This is something will make my paper much more interesting because of the fun history of the game. Wilson, Connor. "What Makes A Great Coach?" Lacrosse All Stars. N.p., 26 Sept. 2014. Web. 02 Mar. 2017. This article is all about what makes a great coach for a sports team. It explains why a good coach in lacrosse would also be a good coach in another sport, because a good coach is universal depending on sports. It goes into detail on what a coach should do, and what is productive and helpful. A great coach influences his/her players to good on and off the field. On the field they are pushing and motivating their team, they correct mistakes and they understand the game. It then goes on to say that a key quality of a coach, and frankly the most important is that the players trust their coach. It talks about how if this is one of the foundations for the team, they will have great success. Coaching is a major component in lacrosse and in all sports, and it is something that has to potential to impact the players as people and as athletes in their life. Pennington, Bill. "Not Everyone Says Headgear Is Right Fit for Girls' Lacrosse." The New York Times. The New York Times, 06 Mar. 2016. Web. 02 Mar. 2017. This article is all about the debate of headgear now being required for women's lacrosse. Women’s lacrosse is one of the leading causes for concussions in sports, so the lacrosse association has been starting to try out headgear for the girls program. The article talks about how it has caused quite a controversy from the coaches and the players about making it a new rule. The coaches are worried that it will change the mentality of the game because the girls will play more aggressive which could lead to playing more like the boys do. The article then goes on to talk about all the positives of headgear and that their top priority is safety for the girls. This is important to lacrosse because it is recent news, it is happening now, and it is interesting to see what goes on in the lacrosse community. Inc., Hearst Television. "Women's lacrosse debates helmet use." WBAL. WBAL, 22 Oct. 2016. Web. 03 Mar. 2017. This article is also about the debate of helmet use in women’s lacrosse. It differs from the last one though because it is more about personal experiences that try and convince that helmets should be enforced. The author did a feature story on a senior in high school who has been playing for a while and has suffered from several concussions and how she was on board completely with wearing a protective helmet. There are also quotes from doctors and coaches and their opinion on the subject and then the article closes with a possible solution for the debate; to make them optional to the players. Once again this is an interesting debate that will help my paper to be more well-rounded. What boys can learn from girls' lacrosse. « Lacrosse I.Q." Lacrosse I.Q.N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Mar. 2017. In this article a men’s lacrosse player talks about what he thinks men can learn from girls lacrosse. He starts off by talking about how although the games are very different in their style of play, neither of the games are better than they other, and they should not be downplayed. He discusses that women work better together as a team because that is a key importance in women’s lacrosse. He also says that girls have better defensive positioning, much like basketball. Women have to play with more man to man, body defense because the rules restrict so much stick contact, unlike the boys. He finishes by saying that the men need to step up their communication on their field, such as women do, for better playing and team chemistry. This is a really great article to add into my paper because it shows that women's lacrosse and men's lacrosse, although very different are equal. "Building Trust Inside Your Team: Creating a Strong, Cohesive Group." Management Skills From MindTools.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Mar. 2017. This article starts off talking about why trust inside a team is so important. It then goes on to list six ways a team can build better trust. These are; lead by example, which they explain means means that the responsibility is on you and on me to trust our team if we want to be trusted, so that others could potentially follow your footsteps. The second one is communicate openly with your team. Third is know each other personally, fourth is do not place blame, fifth; discourage cliques, and the sixth final one is discuss trust issues if necessary. This is something I learned that I wanted to add to my paper to increase the skill and capability of the team that I play on and teams or positions in life where trust will continue to be important. Writer, Leaf Group. "The Importance of Trust Within a Team." The Importance of Trust Within a Team | Chron.com. Chron.com, 08 June 2012. Web. 03 Mar. 2017. In this article Cynthia Measom discusses the why behind trust being there for a team. She emphasizes that it is important that every single player is trusted and trusts their teammates. She goes on to break it down into categories that are important on a team and why they are important to trust. Such as; commitment, competence, communication and collaboration. In her article she goes into depth under each one of these topics and how it should work to build the team's trust. Trust is a major component in any sport, it can affect lacrosse in a positive way or a negative way, but overall it is one of the most important qualities a lacrosse team could have.