Everything Your Coach Never Told You Because You're a Girl: and other truths about winning

I purchased this book in 2017, for myself, when I accepted High School Varsity Girls Soccer Head Coach position at a small to mid-sized school in NY. This Fall, I am moving on to a new position as the Head Coach of another Girls Varsity team in Connecticut. Just ordered 25 new copies, that the new players will get after I am introduced to the team.I figure it is about time to say Thank You to Dan Blank.BY FAR----his books have been the biggest influence in my/our success, and in how I was able to cultivate a winning team mindset in our team. When I came to my first school in 2017, soccer there was an afterthought. They never won a thing. By the time I left last month, the school had 4 Class Championships, 2 Regional Championships and played for a State Championship. We went from being the school that everyone scheduled on their Senior Night to being the school nobody wanted to play.Got National Licenses from both Federations. Yes, you need that to know how to train your players effectively. But I will tell you undoubtedly, the thing that got us there was we used this book as a roadmap to create a mindset and culture where the expectation was "we are here to succeed, and we are willing to do the work required to win". Easy to say. How do you do it? I had a vague idea of what kind of environment I wanted to exist around the team. This book (and Soccer IQ 1+2) bought it all in to focus for me. I will tell you that 90% of the battle is getting your team to buy in. IF you can do that, the rest so much easier.This fall I am moving on to a new coaching challenge at a bigger school (that has had a mediocre soccer history...hmmmm) in Connecticut. Just hired this week, will be meeting with the team soon. My plan is to introduce myself, then give every player a copy. How do we get there together? THIS is where we begin.

Excellent book to motivate both coaches and players alike. I did not necessarily agree with all of the author's thoughts, but it is well meaning and purpose driven.

Everything Your Coach Never Told You Because You're A Girl by Dan Blank might just as well be titled "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: If Clint Eastwood was Your Coach". It's a classic, it's a 5 star show, and it will never be old. I'll be hanging onto this book and reading it again and again whenever I think I've lost my competitive edge and need a few good reminders about what it takes to be a winner.I use to play but now I coach. I've read every book Dan Blank has written so far except for Happy Feet and this is one of his best (BTW all of his books are excellent). While the title of this book implies it's just for girls, in fact I found it's loaded with stuff my coach never told me and I'm a boy. Perhaps coaches never told me "truths about winning" because they assumed somehow I instinctively knew how to be an outlaw. I believe this book is just as relevant for boys as it is for girls however nobody has ever written something like this for girls, at least that I know of and that makes this book bodacious.There's no "beating around the bush" writing here, from the get go Blank goes straight into the psyche of serious competitors and it's not dressed up in the slightest. I read Dan Blank's other books rather quickly (they're hard to put down) but this book was a tough read for me because I wasn't prepared for its intensity. Temporarily I found I had turned into a full-time competitor, something normal society does not considered as acceptable behavior. Dan Blank mentions this in the book i.e. the arena of competition versus normal everyday society. The problem was, I was on Chapter 20 titled "Be the Bully" and I became the bully. I wanted to win everything and it didn't matter who I was competing against, whether it was fair, or if the other person even knew it was a competition. I checked my attitude soon enough and continued reading this book in smaller doses, there's a lot of power written in these pages that could mess you up mentally (that or I'm just weak and worship this guy).Dan Blank deserves a lot credit in my opinion for having the courage to write this book. I think he has possibly opened himself up to receive criticism from the coaching community, especially from the youth coaching community. It's important to keep in perspective this book is for college soccer players. If you've read any of his books it's obvious he's a very passionate college soccer coach who has a unique and valuable perspective about competition that anyone would enjoy and learn from reading. If you are a competitive player this book will only make you better and I highly recommend it. If you're like me and have transitioned into coaching (youth coaching) I also highly recommend this book but you may also want to read "Changing the Game" by John O'Sullivan as a companion just to keep balance within the force. Dan Blank is the Sith Lord of winning and John O'Sullivan is Yoda, you'll meet your destiny when you are ready and there's no reason to face your father when you are only 9, never getting the chance to face him when you are in your prime.This is an amazing book that will make you think and ponder "The Meaning of Life" (Chapter 33). I wonder if there are any secrets he didn't give away in this book? Lastly, please don't buy this book as I'd prefer to have the advantage if we ever meet in the arena of competition when I destroy you without regret or remorse, laugh when you cry, and rub it in during my interview. Thanks for writing another fantastic book.

This is a sports psychology book with a truly American feel. It's a book of anecdotes about a winning college football team and how they became a winning team.

Inspiring.. Motivational.. Brilliant!

Ce livre raconte l'histoire d'une équipe entraînée par l'auteur. L'histoire tourne en rond. Ces autres livres concentrés sur le soccer et non le leadership sont plus intéressants.

Read this with my kids (8 & 11) who both play soccer. It's written for grade 6 and up I think, but the concepts are universal with good examples

The book provides advice and motivation for sports women to go beyond the expectations of society to become the best they can be. The author takes a pretty extreme stance in relation to competitiveness and winning at all costs. In providing such a contrast to the norm, the book attempts to shock the athlete into making changes to their mental and physical approach to preparation and games.