Being an effective coach for any sport is not telling kids what to do, it’s motivating them to try their hardest. Successful coaches want kids to succeed in life and in athletics. That is why I am writing about my summer lacrosse Coach, Michael Steffan. He created a team called Legends, and I played for them going into my junior year.

The summer going into junior year was my first time playing for Coach Steffan. I didn’t know what to expect because he coaches Lacrosse for Kettle Moraine. That could have been a problem because I play for Arrowhead. But that didn’t change his confidence and ability to push me to work harder and get better. Every time I slacked off, he would bring up that Kettle Moraine will beat Arrowhead if I didn’t work harder. This motivated me because he would have bragging rights that his team was better.

Coach Steffan acts like he’s a player. During practice, he joins the drills and shoots around with us and sets an example of how we should be playing. It helped me because he would try hard to make me move faster and work on my stick skills. It sometimes made me mad because I couldn’t beat him, but in the long run, he made me a better player.  My teammates and I can talk to him about school, personal problems and he will do his best to help us out, no matter what it’s about.

On one humid summer night, I drove to Kettle Moraine for a scrimmage. But when I got there, I saw that only my sticks were in my car, I didn’t have my helmet, gloves, cleats or elbow pads. I walked up to Coach and told him and he laughed at me. He did not yell at me. Instead, he acted calm. Others coaches I had in the past would have unloaded on me, but he stayed calm. He helps players gain confidence.

Coach Steffan inspires me to do more than practice lacrosse—he inspires me to work hard in school and he inspires me to help other people. Coach Steffan has to manage his team, sign up for tournaments and deal with high school kids.  Being a coach for any sport is not telling kids what to do, it’s motivating them to try their hardest. Effective coaches want kids to succeed in life and athletic careers. Thank you, Coach Steffan, for taking your time to teach me lacrosse and life skills.