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Deciding which to talk about first, team goals or individual goals, is difficult. Formulating individual goals is critical to the success of the individual as are team goals to the success of the team. Overall they must at least be mutually viable. At best they are linked in a way that each supports the other. So the order in which they are discussed may not be as important as the manner in which they are formed.

At North Attleboro the default setting for the spring track team goals has always been to win everything. In that respect there isn't a lot of team discussion generated by the coach. The expectation is always there. But there is often a bond created within the athletes centered around team goals. This brings out the first necessary component to achieving team goals.

#1. The athletes have to believe in their team.

There is no greater resource to make this happen than the seniors. Leadership comes not just from the captains but from all seniors. If they think only of themselves and their performances the team becomes a loose organization of individuals. Even if they have enough talent to win they miss out on the joys of sharing victories with others. If the seniors believe in the program and their teammates it generates a momentum of enthusiasm that inspires individual athletes to perform even better than they would have just for themself. The next important ingredient is:

#2. The athlete must be dedicated

Nothing great can happen without dedication. If the level reached, no matter how high, is attained without hard work, by its very nature it must not be great. Certainly higher levels must be possible. Athletes that believe in their team become committed to its success. There is more impetus to work hard. And since you are sharing success and failure there is more impetus to be there everyday. I have probably worn out the phrase "there are no degrees to dedication". I truly believe this. You either are or you're not. If you can skip a day or take it easy when you're supposed to be working hard you just can't care. You are unwilling to invest fully of yourself. You're not committed. But finding something more important than self, a team goal, can create levels of dedication that can also make the attainment of individual goals more likely. Once you are committed one of the difficult aspects of team success becomes a little easier. That is:

#3. The willingness to sacrifice.

Even when team and individual goals are closely aligned, sometimes you can't accomplish both - at least at the same time. An athlete might have to move from a favorite event that they could win to another event to keep from getting swept. This could lead to fewer personal points and maybe one less headline. But the sense of satisfaction in having made the difference in a meet will always be worth it to the team motivated athlete. Danielle Pond is a great example. Over her last two years she stepped out of her strongest event countless times because her flexibility allowed her to help the team in some areas of extreme need. It certainly lowered her career scoring but won some critical meets. Most notably, as a senior at the Hockomock Championships she gave up her 4X100 spot to a slower underclassman. Instead she ran the 4X400. It was a move from an event we would surely win which would gain her an all-hock spot to an event we probably wouldn't win. But her 400M leadoff gave NA a big lead over Foxboro and the team held on to place second over all - but ahead of Foxboro to win the meet. Maybe the saying "Good things come to those who wait" is applicable in this situation because a few weeks later she moved back to the 4X100 and NA became state champions in the event.

I'll take another look at team goals later in the season but check out tomorrows "individual goals" and how they can be formulated to help the individual - and the team!