Every season, a coach should ask themselves if they should continue to coach that season. It's a good time to reflect on personal objectives, and the objectives and opportunities of the team.
When to Stay: It may seem obvious, but there are a couple reasons to consider for staying.
Growth: every year that a coach stays with a program should result in personal growth. Learning from others, situations, etc is a big investment by the program and individual. Really big.
Player relationships: a new coach coming into a team is usually greeted with a certain amount of skepticism by the players. Some new coaches are accepted quickly, others take time. Making that investment in time, builds that trust.
Personal blessing: there can be great personal reward, which is the result of positive fruit. That personal feeling of accomplishment is no accident. That blessing shows that things are right.
Resources are hard to find: small, volunteer based organizations are always challenged to find new coaches. Sticking around can help the organization out.
When to Go: there is a book titled "Necessary Endings" which makes the point that life is fully of cycles, which includes endings. Endings are okay and necessary, and coaching is no different.
Family: If the family asks you not to coach, you'd better listen. They may not come right out and say it because they see that you're personally invested and not want to create waves, so make sure it's safe for them to express that. Your family comes first. Your family may also have cycles where you may need to direct your attention to some other activity that will help other members of the family grow.
Better options: Believe it or not, there may be better coaching options out there than you :-) You should be looking for those options early on and help to mentor. There may also be new options that appear on the scene. Be gracious.
Burn out: Coaching is a lot of working and you might be getting burned out. You need to take care of yourself.
Personal Differences: there may be people in the program that are just difficult to work with. Repeated issues may be a sign to move on. It may be time to break the cycle of problems. Maybe it's you, maybe it's them. Either way, think about what your needs are and their's. They may have a bigger stake in the program at that point.
Sometimes it's hard to make the decision to go. You'll have invested yourself with the players and want to be part of what comes next for them. You feel the investment of time, and that will be significant. You'll have hunger for one more win! I totally get that. But change can be good and open up more opportunities.
Bottom-line: every year, in the spring, ask the question - should I go or stay?
