Coach Sytia Messer

I was very honored when Felicia asked me to speak at, “A Step Up Dallas 2012”. I believe this symposium will help to improve the careers of assistant coaches and I feel blessed to be a part of it. One thing that I tell my coaches is, “You are only as good as the people around you.”  Therefore, why not improve yourself while helping your career and ultimately others?
Last year, one of my assistant coaches, Coretta Brown, attended the symposium in Chicago. She had nothing but great things to say about the experience. She came back and shared the knowledge she had obtained while she was there. I could tell she had learned some great things that would be of value to her in her career as well as to our basketball program.
This is a great opportunity to learn from other coaches and schools. Also, this symposium is a way to form contacts and develop friendships with coaches in many different areas.  In my opinion, the keys to being a successful coach is continued self assessment, in order to identify your strengths and weaknesses,  surrounding yourself with others who possess the characteristics for which you are weak in, and then seeking every opportunity to  grow and learn from others.   In turn, it helps to improve the coach, a team and the lives of student athletes. I fell very blessed to be a part of the symposium this year!

Coach Sytia Messer is the Head Coach for the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles. Follow Coach Messer on Twitter (Twitter.com/CoachMesser).

Ronald Hughey is an Assistant Coach for the University of Texas Longhorns.

Josh Keys is an Assistant Coach for the Stetson University Lady Hatters. Follow Josh on Twitter (www.Twitter.com/JoshKeys).

Grant Fausset is the Director of Basketball Operations for the Texas Tech University Lady Raiders. Follow Grant on Twitter (www.Twitter.com/gfausset) and connect with him on LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com/pub/grant-fausset/9/284/905).

Coach Danielle O’Banion is the Associate Head Coach of the University of Memphis Lady Tigers. Follow her on Twitter (www.Twitter.com/DJObanion) and connect with her on LinkedIn (http://www.LinkedIn.com/pub/danielle-o-banion/14/a97/31a).

AT-A-GLANCE:

Assistant Coaches/Director of Basketball Operations Symposium Agenda
April 27 – 29, 2012

Friday, April 27, 2012

1:30pm – 4:30 pm                On Court Skills Development Clinic

6:30 pm – 7:30 pm              Welcome & Legend’s Keynote Address

7:30 pm – 8:30 pm              Networking Reception

Saturday, April 28, 2012

8:00 am – 9:20 am              Legend’s Breakfast

9:30 am – Noon                   Professional Development Concurrent Sessions

Noon – 1:30 pm                   Lunch on your own

1:30 pm – 5:30 pm              Concurrent Sessions

5:30 pm – 6:30 pm              Round Table Discussion

Sunday, April 29, 2012

7:30 am – 8:20 am              Christian Fellowship

8:30 am – Noon                   Professional Development Sessions

12:00 pm – 12:30 pm          Closing

ASSISTANT BASKETBALL COACHES SYMPOSIUM SITE ANNOUNCED
College coaches to take ‘A Step Up’ in the Lone Star state, April 27-29

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (July 25, 2011) – Felicia Hall Allen & Associates announced today that the city of Dallas (Texas) has been selected as the site for the 2012 Assistant Basketball Coaches Symposium, A Step Up (Athletic Symposium to Elevate & Uplift Professionals).The Symposium, to be conducted April 27 – April 29, is expected to bring together hundreds of assistant basketball coaches, as well as current and former head coaches and athletic administrators from all divisions of basketball around the country.

“Dallas has a great reputation for its southern hospitality,” said Felicia Hall Allen, CEO of Felicia Hall Allen & Associates. In recent years the city of Dallas has played host to some of our biggest championship level collegiate and professional sporting events. With that in mind, we believe that Dallas will be a great fit for all coaches pursuing championship level success on the sidelines and wanting to take A Step Up in their careers”.

“Each year the committee chooses a new and exciting city to host the symposium in an effort to create an opportunity for coaches across the nation to gain professional development, elevate their performance and expand their knowledge of the game,” said Johnny Allen, the symposium’s director.  The first symposium was held in Atlanta, Georgia in 2010. Last year the three-day event moved to Chicago, where over 200 coaches and directors of basketball operations convened in the windy-city for an uplifting, thought-provoking weekend.

Monica Paul, director of sports marketing of the Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau, said that the A Step Up symposium is a natural fit for Dallas – one of America’s best sports cities. “In addition to the 2009 NBA All-Star weekend and Super Bowl XLV, the city also recently hosted a successful NCAA Division I Women’s Regional, and we’re preparing to bid on future Big 12 women’s basketball conference tournaments and a future NCAA women’s Final Four.

“Coaches who attend A Step Up will enjoy Dallas’ rich sports history as well as some of the nation’s finest entertainment, arts, dining and shopping.”

Allen, a former NIKE Manager for women’s basketball and Team Executive in the WNBA, created the A Step Up in collaboration with her husband Johnny as a career building and professional development opportunity for women’s basketball coaches. Their mission was simple: to help assistant coaches gain knowledge, discover coaching insights and develop strategies, techniques and tactics to help them reach their full coaching potential.

For more information on A Step Up, log on to www.feliciahallallen.com

Contact: Felicia Hall Allen at fh@feliciahallallen.com  

(704) 968-1987

A recap of a GREAT weekend!

What was the best feature of the Symposium?

· Presenters, Personal Interaction, Giving the “Free Agents” and opportunity to sell themselves, Food, Energy and Positivity!

· The Speakers!

· Crisis Management Topic. This was a topic that’s not usually discussed at coaching clinics.

· On the Head Coaches Panel I heard this phrase that has had an incredible impact on me . . . ” LOYALTY above all except HONOR.”

· The intimate feeling of the symposium. It was big enough to have multiple networking opportunities but small enough to really feel vital in each session.

· Having 1st hand knowledge from current NCAA Champions, the discussions at roundtables with other assts opinions, experiences and suggestions.

· The openness of the Symposium as a forum was remarkable. It was easy to meet people at the event and learn from their experiences, both speakers and participants.

· The ability to network with others in the same position.

· Not only the speakers, but the quality of the interaction with colleagues was the highlight. The topics were great, but the conversations around the topics were OUTSTANDING!

· I think one of the best features was the fellowshipping on Sunday. To take time out to be thank God for all that we are and have. And second, the networking and posting of jobs needed and jobs available.

· I would recommend this event to EVERY Assistant Coach/DOBO in the country.

· The Hotel was a nice and I loved that made me feel classy when I was staying there.

· The Directors of Ops. had their own sessions!!

Some takes away from various Symposium Sessions:

· Developing game changers is more about psychology than anything else

· Demonstrate more patience in developing confidence

· Players are different and learn different

· Nurture the players individually

· Tips about leaders/motivation

· Head coach should give vision and team goals. Position coach should offer small goals for players.

· Different ways to set up official visits; question and answers

· Getting people on campus does not mean the job is done

· How to make the best of our your “Selling points” on your campus

· Make unofficial visits official! Practice what you preach

· More ways to make visits more smooth

· When changing the culture, prepare the kids that are returning

· Value of scripting my head coach more

· The 12 Keys to having a successful program

· I need to invest in myself, but my 1st priority needs to be helping my head coach succeed

· It gave me a better understanding of how to learn about myself, assist my head coach, and benefit my program and maximize my potential of coaching

· Pay attention to the details

· Character in this game and profession is important

· Don’t forget the brand. Don’t let anyone tell you . . . you can’t

· You are useful but not necessary, and be willing to reinvent in myself

· The importance of developing your anchors and who you are and sticking by your standards and not letting results affect decision making

· That you never stay the same you get better or you get worse.

· Enjoy the Journey! Never stop learning. Make sure the journey is worth it.

· “ Find new ways to say the same thing”

· You can get fired and still make it.

· Be a problem solver.

· Getting the maximum for the minimum (T.J. Maxx).

· Difference between “crisis” and “problem”

· Camp is a year-round job

· Focus on different ways to draw people into your program

· How to be completely prepared

· Using your head coach’s personality to put them in best marketing situation

· How to better present myself in the office and relate to my co-workers