A spate of recent Twitter articles got me to sit down and edit this article. I think I originally wrote this in 2011 after Tim Edgerton, a UK strength and conditioning coach, named me the most influential man is strength and conditioning. At the time I was a little distressed as half of the list was made up of non-coaches.
Fast forward ten years and, I see a constant flow of Twitter articles and posts from, you guessed it, non-coaches and or at least not active coaches.
The fact is that the internet is just riddled with people telling us how to do our jobs who have never done our job.
I'm actually a bit tired of internet writers.
It always seems to be the same guys writing the same types of articles. The articles are always about what we are doing wrong in the team sport world and are usally long and drawn out with very little real information.
The writers all have the same resume.
"__________ is one of the worlds most sought after experts in the field of strength and conditioning and ….".
Next time you read one of these resumes, ask yourself a few simple questions. (or Google the author)
1- Is the writer actually one of the world's most sought after experts in any area? (or do they simply advertise themselves as such)
2- Does the writer actually make his or living in the area in which they are writing about or, do they make their living by writing? In Alwyn Cosgrove's words "have they been there, done that and, are they still doing it?"
3- Has the writer ever made a consistent living actually coaching or training people?
4- What does the writer do every day? Do they sit at a computer and write articles or do they work in the field?
5- Are they making money by telling you how to coach?
6- Did they ever make a real living doing what they are writing about?
7- Is their resume legitimate or have they inflated their qualifications and client list?
If you don't know the answer, do a little searching and find out.
You might be surprised at what you learn. I think there are a lot of Bernie Madoff types writing about strength and conditioning. Look at the last name, Madoff. Like "made off" with your money.
I may sound cynical but, I don't want to get advice from some guy who just read Four Hour Workweek. Do yourself a favor, make sure that the article you are reading was written by a person who has done the work and succeeded.