The head coach of Tufts’ men’s cross country and track and field teams, Ethan Barron has learned a great deal since he took over the programs in an interim capacity during the 2005-06 academic year. Now the full-time coach, the 2001 Middlebury graduate provides other young coaches with some important advice in the Coaches’ Corner.

Any good leader understands how fast hypocrisy can destroy one’s credibility and integrity. Being a reliable role model is critical to developing a successful coaching relationship with your athletes. This fact is true for both action and thought. As a young coach, I have found that role modeling actions, such as dedication, loyalty, work ethic, and making healthy lifestyle choices, is the easy part of the job. The difficult part lies in role modeling thoughts and truly internalizing my own classification for success. I set a very internal definition of success for my athletes, yet have found it very difficult to measure myself by this same standard.

Failure and success have absolutely nothing to do with the outcome of any race or competition. However, it does have everything to do with how well you sleep at night. If, when your head touches down, you slip into a deep, restful sleep…then you’ve succeeded. Success is the absence of REGRET.

The only immunization against regret is simply doing and understanding that you did everything in your power to put your best effort forth. Anything except striving for your best is failure. Many disagree, and say that with this definition I am destined for failure. They claim that with this approach I will always fail because perfection is unattainable.

However, that is exactly my point. Gauging success and failure by whether or not perfection is achieved reflects an exercise in futility. We are all guaranteed failure. It is in the mere ‘drive to attain’ perfection that success will present itself.

This is my definition of success, one that I instill upon my teams, and one that I struggle with mightily as a young coach. Coaching embodies so much more than a profession, it is a privilege. Yet as a young coach, I can’t help but feel some external need to prove myself. I was a 26-year-old head coach whom many felt was a poor choice for the position. And maybe it was spite for those who doubted me, or a desire to validate those who believed in me, or maybe it was just a selfish desire to win, but I began to measure my own personal success by our programs’ championship performances. I lost sight of my own introspective definition. My need to be accepted by others outweighed my need to respect myself. And that should never be the case.

That being said, I have two thoughts for any other young coaches finding themselves in new roles. First off, dogs and bees may be able to smell fear, but athletes will always sense hypocrisy. If you don’t truly believe what you’re saying, then DON’T SAY IT. It’s a slippery slope to start walking. Finally, the only person who can ever decide whether or not you are a good coach is YOU. Constant and honest self-reflection is a key part of the job. So be cautious with whose advice you seek and be patient with those who have been coaching longer than you’ve been alive. I understand that this is a job and it is what puts food on the table; however, there are some things that extend beyond that fact. Peace of mind is one of them.