ASK KOLAT: How Do You Build Self-Motivation?

Tune in every Wednesday to listen to ASK KOLAT. Hear 2000 Sydney Games US Team Member, World Medalist, and 2x NCAA Champion Cary Kolat answer questions from wrestlers, coaches, and parents. Kolat relies on a lifetime of wrestling and career of coaching from youth to college to international. Ask your own questions in the comments or on social media using #AskKolat.
A Desire to Grow
Cary Kolat answers the question, "How do you get athletes to become more motivated?" He explains that first, you have to be dealing with someone who wants to be successful. Maybe they have certain hurdles they need to overcome or are struggling with but the individual needs to want to change. When Kolat was competing he had that self-motivation innately built into him from a young age. He wanted to win every sprint and every scramble and didn't need a coach to push that will to win upon him. Some athletes have passion and talent but need a boost to get them on a self-motivated path to success.
Letting Go (1:21)
The way to get an athlete to push themselves mentally and physically without a coach's influence is to back off. If you're constantly blowing the whistle and instructing step by step they can't learn to push themselves. All motivation is self-motivation. The external forces and voices will become internal ones.
Setting a Baseline for Improvement (2:00)
There are 4-6 things Kolat always brings his team back to for conditioning as a group. This way they can see the line in the sand that they drew the first time and can improve upon those standards. When a wrestler sees self-improvement, it is extremely motivating.
Taking Ownership (2:53)
Kolat has structured workouts that give ownership to the athlete. On the airdyne bike, he has his athletes figure out their RPMs for a sprint. Then Kolat gives them the structure of the workout but allows them to set their own pace. They set the goal for themselves and aren't relying on a screaming coach in their ear. Kolat takes this approach in a lot of his team practices, not exclusively for conditioning. It then becomes more of a management system, but you first have to teach the athlete how to do manage themselves. Overall what a coach is trying to accomplish is getting the athlete to push their own limits whether the coach is there or not. The more ownership they take on, the more motivated and driven they'll become.
Learning from Other Sports (7:55)
Track athletes exemplify an extreme amount of self-motivation and drive. Track is a sport that you don't need anyone else to compete against. Kolat believes wrestlers can draw a lot from the self-discipline and mental toughness of track athletes and use it within wrestling.
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[@martialzar3108]

what was your typical schedule on a day during college??
how you managed school and training?? and what was your typical morning routine???

[@RUDISwrestling]

Hi martial zar, thanks for tuning in! Your question has been heard. Check back to hear more insight from Kolat every week.

[@jonskrzy1373]

👍

[@kawikajones9436]

As a former wrestler and growing up in the 70's, I can tell you one thing. You can't BUILD Self-motivation and determination in a person. You either have it or you don't, and if you have it, it stays with you your entire life. Self-motivation has taken me thru wrestling, 26 years in the army and now at retirement, an active cyclist that recently bicycled across the United States. You also have to have an animal instinct to wrestle. If you don't, you are just going thru the the motions. You never try to hurt another wrestler, but you also don't worry about hurting them either when wrestling them.
Now in saying this, I'm not saying that you can't motivate someone to do something. You definitely can with the proper leadership, you just can't build someone's self-motivation. I will take a self-motivated individual over an individual I have to motivate any day of the year.

[@mirzad19882]

Don't, just don't.