A. In coaching a family member the whole family was able to get involved. They would see how hard my daughter and I worked and they wanted the rewards for both of us! As far as coaching my daughter, we had this huge interest in common. We would talk all the time about cheerleading, after practice we would talk about how it went, sharing our ideas and opinions. There was always the excitement that we shared when we had a really good productive day!
Q. What were the disadvantages?
A. Sharing our opinions and ideas didn't work each and every time, especially as my daughter got older. Taking it home wasn't always a positive thing and we didn't always agree. That created some resentment at times.
Q. Would you change anything if you had it to do all over again?
A. In the 6 years of coaching I can't really come up with anything I would change. I always expected a lot from myself as a coach, and I expected a lot from my girls in return. The girls would get excited as they progressed through the program and could see how much better they got from year to year. I consider cheerleading a sport, and I tried to bring that level of commitment to my squad. There were never really huge problems with my daughter, we both enjoyed cheerleading and it was rewarding to be able to share in it together.
Q. Were your successes or failures more emotional because of your personal relationship with your daughter?
A. I think things could get emotional at times, I knew when she was frustrated with something, at times that could be both of us being frustrated with each other. I knew how hard she worked and how committed she was to her sport. Her disappointments were mine as well. We always want our children to succeed and be happy. I have to say that I felt that way about a lot of my girls through the years, not just my own daughter. A lot of these girls I saw grow up from little 2nd graders to now jr. high girls, so I couldn't avoid getting attached. There are a lot of personal memories tied up in all of them!
In summing up our interview, Nancy said, "In closing I would like to say that I was lucky enough to not have my coaching compete with another job. If I did, I don't think I would have been able to be as involved as I was. It took on a life of its own, and I was able to really devote a lot of time to it. All in all, I really had fun, and my life is more enriched because of the experience!"
Now you might be wondering, how did Nancy's daughter feel about her mom coaching. Well, here's what Kelsie said, "Outside of junior high cheerleading, my mom has been my coach my entire cheerleading career. I've noticed that there are good and bad things that are part of having your mother as your coach. One of the good thing being that you, the cheerleader, have a very special relationship with the coach. It's easier to bring up your worries and your problems you're having within the squad. It's much easier to express your views, and I find it less hard to speak my mind, whether it is about the physical aspects of cheerleading, or the mental. There are of course bad sides to having your mother as your coach. It is a lot easier to bring practice frustrations home, and opinions about stunts and cheers tend to clash more often. As I got older I noticed the tension level rising. I know that I've felt numerous times that my mom was particularly picking on me because I am her daughter. Now I realize that if you look hard enough, that's not true at all. What I find most memorable about having my mother as my coach is the strength it gave to our relationship. Just like the sport of cheerleading brings the team members together, it also brought my mom and I together."
Apparently, Nancy and Kelsie have the key to perfect mother-daughter and coach-cheerleader relationship. And I'd like to thank them for sharing it with us.
