In today's world, nearly every single issue we deal with is a character issue-good or bad. People hired because of their skills are often fired for their lack of character. The same can be said of sports. Talent alone is not enough to succeed anymore because skill without character simply develops mediocrity. Integrating skill and character develops excellence. It is time to focus on the intangibles or the "inside stuff" to make a positive improvement in our players' performance, and in their personal lives.

Character comes from a Greek word meaning "to scratch or engrave"; "the qualities or features that make up and distinguish an individual." Most coaches know the importance of character but long for a game plan and practical tools to develop it in their players. Remember, sport doesn't develop character, a coach develops character. Each season is an incredible opportunity to "scratch and engrave" into your players the character qualities they need to improve performance, attitude and heart.

This week think of two character qualities or CQs that you would want your players to have on and off the field or court like perhaps optimism and perseverance. Look up the definitions and write them down and take it with you to practice. Start your practice off by sharing the CQ and their definition. Tell your players where the game demands them to demonstrate that CQ. Then recognize it, respond to it and reward it. In addition, educate them on how to find opportunities outside of sports to apply these same character qualities to personal and family situations.

We need to remind ourselves that behind every skill we are teaching there are character qualities that can be developed to yield the performance we are looking for. Be proactive to recognize and match character qualities to athletic abilities. Then help your athletes understand how to apply them both to sporting events and personal life situations.

I recently received an email from a high school coach who started to focus on the "Inside Stuff." He started incorporating character qualities into his coaching curriculum. The following season, his team went undefeated and advanced deep into the playoffs but fell short of the State championship by one game. At the banquet, a very thankful parent stood up and said to the coaching staff, "we gave you 48 boys and you returned 48 young men." The coaches realized that they were responsible for transforming lives through sports. This entire team realized the significance of coaching the "Inside Stuff.

Wade Salem is the Founder of Coaching 4 Life and Author of C4L Character Quality Curriculums. Click here to learn more about ready-to-use character quality coaching programs coaching youth sports He comes from a coaching family and has worked for over a decade with hundreds of coaches and teams from colleges, schools, sports facilities and pro camps. The C4L mission is to coach coaches on how to develop the "Complete Player.