How to Address Concerns
While we certainly hope that we never disagree, we also understand that throughout the process of youth sports you may have questions or concerns that arise. The first thing to know is this is OK! If you are concerned about something we want to know about it so we can work on it together.
At ODT we use the phrase Family First quite a bit. Some people believe this means that we are saying everything will be rainbows and sunshine. However, families do not always agree, they do not always get along, but Family first means we work together to move past and be stronger when we encounter challenges.
If you have a concern the first step is to give yourself some time. We recommend 24 hours before reaching out about a concern or issue unless it involves the health or safety of an athlete. In those circumstances we want to take immediate action. After giving yourself time you should be going to the person whom the concern is with. If you would like clarification from an athletes coach about a placement in the routine, or a conversation that occurred, you should go to that coach. Although your ownership/management team is always here to help, the individual you have the challenge or question with is best suited to help you with that.
The best way to go about this is send an email or a text messages that says something similar to this. “I would like to discuss with you a concern I have regarding Suzie’s placement during the elite sequence, would you have time to chat either in person or on the phone to provide clarity and discuss this issue?”
Emails or text messages detailing out every transgression and problem are more likely to put people on the defensive and feel attacked. Emails or text that say something like, can we have a meeting with no clarification will almost always receive a response, can you tell me what you would like to meet about? As a coach and owner we want to be prepared for the conversation as opposed to be blindsided by information where we may not have had time to gather information or think on the issue.
If you have issues with other families we encourage you to work directly with those families to resolve them. We can do our best to mentor our athletes to be amazing people inside and outside of the gym, but we do not have time to mediate disagreements between parents that have little or nothing to do with what is going on inside the gym and on the mat.
Lastly public blasting on band, facebook, or other social media is grounds for removal from a team or program. You may be frustrated, you may even be completely valid in how you feel, but that is not conducive for good open and honest communication. You wouldn’t want one of our staff to talk negatively about you or your athlete online, please show us and them the same respect and solve any problems or concerns that arise with class!