I No Longer Enjoyed Playing. Not Even A Little Bit…
by Nate Baker
I became a coach because at 25…
I no longer enjoyed playing.
Not even a little bit…
The best part of every match was the final whistle.
It was my most peaceful moment of the week.
It signified the end of one week’s suffering, but as soon as the next practice came…
The cycle would start again.
𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿…
I was DC player of the year in high school.
A 4-year starter at Division 1 college.
A 4-year professional in the USL.
And a champion at every level…
But I suffered through the majority of it.
I became a coach because
𝗜 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻.
For many reasons, my relationship with the game changed as I played at higher levels.
It transformed from something that I loved for its own sake…
Into something I did to impress others
And move me closer to some imagined “better future”.
𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗳 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝘆 𝗽𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝗲.
It strangled my creativity.
It strangled my joy.
It strangled my self-worth.
It strangled my potential.
It strangled my ability to enjoy the present moment.
𝗜𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗠𝗘 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗘.
And the whole time, I was just dying to have one coach tell me it was going to be alright…
That he believed in my potential…
And would dedicate himself to helping me find it…
𝘚𝘰 𝘐 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩.
𝗣𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿…
We can become the coach we never had…
So today’s players are better supported to pursue their potential.
By creating impactful visions and environments that support our players,
We transform the pain of our playing career into something beautiful.
Nate Baker is the founder of The Developer’s Way, where his mission is to make development-based coaching education accessible to all, empowering coaches to learn, lead, and serve their players with lasting impact. Nate is a former professional soccer player with extensive experience as a college, academy, and youth soccer coach. He currently serves as the Technical Director for Achilles Football Club (Washington, DC) within MLS Next.
Follow Nate Baker for more great articles and insight. He’s reshaping the way we think about coaching youth sports.
Join his community of Developers: The Developers Way
