{"id":240,"date":"2026-05-14T17:22:40","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T17:22:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/evolving.zone\/blog\/?p=240"},"modified":"2026-05-15T15:15:42","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T15:15:42","slug":"the-missing-map-why-coaches-miss-the-phase-and-how-to-find-just-right","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/evolving.zone\/blog\/life-coaching\/the-missing-map-why-coaches-miss-the-phase-and-how-to-find-just-right\/","title":{"rendered":"The Missing Map: Why Coaches Miss the Phase and How to Find \u201cJust Right\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Moving beyond guesswork: Why understanding an athlete\u2019s current life phase is the missing key to sustainable excellence.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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 In 1993, when I moved to Bogot\u00e1 and started my dual education working at a German International Company and studying International Trade at the same time, I faced a difficult decision: whether to come back into sports after that extreme back injury of 1992 that crushed my high elite stakes in shot put. The volleyball coach of the company\u2019s team had watched me in the park having a bit of fun with some of the colleagues and approached me. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yes, believe it or not, one of the sports I did during school was volleyball, as a setter, and I loved it. However, I was really scared about going back into sports because of the three months experience lying in bed and almost 6 months recovery without lifting anything. So, my mind was definitely not at a training or competition level. Nevertheless, the coach took his time to talk about everything and I sensed that time his real willingness to know what had happened to me and how that had affected me. Without putting pressure on me and by just offering an open space of communication and engagement he even offered me to help him out with the team during trainings and competitions. Slowly and steady I regained confidence in my body and in a question of around 6 weeks I was starting lineup. Many years have passed since and I have worked with several teams and mental coached players in different sports, being it volleyball, track, handball, football and field hockey. Two incredibly important factors in the development of any athlete are the distance between player and coach and the ability of a coach to balance challenging a player and supporting her\/him. This in my opinion only can happen in an effective way, if a coach understands in which individual phase both her-\/himself and the player are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the high-stakes world of elite sport, the margin for error is non-existent. A fraction of a second, a centimeter, or a single psychological misstep can define the development of a player and even a whole career. Recently, I read a compelling research paper by Kong, Collins, and Martindale (2025) titled \u201cFinding \u2018Just Right\u2019: Optimizing Challenge and Support in Sport Coaching.<\/a>\u201d The authors mention a crisis facing modern coaches: the struggle to balance the demand for high-performance results with the growing necessity for athlete well-being and safeguarding<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The paper argues that coaches often fall into a „false dichotomy<\/strong>,“ believing they must choose between being tough (challenge) or being kind (support). It suggests that the solution lies in coaches developing higher emotional intelligence, psychological literacy, and cognitive flexibility to navigate this balance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While I agree entirely with the diagnosis, I believe the proposed cure misses a critical practical reality. The paper assumes coaches have the bandwidth to perform deep, real-time psychological diagnostics on every athlete. My experience, both as a systemic mental coach, team staff and an observer of high-performance systems, suggests in my personal opinion a different root cause: some coaches are just untrained in psychology, some are trained but do not or just can not practice psychology; they are structurally overwhelmed. They miss the athlete\u2019s phase and even their\u2019s not because they lack care, but because they basically do not have a simple map enough to use when their plate is already overflowing with tactics, logistics, and media demands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is where the conversation must evolve. We cannot simply ask coaches to „be more psychologically flexible“ without giving them a tool to make that flexibility efficient. We need to bridge the gap between the need for individualized care and the reality of coaches\u2019 cognitive load. The solution lies in integrating Erich\u2019s Phase Model\u00a9<\/a> into the daily fabric of coaching, transforming abstract psychological concepts into a tangible, actionable dashboard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Bandwidth Crisis: Why Good Coaches Miss the Mark <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Let\u2019s be honest about the life of a high-performance coach. Their day is a blur of periodization plans, video analysis, travel logistics, sponsor meetings, immediate crisis management and depending on their particular situation even other tasks or engagements. When a human brain is operating at maximum cognitive capacity, it defaults to heuristics\u2014mental shortcuts. In coaching, this often manifests as „one-size-fits-all“ methods or the „coach as I was coached“ inertia described in the research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Kong et al. paper<\/a> rightly identifies that coaches misapply concepts like „psychological safety“ (turning it into overprotection) or „trauma“ (confusing it with healthy adversity). Which I personally find incredibly intersting. The question is: why? Because without a clear framework, assessing an athlete\u2019s internal state feels like abstract therapy\u2014something they don\u2019t have time for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When a coach looks at an athlete who is underperforming, they see a technical problem to be fixed. They rarely see the Phase, or they might see it, but are not able to support the athlete in overcoming it. Please, do not understand me wrong, there are coaches out there that are able to do so, but these are the exemptions to the rule. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is the thing:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is the athlete in a foundational \u2018Dark Side\u2019 phase, where their confidence and physical state are in turmoil, requiring a period of deep understanding and self-acceptance before any significant challenge can be safely applied?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are they in a momentum-building \u2018Quick Win\u2019 phase, where the priority shifts to engineering immediate, tangible successes to reignite belief and create forward thrust?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are they in a consolidation \u2018Deep Conviction\u2019 phase, where the desire to change is present, but the focus must shift to rigorous mental conditioning and structured self-talk to sustain effort through inevitable setbacks and getting slowly out of comfort zones?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or are they maybe in a prosperous phase, where setting high challenging objectives might be the appropriate tool to keep and improve momentum?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Without a model to categorize these states quickly, the coach guesses. And when they guess wrong\u2014applying heavy challenge to an athlete in a fragile „Acceptance“ phase\u2014they risk causing the very trauma the paper warns against. The problem isn\u2019t a lack of will; it\u2019s a lack of Phase Literacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or is the athlete going through another completely different phase?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Erich\u2019s Phase Model\u00a9 : The Operational Dashboard<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is where Erich\u2019s Phase Model\u00a9<\/a> moves from a theoretical concept to an essential operational tool. The model posits that life is not linear but moves in dynamic, overlapping phases influenced by specific factors (family, health, career, team, relationships, etc.). Crucially, each of these factors has its own Emotional State Curve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For a coach, this model acts as a diagnostic dashboard. It simplifies the complex psychological landscape into a visualisable format that can be assessed in minutes, not hours. Instead of asking a coach to perform a full psychological evaluation, we ask the athlete to fill a simple questionnaire to plot the athlete\u2019s current curves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Identifying the „General Emotional Main Curve“ <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    The research paper emphasises the need to distinguish between eustress (growth-inducing stress = \u201cgood stress\u201d) and distress (harmful stress). The Phase Model provides the mechanism to do this. By mapping the athlete\u2019s influencing factors, a coach can see if the General Emotional Main Curve is trending upward or downward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Scenario: An athlete is struggling in training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Without the Model: The coach pushes harder, thinking the athlete lacks resilience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    With the Model: The coach sees that while the „Sport“ curve is low, the „Family“ and „Health“ curves are in a steep „Dark Side“ phase. The General Main Curve is plummeting. The diagnosis is immediate: Challenge will break them; Support is the only path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    2. The Interconnectedness of Influencing Factors  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Kong et al. note that coaches often fail to account for cultural backgrounds or personal history. The Phase Model formalizes this by listing specific Influencing Factors: Parents, Partner, Kids, Friends, Teachers, Work, Health, etc. In my work with athletes, I\u2019ve seen how a dip in the „Partner“ curve can drain the energy needed for the „Sport“ curve. A coach armed with this model doesn\u2019t need to be a therapist; they just need to know which factor is dragging the main curve down. Is it an injury (Health phase)? Is it a conflict with a teammate (Social phase)? Once the specific factor is identified, the intervention becomes precise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    3. Phases Have a Purpose and an End <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    One of the most liberating aspects of Erich\u2019s Phase Model\u00a9<\/a> is the conviction that „Every Phase Has an End.“ <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The research paper discusses „Post-Traumatic Growth“ (PTG) and warns against forcing adversity. The Phase Model reinforces this by reminding coaches that a „Dark Side“ phase is temporary and serves a purpose (Deep Understanding, Internalization). If a coach knows an athlete is in the „Acceptance“ phase of a personal crisis, they understand that pushing for „Action“ prematurely is counterproductive. They can instead facilitate the „Bow your head“ moment\u2014allowing the athlete to process and forgive themselves\u2014knowing that this is a necessary step before the „Start ASAP“ phase can begin. This prevents the misapplication of „tough love“ during moments that require compassion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Integrating the Models: A Practical Framework for „Just Right“<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    So, the question then is: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    how do we combine the academic rigor of Kong, Collins, and Martindale <\/a>with the practical agility of Erich\u2019s Phase Model\u00a9<\/a>? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We create a Phase-Based Coaching Protocol. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This protocol empowers coaches to find the „Just Right“ balance without overwhelming their cognitive load.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

    Step 1: The Deep Dive \u2013 The 23-Factor Diagnostic (First Diagnosis)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Foundation (First Diagnosis)<\/strong> Before a single training plan is adjusted, we must eliminate guesswork. This begins with the Erich\u2019s Phase Model \u00a9 Questionnaire<\/strong>, a comprehensive 15\u201320 minute diagnostic that maps the athlete\u2019s entire emotional ecosystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Process: <\/strong>The athlete rates 23 specific Influencing Factors across three domains: Personal Foundation (e.g., Parents, Partner, Friends), Sporting Ecosystem (e.g., Coaches, Sponsors, Injury Status), and Internal State (e.g., Fun, Self-Identity).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Nuance: <\/strong>Unlike standard surveys, this tool asks four targeted questions per factor (e.g., \u201cDo interactions energise or drain you?\u201d or \u201cDo you feel valued as a human being, not just a performer?\u201d).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The \u201cDrag Penalty\u201d:<\/strong> Crucially, the scoring algorithm applies a Drag Penalty. Research and experience show that negative phases (scores of 1\u20133) drain disproportionately more energy than positive phases give. The questionnaire mathematically reflects this reality, ensuring that a few \u201ccrisis\u201d factors aren\u2019t hidden by an average of \u201cgood\u201d ones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Timeline Tracking: <\/strong>In an interview, for every factor, the coach, mental coach or psychologist notes \u201cSince When?\u201d and \u201cUntil When?\u201d. This forces the brain to recognize that every phase has an end, turning a permanent-seeming struggle into a temporary timeline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Outcome:<\/strong> A complete Phase Map that reveals hidden stressors (e.g., a \u201cDrag Factor\u201d in Social Media or Post-Career Uncertainty) that a coach would never see on the training field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Step 2: The Weekly Phase Check-In (Short Diagnosis)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Routine (Ongoing Monitoring):<\/strong> Once the baseline is set, we move to agility. Coaches don\u2019t have time for a full audit every week. Instead, they use the data from Step 1 to conduct a focused 5-minute \u201cCurve Mapping\u201d session.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Action: <\/strong>The athlete and coach review only the top 3 most volatile Influencing Factors identified in the deep dive. They re-rate them on a scale of 1\u201310.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Outcome:<\/strong> Identify the Current Phase instantly based on the trajectory:<\/p>\n\n\n\n