We want to hear what’s happening in your sports family. Tap the Fan Mail link here and send us your question—or leave us a voice message.

We spend a lot of time developing an athlete’s capacity.

We train the arm. The swing. The jump. The speed. The strength. We pay for lessons, camps, club teams and recruiting help.

But are we developing the character needed to carry the opportunities all that ability may create?

Ashley McDonough spent 13 years coaching college volleyball and now works with athletes and families as a Senior Volleyball Recruiting Coach with NCSA. She is also the founder of Coached by Christ and the author of Saved to Serve, Called to Lead and When Character Matches Capacity.

Ashley and I talk about why character often develops more slowly than talent, what happens when that gap finally gets exposed, and how coaches can actually train things like ownership, resilience, humility and response to correction.

We also get into identity—what happens when “baseball player,” “volleyball player” or “coach” becomes who we believe we are instead of something we get to do.

Ashley shares some simple ideas coaches can use immediately, including an ownership circle, intentionally coaching an athlete’s response after a mistake, and celebrating things that never appear in the stat line.

And later, Ashley shares the remarkable story of how an injury-filled season of life eventually led her from agnosticism to faith and completely changed the way she sees leadership.

Resources:
Ashley: https://coachedbychrist.com
CoachDad: https://coachdad.live

If this episode helped you, send it to one dad, coach or sports parent who needs to hear it.

📩 Join the Coach Dad email list for weekly encouragement, practical tools, and honest conversations for sports dads, coaches, and families.

Credits:

Photo/Video: Noah Miller, Micah Miller

Video Editing/CoachDad Theme music: Asher Miller

🎧 Listen to Coach Dad wherever you listen to podcasts.
Contact: team@coachdad.live

📹 Video Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@coachdadlive

🤝Want to support the CoachDad launch? https://coachdad.live/partner

We want to hear what’s happening in your sports family. Tap the Fan Mail link here and send us your question—or leave us a voice message.

There comes a moment many sports parents dread.

Your kid gets in the car, or sits at the dinner table, or walks in from practice and says:

“Dad, I don’t want to play anymore.”

Most dads immediately feel the tension. Do we push? Do we let them quit? Are we teaching perseverance, or are we ignoring something deeper?

In this episode of Coach Dad, Jim Miller helps dads, coaches, and sports parents slow down and ask better questions before they react. The obvious problem may be, “My kid wants to quit.” But underneath that are deeper issues: pressure, fear of failure, burnout, identity, expectations, and the parent’s own desire to see their child succeed.

Jim walks through three practical steps:

1. Get curious before you get convincing.
2. Separate a hard season from a dead dream.
3. Remember the real finish line.

This episode is about helping dads play the long game. Sports are temporary. The relationship is not. The uniform eventually comes off. The bigger question is: who are we helping our kids become after the game ends?

This week’s challenge:

Ask your athlete:

“If you could change one thing about your sport right now, what would it be?”

Then listen.

Don’t defend the coach.
Don’t explain why they’re wrong.
Don’t try to fix it right away.

Their answer may tell you something you need to hear.

📩 Join the Coach Dad email list for weekly encouragement, practical tools, and honest conversations for sports dads, coaches, and families.

Credits:

Photo/Video: Noah Miller, Micah Miller

Video Editing/CoachDad Theme music: Asher Miller

🎧 Listen to Coach Dad wherever you listen to podcasts.
Contact: team@coachdad.live

📹 Video Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@coachdadlive

🤝Want to support the CoachDad launch? https://coachdad.live/partner

We want to hear what’s happening in your sports family. Tap the Fan Mail link here and send us your question—or leave us a voice message.

What is your child really afraid of when they freeze in a big sports moment?

Most adults call it a confidence problem. But a lot of the time, it goes deeper than that.

In this episode of CoachDad, Jim Miller explains why fear of failure is often connected to relationship security. Kids may not simply be afraid of missing the shot, striking out, or making the error. They may be afraid of disappointing Dad, losing the coach’s trust, embarrassing themselves, or feeling like their worth is tied to the scoreboard.

The CoachDad principle for this episode is simple:

Fear loses power when relationships are secure.

Jim walks through four practical ways dads and coaches can help kids become more resilient:

1. Model resilience yourself.
2. Praise the process, not just the outcome.
3. Let kids struggle safely.
4. Make room for disappointment, then help them move back toward joy through gratitude.

This episode is for dads, coaches, and sports families who want to raise kids who can handle failure, learn from mistakes, and keep playing with courage.

Because the goal is not just better athletes.

The goal is better people.

The mission is bigger than the game.
And it starts at home.

📩 Join the Coach Dad email list for weekly encouragement, practical tools, and honest conversations for sports dads, coaches, and families.

Credits:

Photo/Video: Noah Miller, Micah Miller

Video Editing/CoachDad Theme music: Asher Miller

🎧 Listen to Coach Dad wherever you listen to podcasts.
Contact: team@coachdad.live

📹 Video Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@coachdadlive

🤝Want to support the CoachDad launch? https://coachdad.live/partner