Development/Mentorship

A lot of people are always going to ask the question, "How do I move up?" That can mean having your ratings improve, getting better games, or working at a higher level of basketball. Officiating is no different than any other job or activity which requires an organization. You have to work with others, but also be able to improve your personal performance to achieve more. Having someone who has been there before, and can offer advice to help you advance is crucial. However, each of us is also bombarded with unsolicited offers of guidance, sponsorship, and help. At the end of the day, everyone with have a different career path and trajectory, and while the overall trend is what you have done for yourself, there are always hiccups and great breakthroughs along the way.

The following is a great excerpt from someone who has been a mentor/sponsor for literally hundreds of officials, and illustrates what each of us needs to do if we want to move up:

I can assure you that you will be a "changed" official to help you attain the next level; but you must be prepared to absorb guidelines, POE's, and a philosophy that is conducive to the best decision making techniques and understanding what it takes to separate yourself from the average official.

This can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. The key to this advice is learning and using the "best decision-making techniques", because that relates to your judgment and game management skills, which are the two main building blocks of all officials. It's not the officials who enforce the extreme letter of the law in all situations that separates themselves from the "average official". It's also not the politically-connected person that gets opportunities early and stands out in that manner to his peers. Without being able to incorporate the right advice, tips, and philosophies into your own individual game, you're stuck. You have to have your own style, that fits with your natural personality, to manage the game. And you learn by listening, trial, error, and correction.

If you want to work Varsity high school games or get more of them, you need to apply improvements to your game at the level you are at. You need to be absolutely crushing your games, because then the next step is easy. If you want to work college basketball, same thing--you should be crushing your high school games, impervious to pressure and staying out of trouble as an individual and with your crews. If you are a U2 in college, you need to be the best official on the floor every night, while working your role as a U2, and you'll get your shots at U1 and R, along with more games. Too many of us think we are better than others see us. Human beings also have a natural tendency to be jealous of others, and compare ourselves to others. Until you can turn the magnifying glass on yourself, then the excuse of "it's not fair" can continue to bog you down a bit.

Try to think of officiating as being a distance runner. Do whatever you have to do to improve your times. If someone else is faster, try and learn how they train and approach races, to drive yourself against the clock. At some point, if you have the talent and have prepared, your times do get better. Same way with officiating. Remember, you control what you do and how you do it, so embrace that and get after it!