Circle-Up to Create Stronger Teams

On the first day of practice, every season, a middle school and high school coach that I know asks his athletes to Circle-Up. In the circle, the coach asks every athlete to say their name, who their favorite basketball player is, and why. The coach encourages the players by telling them to value, accept and appreciate everybody's choice, whether they agree with it or not, without judgment. He tells his team, "Our team is a safe space and a judge-free zone. We have to learn how to express ourselves, talk to each other, and how to listen without judgment. We want our teammates to feel safe and free to tell each other how we feel." At the end of the first practice, the coach asks every athlete to say one thing that they are excited about for the season and one thing that they want to get better at. 

On day one, the coach has learned something about everyone on the team, and the teammates start to learn something about each other.

One question a lot of coaches ask is, "How do I get my team to come together and bond as a team?” Research shows that inclusive teams, teams where everybody feels like they belong, feel valued, and feel safe are more successful teams. The Harvard Business Review ran an article that states that teams with inclusive leaders are more likely to report that they are high performing, make high-quality decisions, behave collaboratively, and experience an increase in attendance (Bourke).

Wachtel (2013) suggests that the Circle-Up process is a versatile practice that can be used proactively to develop relationships and build community with your team, and it can be used reactively to respond to wrongdoing, conflicts, and problems (p. 7). When people ask me, “What is your best, most effective, or favorite team-building activity,” I tell them that we Circle-Up at the beginning, middle, and end of every practice. We Circle-Up at the beginning of each practice to come together, to connect, and to get focused so that we are in the mindset to have a good practice. I usually ask the team 1-4 questions. Here are some examples:

1 – What is something great that happened to you today?
2 – What is something that you are excited about today?
3 – What is something that you are want to get better at today?
4 – What is one way that you can be a great teammate today?

In the middle of every practice, I have the team Circle Up again, before or after a water break, and I pick 1 or 2 questions. Here are some examples:

1 – How do you feel about our performance today?
2 – What is something that we are doing well?
3 – What is something that we can do better?
4 – What can I do to help us get better, do better, or be better?

I end every practice with one last Circle Up, where I pick 1-4 questions. Here are some examples:

1 – How do you feel about our performance today?
2 – What is something that we did well?
3 – What is something that we could have done better?
4 – Who is doing something fun or exciting after practice?
5 – What is one thing that you can do for a teammate?
6 – What is one thing that a teammate has done for you?

Each circle can be as quick or as long as I allow, and that depends on what the team needs.

A team might Circle-Up to discuss an issue, answer questions, solve a problem, offer feedback, or check for understanding on a new play, expectation, or drill. A circle has structure, purpose, and focus. A circle can be proactive or responsive, but educator and consultant Rufus Lott says that circles are more productive when used 80% of the time proactively and 20% of the time reactively.

Circles are an important symbol of community in many different cultures (Costello 23). Its shape implies community, connection, inclusion, fairness, equality, and wholeness (Costello 5). The first human circles resulted from the natural formation of people sitting around a fire, providing the best way to efficiently distribute access to heat and light (Costello 5). When you are in a circle, everybody is on an equal level. In the circle everyone can look one another in the eye, everyone gets equal time to share their thoughts, ideas, feelings, and concerns, and they learn to trust each other and to feel safe (Costello 23).

One rule that I have for every circle is one person talks at a time, and my expectation is that everybody shares something and participates. Some teammates participate openly from day one, and it takes all season for some teammates to feel comfortable sharing. If you study the formal circle process taught by the International Institute for Restorative Practices, they recommend having a Talking Piece (like a basketball) and the person who holds the Talking Piece is the only person who can talk. This provides more structure as you take turns talking and passing the ball around.

I love this process. This one tool has transformed me as a coach. I use it with my kindergarten teams, with adults, and with everybody between. It is amazing how quickly we get to know each other. Wachtel (2013) suggests that "circles give people an opportunity to speak and listen to one another in an atmosphere of safety, decorum, and equality" (p. 8). This process allows us to talk about anything and everything that might come up during the season. This can be used to talk about sports, personal issues, and life. The circle is a safe space for having meaningful, real conversations, and the circle can be a safe and effective space for conflict resolution and problem-solving.

References:

Bourke, Juliet, and Titus, Andrea. "Why Inclusive Leaders Are Good for Organizations, and How to Become One." Harvard Business Review. 29, March 2019. hbr.org/amp/2019/03/why-inclusive-leaders-are-good-for-organizations-and-how-to-become-one.

Costello, Bob, Wachtel, Joshua, and Wachtel, Ted. Restorative Circles in Schools. International Institute for Restorative Practices, 2010.

Costello, Bob, Wachtel, Joshua, and Wachtel, Ted. The Restorative Practices Handbook for Teachers, Disciplinarians, and Administrators. International Institute for Restorative Practices, 2009.

Wachtel, T. (2013). Defining restorative. Bethlem, PA: International Institute for Restorative Practices. Retrieved from http://www.iirp.edu/pdf/Defining-Restorative.pdf