[Paul Copioli]

Things I have learned throughout the years:

1. Be flexible - You may have a strategy ahead of time, but things never go according to plan. Be prepared ahead of time to switch up the plan if your partners / opponents do something unexpected.

2. Do not focus on your own robot - You must be mindful of everyone else and give general commands to your drive team. They must communicate with each other regarding robot positioning.

3. Watch the time - Many people say assign the time watching to a human player (analyst), but I say no way. Time is the most important thing we lose track of. Make it your responsibility to let your team know how much time is left. I use 1 minute, 30 seconds, and this year the 20 second mark as times that I shout out.

4. Be decisive - Make a decision quickly and stick with it. If you make a mistake, then talk about it after the match.

5. Make it clear that if you give a command that your drivers follow it even if they think it is wrong. If you made the wrong decision, then let them know they did the right thing by listening to you. My favorite story that shows what a driver is supposed to do is from 2008. The 1114 driver hurdled the wrong color ball ... twice, because his coach told him too. He politely said, "hey, you know we are red, right?" and the coach adjusted his strategy accordingly, but the main thing is that the driver did exactly what his coach told him. There are no time for arguments on the field. Talk about it after.

That's all for now, but if I think of more, then I will let you know.

Paul