Applying principles of effective practice to development plans
Principles of effective practice (VPSMARTER) are not just limited to developing skills from the physical factor. Some of the same principles can also be applied to mental, emotional and social development plans, for example:
Variety
A social development plan should also include a variety of approaches to ensure boredom does not set in.
Progression
Approaches in a mental development plan should be progressed once they have been mastered at a certain level.
Specific
All approaches used in an emotional development plan should be specific to your emotional weakness and applicable to your activity.
Measurable
All short-term goals set during each social session should be measurable to aid planning.
Achievable
Short-term goals in an emotional factor development plan should be achievable to aid motivation.
Realistic
Sessions for the mental factor should include some realism to your activity. For example, if you are looking to develop control of your anxieties and face a match-winning point in a conditioned game, opportunities to use deep breathing should be afforded here.
Time
All sessions in the emotional factor should provide the right amount of time to reach the short-term goal without becoming boring.
Exciting
Approaches selected for the social factor should be fun and enjoyable to develop team dynamics. Doing this will make you excited to attend training.
Recorded
All sessions in development plans for each factor should be recorded to help your monitoring and tracking.
