New referee experiences...

[bc7]

Originally Posted by Back In The Saddle

One thing I've found helpful is to start a game journal. Get a notebook. After every game, or set of games, spend a few minutes reviewing the game. In mine I try to note:

• Things that went particularly well
• Things that didn't go well
• Unusual things that happened, including looking up rules, etc. and noting them
• Things I'm working on that game, and how they went
• I keep a running list of things to work on

The game journal has a lot of positives to it: self-accountability, the opportunity to reflect on plays and situations and think about how to handle them next time, a valuable memory jog (if you briefly review your most recent notes before your next game). And perhaps most valuable of all, I find that if I can "bleed" all the ugliness out onto paper, I don't spend nearly so much time reliving all the horrors that night.

While I also am a first year official, I will tell you that keeping a journal is a great way to "not take the game home with you". After games I will usually ice down my knees, and while that is taking place I keep a "journal" in my BlackBerry. I like to keep track of things that went well, and things that didn't as well as how the coaches, players, and my partner all were. It really does help me calm down after games.