1st Season in da books

[The_Rookie]

My first season is in the books and I really enjoyed it and learned a lot but realize how much I DON"T KNOW!

A big thanks to all the fellow refs on this sight who REALLY GUIDED me thru the season on rules and mechanics...I Learned a whole lot.

Truth be told, I got more guidance and advice on being a better ref from the folks on this blog than from those in my association...sad to say they all seem to be "Too Busy" and focused on themselves

[26 Year Gap]

Originally Posted by The_Rookie

My first season is in the books and I really enjoyed it and learned a lot but realize how much I DON"T KNOW!

A big thanks to all the fellow refs on this sight who REALLY GUIDED me thru the season on rules and mechanics...I Learned a whole lot.

Truth be told, I got more guidance and advice on being a better ref from the folks on this blog than from those in my association...sad to say they all seem to be "Too Busy" and focused on themselves

Seek out a mentor or two in your association. If officials see that you are interested in improving and value their advice, then you will get noticed in a positive light. And ask around about off season AAU type stuff in your area so you can "work on stuff".

[Butterfly182310]

Originally Posted by The_Rookie

My first season is in the books and I really enjoyed it and learned a lot but realize how much I DON"T KNOW!

A big thanks to all the fellow refs on this sight who REALLY GUIDED me thru the season on rules and mechanics...I Learned a whole lot.

Truth be told, I got more guidance and advice on being a better ref from the folks on this blog than from those in my association...sad to say they all seem to be "Too Busy" and focused on themselves

I'm on the other side of that coin. I truly enjoy helping the newer officials by passing on what I've been taught over the last 30+ years. I had a mentor take me under his wing, now it's my turn, and I get a kick out of it.

Do you ask for help? Too many new officials seem to already "know it all" and don't want advice, so I don't offer unless asked. If a varsity official goes out of his/her way to introduce themselves and make conversation with you, there's a good bet they can be approached for advice. Approaching varsity officials who virtually ignore jv officials probably won't get you anywhere.

Last year I arrived early in the first half of a jv game. At half time I went into the locker room with the jv officials, where we had a nice short discussion. There was enough interest from the one that I took paper and pencil out for the second half and jotted down some notes. I went over them with the jv official before going out for my game. He stuck around to watch the first half, then joined us at our half time and questioned a few things he saw. That was fun. Unfortunately it happens far too seldom.

[JRutledge]

Congrats on completing your first season. I am sure your mind is in 20 different directions as to what you did or what took place most of the season.

Also if you want to get better, find someone that you can follow and mentor you like stated. You will find that this mostly will be on you as it will take some effort on your part to find someone that you can call or bounce things off of during the season and off season. I would pick someone that is working somewhere you want to go, rather than just any veteran in your association. And there is not anything wrong with having multiple people fill this role. As an example you might want to have one person that will mentor you to the varsity level and maybe another that works college if you so desire to work that level too. But it will be on you to call them and talk to them about plays as many veterans I am sure are busy people in their other aspects of their lives. This might be one of the reasons you seemed to have gotten more help here than in your area.

Also without knowing the entire structure of your area, I think it is also on you to watch veteran officials in your area. Preferably watch varsity games near your house and see what those guys do. I would even tell the officials on the game I am an official and I would love to talk to you in the locker before the game, halftime and after so I can learn from your pre-game, during and post game discussions. Most veterans should be willing to do that as they were probably in a similar situation at one time in their career. And you do not have to talk with the officials to learn things. I feel you can learn things from simply watching, but if you ask them what they said to a coach or player or why something was called, you will learn more.

I hope this helps and keep up the passion for officiating. It takes time and do not try to get somewhere before it is too soon. You would rather be late to a level than too early when you might not get too many more chances to reach those levels.

Peace

[dbking]

Great advice from all....

If you want to get better, one thing that you must learn how to do is break down video of your games. Video is your best friend. You will see the position that you are in on a call and see how you can get better. You can also analyze plays as to whether it was a good call or a bad call.

Send me a PM if you some guidance on this.