first year volleyball official

[TimTaylor]

Refinks,

Welcome to volleyball! As others have said, it will take time to become a competent official - Jan's recommendation to find an experienced mentor is a good one. In addition to this forum, there is one at the NFHS web site (nfhs.org) you might want to check out. Lots of officials with every level of experience imagineable contribute and it's a great way to learn more about the art of officiating volleyball.

While officiating volleyball may not be as physically challenging as some other sports (although being on the stand for 2+ hours in a 5 set match is no picnic), it is extremely mentally challenging. At every contact with the ball during play there are several criteria that the R1 has to judge, and it has to happen in maybe half a second.

What I would add to the advice already given is to "eat the elephant a fork full at a time." If you go into it expecting it to be a walk in the park, you may quickly find the intricacies and subtle nuances of the sport extremely frustrating. It takes a lot of time, experience(years) and hard work to become a competent and consistent volleyball official. I hope you enjoy the journey!