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The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing. - Archilochus (7th-century b.c.)

Foxes have to know many things to be successful, but the hedgehog only has to know one thing.  As a youth  coach with other priorities laying claim on your time, which would you rather be?   You don't have time to know everything, but you can know one thing really well.  Lucky for you, that is a part of the recipe for Good to Great

Concentrating on one thing, building your practices around that central idea provides for clarity of purpose.  I've said this before, figure out the one fundamental that is important to your team and build your practices around perfecting that fundamental.  But, there is a problem with that approach.  Doing the same thing gets boring! 

That's a problem, but it isn't insurmountable — after all, you're smart.  There are two things you need to do to make this approach work: 

1. Find several drills and games to teach the fundamental
2. Build your BHAG around the fundamental

What's a BHAG you ask? A BHAG is a Big Hairy Audacious Goal.  They are the things that get people excited to work hard, even at things that might be boring.  Give your team a something to work towards and — most importantly — stretch for, and you can keep them motivated through all sorts of drills.

In Good To Great, Jim Collins says companies have to determine what it is that they can be the best in the world doing.  He gives the example of Abbott Labs.  They knew they could not be the best pharmaceutical company in the world because they didn't have the research capabilities to achieve that goal.  What they could do was be the best in the world at creating products to lower the cost of health care.  They were very specific in their focus — they knew one thing very well — which allowed them to concentrate on only those things that contribute to their primary mission.

There isn't one right answer to the question of what to focus on.  As the coach, you have to answer that question.  However, Collins does guide you to your answer with three questions.  He calls them the Three Circles.

1. What can you be the best in the world at?
2. What drives your economic engine?
3. What are you deeply passionate about?

How about if tweak the questions to apply directly to coaching…

1. What can your team be the best in your league at?
2. What will contribute to your team's performance?
3. What are you willing to keep working at?

You may not have a lot of talent on your roster so being the best goal scoring team in the league may not be realistic.  But being the best team in the league at defending corner kicks is reasonable.  Maybe your football team can't catch a pass, but they can be the best at running the trap play.  Don't have anyone who can hit a jumper?  Don't try to make the team into the best perimeter shooting team, concentrate on setting picks and hitting the cutter with a pass.

Regardless of how focused you make your BHAG, your unlikely to be the best in the world.  But you're dealing with kids, so their world doesn't extend much beyond your league.  Focus on one specific thing and regardless of your talent level your team can be the best in their world. 

Get the kids excited about becoming the best at something, show them how one practice builds upon the next.  Allow your kids the chance to see what it takes to master a skill.  That's a lesson that will last a lot longer with your kids than anything else you teach them.