Cheerleader Tips: Surviving A Mid-Season Leadership Change

Being a member of a cheerleading squad that has to replace its coach or captain mid-season can be tough. If you find yourself in that situation, try these tips to help yourself, and your teammates, not only survive the transition but also thrive in the possibility of fresh perspectives and creative ideas. Respect your new leader. This is the most important rule. Whether it is a new coach or a new captain, an old friend or a stranger, they should be treated with respect. Be accepting. This doesn’t apply only to your new leader, but also to their ideas. They may introduce new rules, regulations or structures for practice. Follow them. They may also decide to give people new roles on the team or within stunt groups. If you are reassigned, keep in mind that the new leader may see a different set of strengths and weaknesses in you, and that they have the best interest of the team in mind. Accept the changes that the new leader is making, and continue to work hard to make your team the best it can be. Get to know your new leader. Even if it is someone that you knew previously, their new role will bring out a different side of them. As a team, get a feel for what your new leader expects and what their goals are. Through regular conversation, you’ll get a sense of who they are and how they lead, which can help ease initial tension during the transition. Avoid cliques. It is never a good idea to break team unity with cliques. It is especially bad for the team, and for moral, during a change in leadership. If a team is already united, it will make it that much easier to weather any storms and pick up where they left off. Revisit team-building exercises. Trust needs to be fostered not only between team members, but also between team members and leaders. Ask that time be put aside for the first couple practices with new leadership, or have a special practice, and revisit team-building exercises to reestablish the trust and confidence of the team’s relationships, which may have been shaken during the transition.