Way of Champions Podcast

#473 Jason Sacks, CEO of Positive Coaching Alliance, on Educating One Million Coaches and Making Systemic Change in Youth Sports

Mar 19, 2026
Jason Sacks, CEO of Positive Coaching Alliance and longtime youth sports leader, shares how PCA scaled coach and parent education to reshape youth sports. He discusses making environments safe and high-performance, systemic tools to align leagues and coaches, lowering barriers for diverse volunteer coaches, and using small-sided play and tournaments to boost development.
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INSIGHT

Coaching Must Evolve Toward Relationship Skills

  • Coaching today must evolve beyond strategy to relationships and communication.
  • Jason Sacks says coaches who haven't changed their communication in 30 years wasted three decades because motivation and connection now drive performance.
ADVICE

Prioritize Belonging To Improve Performance

  • Create environments where kids feel safe, seen, heard and valued to unlock performance.
  • Jason Sacks instructs coaches to weave positive-development practices into daily coaching, not treat them as separate addons.
INSIGHT

Systems And Job Descriptions Drive Culture Change

  • Culture change requires everyone aligned with clear systems, not just coach training.
  • Jason Sacks lists tools like coach job descriptions and organizational policies as levers to embed desired behavior across parents, leaders and athletes.
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