James Smith is the founder of Global Sport Concepts, which began in 2013 in order to serve as an educational resource for sport and military professionals. The directive from the very beginning was to serve as a unifying agent for change given the Balkanized nature of specialty fields and the vast differential that exists between what is currently happening and what is possible in the education of coaches and military leadership, the people who hire/promote those individuals, and the people who hire/promote the people who hire/promote those individuals... Topics Covered:

1. Reductionism/complexity, arbitrary boundaries between professions: what cultural dysfunctions exist in sport, how should we reframe sport/coaching?
2. What knowledge (the parts) is required to be a successful “coach”?
3. Apprenticeship model/who is the arbiter of knowledge?  What if the mentor possesses relevant knowledge?
4. Knowledge vs. application/behavioral change.  Is rational thought and logic enough?
5. How do we determine where to draw boundaries? Where boundaries must exist, how can organizations communicate seamlessly and without being undermined by ego and politics?  How do we avoid redundancy if everybody is a generalist?
6. Emotional control/drawbacks of authoritative leadership
7. When/If to intervene in elite performers who display mechanical inefficiencies
8. Military SOF selection: can it be done better despite the logistical and economic constraints