A change that I have seen over the years is a transition from the generalist coaches of my generation to the specialist coaches of today. I am not sure this is a positive trend. If I have choice of hiring a coach I will always lean toward the generalist. I know most of my colleagues, the ones that I lean on the heaviest, are consummate generalists. Certainly the coaches that changed training and changed their sports, Bill Bowerman in Track & Field and Doc Councilman in swimming were generalists. The generalist has the ability to:

• To make connections among seemingly unrelated information.
• For the generalist it is not the links, but the linkages that make the system.
• The specialists focus on the links, generalists can stand back and see, in the bigger, "holistic" picture, how they work together.

I made the choice to be a generalist 40 plus years ago. Certainly no regrets on that choice, it allowed me to better understand movement and all the permutations. I would urge those of you who are early in your careers to look at this option, it is more FUNdamental, there is never a dull moment because rather being hung up on minutiae your are constantly making connections. Those connections translate into results.