Being “The Referee”

 

(By Ike Relacion, Bd. 134 MD)

 

(Ike Relacion is a member of Bd. 134 MD. He is an NCAA basketball official and has worked in the American Basketball League (ABL) and currently works semiprofessionally in the U.S. Basketball League and National Rookie League. Most recently, Ike officiated the NJCAA Men’s Championships in Delhi, NY.)

 

Referees vary in their personalities and approach to the job, but whatever they are like, to be effective they must get the best out of the other partner(s).

 

Groomed To Be Crew Chief

 

If you would like to increase your chances of success for becoming a capable referee, spend time at training. How can you improve your officiating abilities?  It begins with grooming, and there are two aspects to the process. 

First, groom yourself. Use time spent on an airplane, bus, or in your car, and ACTIVELY train to improve yourself! 

All officials spend many hours traveling to get to their games.  This is a perfect opportunity to immerse yourself in getting better through the use of cassettes, CD’s, video or DVD, and/or reading.  Continue to grow with the game. Officiating has changed so much, and with this change comes increased accountability. 

Whether in the business world or officiating, it is not selfish to make TIME for those things that you are good at! Investing additional time in the pursuit of skills and self  improvement that allows you to enjoy life just makes sense!

 Second, become an asset to your assignor so that they can groom you. Officials generally must be groomed to be a referee over a period of time. This necessary preparation is imperative so that when the time comes to take a leadership role, you will be ready for the job. 

Many successful assignors of officials and referees have worked closely together to achieve the assignor’s ideal of success. Matching this ideal is an essential goal of every member of the officiating staff in whichever league or conference they work.

 

Collaboration

 

A good referee makes his/her partner(s) better. The ideal referee is able to collaborate creatively, contributing without dominating, and innovating without driving. But, what is collaboration? What do you need to know to become a better referee and draw the very best from

your crew? 

Collaboration is defined as “to labor together,” as derived from its Latin roots. Some people see collaboration as capitulation, as giving up of one’s position. However, that concept is far from successful collaboration. 

Collaboration is a developed skill and requires self-discipline and concentration. It requires a deep reorganization of our beliefs about what it means to work together. 

It is the clear ability to be open to new ideas and approaches and allow possibilities to emerge from the group. It is the ability to resist control and live with ambiguity and initial failure. We all learn from our mistakes. Referees facilitate collaboration; they don’t control it. 

Like good leaders, referees access and take advantage of the skills, strengths and talents of the people around them. The more motivated an official is to learn and to grow, the more skills and creative thinking they develop which, in turn develops a better referee. It is growth like this that creates tomorrow’s leaders in the business world and in the sports officiating environment.

 

 

Leadership Ability

 

The referee must want to take responsibility and want to lead others by example. The referee must be a determined official and have a strong motivation to perform consistently well, be practical in the application of rules and in the use of common sense, and be an effective administrator of the game. 

There is a lot of responsibility associated with being a leader.  Staying motivated to be a leader when working with partner(s) who need to be led can perhaps be the most telling feature of one’s disposition for willingness to become a referee.

 

Mature Attitude

 

The referee must gain the crew’s respect by his/her personality and game management skills. The referee is a relationship manager, pure and simple.

In this role, he/she must be consistent in temperament and assess each situation coolly. Additionally, he/she must have the necessary concentration and resources to guide the game when tough situations arise. Good communication between the referee and the partner(s) is essential as well as communication with table personnel and bench personnel.

 

Inspirational Qualities

 

The referee, by approach and example, must be able to inspire a partner(s) often and as needed. The referee must be able to inspire the nervous crewmember and subdue the over-confident one without destroying confidence. 

Besides collaboration, leadership, mature attitude, and inspirational qualities mentioned above, one of the most important things that a referee needs to have is the ability to keep focused on the big picture and to manage the game from the opening tap to the final buzzer. A good referee leads with confidence and clarity. 

Leadership is about influencing people and knowing the difference between power and authority. It’s about who you are as a person, your character, and the influence you’ve developed with people. 

A good referee should have integrity, be trustworthy, humble, and supportive. A referee must have great organizational skills, display diplomacy, be constructively critical, and under the right conditions and with the right words and actions, empower others. 

A good referee is someone who can recognize and utilize the strengths of the partner(s) and has enough confidence in his/her own ability not to micromanage, but rather extract the strengths of individuals.  Are you up to it!