I grew up in a military family, and my dad was gone for long periods of time. Families make it work because you know you care for each other.Collection: Dad
Many, many years ago, when you named alternates, and they wouldn't travel with you - I think you're dealing with a small roster. Now you travel with these alternates, which you can replace at any time, obviously, if it's a medical situation, so you have it in your back pocket.Collection: Medical
You've got to turn over every stone; you've got to look for every advantage. You need to make sure you're doing everything you possibly can, not just on the field but off it, to give your team an advantage - from having a sleep expert coming to talk to your team to having an independent analysis of your team done.
Something you look at when you go into a World Cup is your depth and your players that change the game.
We've got to make sure we have players that can break teams down because there's no space in behind; we need to problem-solve in a different way.
When you go to a World Cup, in midfield you need to have players who can score from distance, who can get in the box and obviously play-make.
The players come out and want to be as fresh as they can, press, keep a team in their end, create chances, create set pieces, and really try and get the upper hand early.
When you go through a tournament of seven games, there are peaks and valleys. You kind of ride the players that are hot.
You can do a lot of breakdown on games you played, but the takeaways from games you've played has to be on what's in front of you.
Ultimately, we've got to make sure our players understand that the margin for error is very small against these top teams in the world, and we've been punished several times for that.
It's part of the beauty of the job in dealing with this is you have to have a plan, and that's why you can't only train 11 players; you train your whole team.
When I first took over the team in 2014, the message was, even if you're on the right track, if you sit there, you'll get run over.
Many people say, 'Your dad was so ahead of his time,' and he was a feminist in the truest sense, but he's very much for opportunities for all people... To him, a soccer player is a soccer player.
If I walk into a room, I'm quite content to sit in the corner and chat with people who walk by. But coaching forced me to come out of my shell.
My dad has a certain spirit, a twinkle in his eye, someone who can set a certain standard for players but also convey it with humor. What I learned from him is that coaching is, more than anything, about connecting with people.
We have to get to a point in this country where our top players are seeking out the most challenging environments.
These countries - Spain, France, Germany - have environments that are really geared toward the professional player.
You've got to make sure you're listening to the people that are important to listen to. And then everything else, you kind of have to tune out and do your thing.
When I used to recruit in college, my sole job was to out-recruit what I had. And if I did that, I knew we would grow and be successful.
If we're looking at the pure development of our game, the challenge is not to have a 200-cap player because that means there is something better that is coming along.
Players don't change drastically. Maybe they get more in form if they're a goal scorer, or they get healthier if they've been injured.
The players do their thing on the pitch, and there's a lot of young women or former players that want to coach.
Ultimately, if you can have a very cohesive and tight unit, it obviously will pay dividends down the line.
Little things that I've emphasized are turning in pockets and looking to penetrate and finding these spaces and playing at a good tempo when we're in the middle third.
It's easy for a player to stand out in two or three days. But the grind of a camp, and just the level of consistency in performance that requires, that needs to happen.
I think every time I'm with the team, even in a World Cup, as a coach, you're constantly evaluating.