Kayla Banworth's Blueprint for a Championship Volleyball Mindset

Kayla Banwarth,
Atlanta Vibe (PVF) Head Coach;
2025 Pro Volleyball Federation (PVF) Franklin Sports Coach of the Year:
Ole Miss Head Women's Coach from 2020 to 2022;
University of Nebraska Assistant Coach from 2017 to 2019;
2019 American Volleyball Coaches' Association's (AVCA) '30 Under 30';
2018 NCAA National Championship Runner-up;
2017 NCAA National Champions;
Pepperdine Men's Volleyball Volunteer Assistant Coach in 2015 and 2016;
U.S. National Volleyball Team member (USA Volleyball) from 2011 to 2017;
2015 NORCECA Championship 'Best Receiver' award;
won Gold Medals at the 2012 & 2013 Pan American Cup, 2015 NORCECA & 2016 FIVB World Grand Prix;
2016 Olympic Games (Rio) - Bronze medal;
2013 USA Volleyball Female Indoor Most Improved Player of the Year;
played for University of Nebraska from 2007 to 2011 (libero; coach was John Cook)

Kayla Banwarth has had a decorated volleyball career both as a player and coach. In this must-see instructional video, Coach Banwarth delivers a highly valuable lesson that highlights the process for changing a volleyball program’s culture and building a championship mindset.Banwarth offers real-world examples that can help set up a framework for establishing a winning culture for a volleyball program at all levels of competition.

Creating The Right Culture For Your Team

Coach Banwarth doesn’t mince words in this session, explaining that if you want your players to do something, then you need to make it mandatory, adding that creating the right culture for your team requires that you begin by building relationships with your players.  

To emphasize the point, Banwarth explains that creating a winning culture is something that must happen before winning occurs – adding that she took over a struggling program with 12 consecutive losses and a team that won one match her first year at Ole Miss.  

Going further in-depth, Coach Banwarth explains that creating a winning culture is easier said than done, and why a coach must never assume that he or she is on the same page as their athletes. She adds that you will likely need to teach players what a championship mindset is, and before doing so, you must first define what it means to you. 

Mindset Pyramid

Coach Banwarth offers an up-close look at her carefully cultivated ‘Mindset Pyramid’ and how it has served to guide her with the Ole Miss volleyball program. Built on solid pillars that lay the foundation for success, this highly valuable lesson in developing a competitive, winning, athletic mindset is must-viewing for coaches and players alike – regardless of sport and level of competition.

Banwarth outlines pillars such as respect, discipline and integrity, explaining the importance of each and offering real-world, applicable reasoning with volleyball program examples that will hit home with your own athletes. The examples provided paint a vivid portrait of a volleyball program that has a winning, championship mindset that goes well beyond what happens on the court.

The urgency pillar is covered next, and Coach Banwarth explains why it begins with creating goals. She asks that coaches pose questions that everyone should ponder, such as: ‘What is it that your team wants to achieve?’ and ‘Can everyone work together to try to meet those goals?’ adding that having an academic goal is also crucial in showing the importance of education.

Banwarth offers in depth explanations on unique pillar concepts such as, ‘teammate-ship’ – and how it gets your players thinking about others, rather than being self-absorbed.

Coach Banwarth also covers a fascinating concept she calls the ‘learner’s mentality’ which is a mutual exploration between coach and player as they learn together, as well as the concept of ‘failing faster’ which is a term she uses to demonstrate that it’s okay to fail, but that you also learn from your mistakes faster.  This session goes deep as Banwarth leaves no stone unturned in explaining her Mindset Pyramid, covering concepts such as being a life-long learner, the importance of positivity, why body language speaks volumes, why two-way communication is essential and much more, including a must-watch explanation of the top of the pyramid, ‘Compete’ and the five subgroups that flow from it. 

In this riveting instructional video, Coach Banwarth has spelled out exactly how you can incorporate the mindset blueprint into creating more success for your volleyball players and team.

Coach Review: 5 Out Of 5 Stars. “All of Coach Banwarth’s mindset pyramid discussion is something that every aspiring volleyball coach must watch. If you want to learn from the best, then this is the video for you.”

55 minutes. 2023.