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Eye on the Ball, Ear to the Street
For anyone following the Citizen’s sports section for the past several weeks, they will notice that the pages have been mostly dominated by youth sports since varsity play completed in the county. I remember last season, my first year covering youth summer leagues, I was in awe of just how much support these teams receive from the parents and other adults in the community. Watching the young players take their first swings at a new sport (sometimes literally) made me realize just how special youth sports are. The children learn so much in their respective sports. Things like hard work, teamwork and how to deal with losses are important lessons that these kids receive at a young age. But it’s even deeper than just that, as the attitudes and feelings that come from their participation can carry with them into adulthood.
Unfortunately, there are two sides to every story so I’ll start with how things can turn out negatively. I’ve had so many friends in sports in my life who have told me that they used have love for a particular sport before it was ruined by some adult in their life at the time. Whether it was coaches or parents harshly enforcing high expectations from an early age, at some point there was a person that discouraged their pursuit of sports and led them to abandon it entirely.
These types of situations can reinforce all of the wrong traits inside of a young and impressionable player. When a coach or parent is overly critical of a player, that can lead to some troubling thoughts later in life. I want to say first that there is nothing wrong with constructive criticism to help a player reach their potential, but you must be very aware of how exactly you are saying what you want to say. Berating youth with negative terminology in regard to their failures is almost a sure-fire way to ensure they will have to deal with negative self-speak in the future. Dealing with failure in the first place is difficult even for adults, but for children, being treated like mistakes are inexcusable or will lead to further emotional suffering could cause them to view themselves in a harsh light when they experience their own failures later in life. Fear of failure can lead to a fear of trying and a lack of confidence. Any adult adding negative feelings to topics that are already delicate to a child can add feelings that affect how that child sees themselves moving forward.
Especially in the world of sports where failure and success are based off of physical ability, there should be an understanding that not everyone is built equal. Each player reaching their max potential should be the main goal, not comparing them to others and feeling inadequate for not being able to match in certain aspects. Be the best you can be. For some that will mean being the best overall, but it is equally okay to not be the best. There should be a much more positive attitude about the effort it takes to strive for greatness, and less of an emphasis on actually getting there. In reality, they will get there eventually if they continue to focus and have a great attitude towards the work it takes to reach those heights.
On the flip side, there are so many positive attitudes that can be reinforced with youth sports. Confidence is a large part of it, as the overwhelming support from family and teammates win or lose can inspire players to keep trying. They can learn that while losing hurts, it doesn’t hurt that bad. Also, that winning feels better when you do it with a group of people that support you for better or worse. Confidence on the field can lead to confidence in the classroom, confidence with other people, and even confidence in the workplace. The ability to truly support others in a team setting helps them do the same later in life as well. Being happy for others’ successes and not envious is a positive trait that should be emphasized. The love for hard work has a chance to take root in a young player and develop into a natural tendency later in life.
While there are several more positives young players can gain from their youth sports experience, one of the most impactful things they can take away is a catalogue of positive memories from their time playing. Whether they reach the highest heights in the sport or not, whether they won a lot of games or not, if they can walk away from their playing days happy that they stuck with it; that should be considered a win for everyone involved.
