Helping Kids Move on After Mistakes
Too often, kids get hung up on the mistakes they make in sports.
That means as soon as they goof up, they have trouble getting the mistake out of their minds.
They dwell on the mistake—instead of moving past it. They scold themselves for goofing up. They then focus on avoiding making more mistakes.
This is one of the biggest mental game no-nos kids can make…
Dwelling on mistakes keeps kids’ minds stuck in the wrong place.
When this happens, they tend to freeze up. They lose their ability to take risks. They play to avoid making mistakes.
When kids freeze up and stop taking risks, their performance and confidence suffer. To learn, grow and boost their confidence, kids need to play intuitively and freely.
How do you help young athletes who freeze up and scold themselves after making mistakes?
First of all, be sure to tell them—over and over—that everyone makes mistakes. It’s human to make mistakes—and it helps us learn.
Second, establish a ritual that allows them to move past mistakes. The Positive Coaching Alliance suggests that parents and coaches give kids a flushing motion when they make mistakes. It means, “Flush it out of your system and move on!”
Third, watch your own tongue. Don’t remind your sports kids about their goof-ups. Don’t tell your basketball players before a game, “Make sure you don’t make any turnovers today.”
Avoid turning young athletes in perfectionists. It only raises their expectations and creates frustration.
We’ve got lots of other strategies for helping young athletes move past mistakes.
They’re all included in our popular program, “Helping Young Athletes Kick Perfectionism and Fear of Failure,” which you can check out here:
“Helping Young Athletes Kick Perfectionism and Fear of Failure”
In the program—which includes a PDF manual for parents and an audio program, plus a PDF workbook and audio files for young athletes, we explain how to help kids let go of mistakes, accept feedback, stop criticizing themselves, perform more freely—and more!
Related Articles on Kids’ Mental Game:
- How Kids Can Learn to Make the Most of Mistakes While Competing
- When Athletes Only Dwell on Post Game Mistakes
- Addressing Anxiety, Mistakes and Low Confidence in Youth Sports
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