Articles for sport parents to help their athletes overcome perfectionism to play their best.
How to Help Perfectionist Young Athletes Many top athletes say that they’re perfectionists. When they say this, sports kids may assume that perfectionism will help them attain their full potential. While perfectionism has advantages, it can actually prevent young athletes from reaching their potential. While perfectionists show up for practice … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Fighting Perfectionism in Young Athletes Do your young athletes only focus on mistakes after they compete? Do they criticize their performance instead of focusing on learning from their mistakes? Do they ignore what they did well? If so, your sports kids are likely perfectionists. They tend to be hard on … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Comparisons Hurt Athletes’ Confidence When we surveyed parents, we found that 23% said that kids judge how their teammates are performing instead of focusing on their own play. Focusing on others’ play will distract your young athletes from their own game, and can become a major confidence killer. In the … Read Sport Psychology Tip
How to Help Young Athletes Enjoy Sports Many athletes limit their performance due to anxiety, tension, worry, and fear. Sports are supposed to be fun, not stressful for your athletes, right? Parents and coaches, we can help you identify when sports kids are suffering from anxiety–and determine how to help … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Do Young Athletes Have Mental Blocks? A sports parent says: “I have a 12-year-old son who is having major mental blocks as it comes to baseball. He feels the pressure to live up to the hype of making it to the World Series. His pitching has improved tremendously however in … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Communicating With Sports Kids After Mistakes A sports parent says: “I feel I need assistance with what to say to kids after they have made a mistake…” Learning to deal with mistakes is one of the most beneficial aspects of sports psychology, and will benefit your children throughout their lives. … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Boosting Confidence in Young Athletes A young athlete writes: “I am a badminton player and I am finding it really hard to not get shaky or lose confidence when in a game if I miss a shot, my coach keeps telling me that I am I good player and I … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Strategies to Help Sports Kids Overcome Failure Fear of failure affects sports children in all types of sports, but can be especially challenging in baseball, says Nova Newcomer, executive director, Friends of Baseball, in Portland, Oregon. “The tough challenge with baseball is it’s a failure-based sport,” says Newcomer, whose organization … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Helping Kids Focus on The Process Instead of Outcome A young athlete writes: “I want to quit wrestling because I have too much anxiety with the pain and my failure. I have found other hobbies like lifting by myself or with a friend. I just don’t like wrestling and I … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Helping Young Athletes Move on After Mistakes A sport parent asks: “My kids keep hearing that they are supposed to aim for a game without mistakes, but to expect that mistakes are going to happen nonetheless. They ask me if it is possible though, to actually have a game with … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Helping Young Athletes Overcome Negative Beliefs It’s common for young athletes to struggle with doubt and negative thoughts about their performance. They tell themselves that: This type of negative self-talk can be detrimental to your young athletes, and if it isn’t addressed, can lead to mental-game challenges. With each negative … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Helping Young Athletes Unlock Their Performance A sports parent asks: “I have a son who is a junior baseball player. To watch him warm up and practice, he looks the part and has already got some small college offers. He fits your description of a perfectionist and therefore lacks confidence. … Read Sport Psychology Tip
How Perfectionism Can Lead to Fear of Failure A sports parent writes: “My child is a 9-year old figure skater. She is very passionate with her sport but sometimes she tend to get very frustrated when she performs poorly in her program. Also, when she is performing well, her coach … Read Sport Psychology Tip
How to Unlock Athletes’ Minds from Avoiding Mistakes A young athlete asks: “I’m a 14-year old basketball player. I keep holding back on the court because I’m afraid to mess up. What should I do?” Fear of failure is one of the most common issues in youth sports. Your children … Read Sport Psychology Tip
How High Expectations Lead to Pressure in Young Athletes A recent NCAA poll of more than 21,000 current college athletes shed some interesting light on how pressured these athletes feel about making it big. The data, from NCAA’s GOALS Study of the Student-Athlete experience, and just reported in USA Today, … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Perfectionism In Young Athletes We recently received a note from a parent about how her 10-year-old’s high expectations lead her to give up when faced with adversity. This is common when a child, like this softball player, has achieved success. She has pitched many perfect games, including at state playoffs, … Read Sport Psychology Tip