Youth sports psychology articles and strategies for sports parents of young athletes to improve mental game and performance.
Focus on Small Objectives It’s important for young athletes to establish goals in order to improve their training for the new year. Many young athletes have goals about the successes they’re aiming for in competition, but don’t have well-defined goals for training and practice. Training is critical to success in … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Is Your Athlete a Gamer, Choker or Steady Eddie? Some kids perform better in competition than in practice. Some struggle with maintaining their focus during practice because it lacks the excitement of a match or game. And some excel in practice, but underperform during competitions or matches. These athletes often … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Keep Confidence Up, Even in a Pandemic When kids’ sports schedules are interrupted or stopped altogether–which is true for many young athletes right now, due to the pandemic–they can feel anxious. Injuries, illnesses, inclement weather, facility shutdowns and vacations are some of the other circumstances that can disrupt athletes’ training … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Positive Actions Empower Young Athletes What kinds of adversity have your sports kids encountered? Perhaps they have experienced an injury or long-term sickness. Maybe they were cut from a team or benched by their coach. They could have bombed a big competition or missed the playoffs. They could also experience … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Help Sports Kids Develop a “Give it Your All” Mindset Do your athletes ever complete a competition and regret that they didn’t put forth enough effort? When sports kids lose and feel as if they didn’t give 100%, they can feel crushed. Losing generally isn’t one athlete’s fault. Many issues … Read Sport Psychology Tip
How to Be Mentally Prepared for Adversity Do your sports kids embrace unexpected challenges, seeing them as a way to discover new ways to keep moving forward? Or do these challenges dissuade them from reaching their athletic goals? Kids need to expect the unexpected. In fact, they should prepare for … Read Sport Psychology Tip