What Pressures Sports Kids?
Parents, think twice before investing a lot of money into youth sports. While your intentions may be well-meaning, your efforts may backfire.
That’s the word from a new study about spending and youth sports. The author, Travis Dorsch, found that higher parental spending creates sports kids who feel more pressured–and often don’t perform well.
We believe this makes sense.
Here’s why: The kids feel indebted to their parents, and feel like they need to pay them back by excelling. They don’t “own” their sports experiences; their parents do.
We’ve seen this many times.
Instead of overspending, you should check your own expectations for your kids.
Do you expect them to garner scholarships, be the best on the team, or score all the points?
If you find that you feel this way, take a step back. Consider that kids often take on your high expectations as their own. And that creates pressure.
When kids feel pressured, they often get frustrated. They don’t always feel confident–the big ingredient to ensuring they enjoy sports and perform well.
What should you do instead?
Parents need to be present for their kids without living through them.
That means taking them to games and practices, being positive about their performance, and supporting the coach and other players. It means finding something positive to say about kids’ performances–even if they don’t win–and resisting over-coaching kids from the sidelines.
Sports parents should also focus on the process–not on the win.
A recent study found that kids would rather get more playing time than win.
That’s an important message for sports parents:
Kids may not care as much about winning as adults think.
Want to learn more about how to ensure your young athletes enjoy their sports experience and perform well?
Here at Kids’ Sports Psychology, exclusive members have access to loads of information that improves your sports parenting skills and boosts kids’ confidence.
For example, want to learn about how to motivate kids without pressuring them?
Exclusive members of Kids’ Sports Psychology have access to this e-book:
Motivate Young Athletes In Sports And Life
What’s more, they have access to videos, articles, Ask the Experts, audio interviews, and much more!
Related Articles on Kids’ Mental Game:
*Subscribe to The Sports Psychology Podcast on iTunes
*Subscribe to The Sports Psychology Podcast on Spotify
The Composed Sports Kid
“The Composed Sports Kid” audio and workbook digital download program for young athletes and their parents or coach helps kids cope with frustration and anger in sports. Help your sports kids learn how to manage expectations and let go of mistakes so they can keep their head in the game.
The Composed Sports Kid system is really two programs in one–one program to train parents and coaches how to help their kids practice composure, and one program that teaches young athletes–ages 6 to 13–how to improve composure, let go of mistakes quickly, have more self-acceptance, and thus enjoy sports more!
There has definitely been a growing “pay to play” culture among youth sports. The more parents can pay the better teams their child can join, the more individualized coaching they can get, fancier equipment, and so forth. But paying more doesn’t replace actually supporting your children. Your physical presence, your cheers, and your approval mean more than that fancy baseball glove. Money can’t buy you happiness!