“Life as a Team Sport” Campaign
It’s still possible for kids to stay involved in sports during COVID-19 isolation, says Spencer Gordon, partnership manager for the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) Portland.
PCA, which aims to create better athletes and people, has launched a “Life as a Team Sport” campaign, which includes many online resources for helping young athletes tune up their mental game skills.
It includes Zoom meetings and Facebook Live events that feature well-known athletes.
Meanwhile, Gordon advises that parents talk to kids about ways to look toward the future.
“Eventually this will all pass but we can use this time to up that mental toughness and mental acuity,” he says. “This is a time when we can better certain skills. And really fine tune certain aspects of sports in general, in the triple impact competitor sense.”
A triple impact competitor, according to PCA, “is an athlete who works to improve oneself, teammates, and the game as a whole.”
One important mental game skill that PCA teaches its triple-impact competitors is to move on after mistakes, says Gordon. His suggests that coaches create a mistake ritual, such as coaches giving kids a flushing sign to help them move on. On his own team, kids are taught to pound on their chest after making a mistake.
“The idea is that the most important play is always the next play,” he says. The mistake ritual is a physical motion to help kids physically and mentally let go.
Right now, parents should also take time, if possible, to get physically active with young athletes outside and try to impart life lessons learned from the COVID-19 crisis. He suggests that parents avoid hiding the crisis, but instead use it to teach lessons.
“Kids are feeling the hurt; we need to be inspirational leaders.Be as enthusiastic and engaging as you can, creating these memorable moments and important life lessons about what we cherish in life.”
Listen to the PCA Podcast Here:
Meanwhile, parents and young athletes can check out the new Life as a Team Sport campaign, which includes a free course for young athletes that aims to teach them how to be triple-impact competitors.
Help your young athletes stay involved in sports during this crisis–and learn life lessons.
Learn Mental Game Lessons to Help Young Athletes With Their Pregame Prep!
Young athletes and their parents and coaches tell us that sports kids often struggle with these pregame mental game challenges:
- They fail to take charge of their confidence before the compete
- They don’t trust in their skills when they go from practice to competition
- They hang on to mistakes and dwell in them in competition
- They worry too much about what others think about their performance
- They feel pressure to excel from expectations they feel from others
- They focus too much on the outcome instead of the process
- They tighten up and play safe when they feel pressure to succeed
- They interpret pregame jitters as harmful to their performance
“10 Minute Pregame Prep” will tell you everything you need to know about ensuring your sports kids avoid classic mental game pitfalls before a game, learn how to trust their instincts, and just go for it. It provides lots of advice for you, too…
With our program, you can stop wondering what to do and relax before your kids’ games!
Learn more about “10-Minute Pregame Prep”….
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“10 Tips to Improve Confidence And Success in Young Athletes”
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