The Ultimate Sports Parent
Have I ever told you that I grew up in a sports-crazed family with five kids?
30 years ago when I played football, hockey, golf, and lacrosse year round, our dad was an enthusiastic sports parent. He often impeached us to play harder and live up to our abilities. He was quick to express his frustration with refs and coaches.
My dad (and mom) was so into our games, he couldn’t restrain himself. That was both good and bad for the five of us. We liked all the attention, but often felt pressured to perform better – and better!
Now that I am a sports parent myself, I understand just how difficult it is for parents–like my dad–to figure out how best to support and help their kids in sports. And as a leading sports psychology expert, we’ve been studying this issue.
Sports parents today have many tough questions to answer:
–Should you push kids to try harder in sports when you know they have the athletic ability?
–What do you say or do after your child or teen’s crushing defeat?
–What to do if your son/daughter worries constantly about what others think of his/her sports performance?
–How do you behave on the sidelines when you are frustrated with coaches or refs?
These are hard questions, and the answers are not always obvious.
Related Articles on Youth Sports:
- How to Care About Athletes’ Mental Health
- Parents Should Show Sports Kids They Care About More than the Win
- Helping Young Athletes Embrace Mental Training
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Help Young Athletes Boost Confidence in Sports!
Every day, we receive letters from parents like you who want their children and teens to excel in sports. However, these parents can see fear, doubt, and frustration on the faces of their kids who struggle with the “inner” game of sports. But these parents have no idea how to help their kids overcome the worries, expectations and self-defeating thoughts that prevent their young athletes from feeling confident and successful.
You can benefit from our 15-plus years’ of work in sports psychology and sports parenting research. Now, you can tap into our secrets to sports success through a cutting-edge, 14-day program that helps young athletes overcome the top “mental game” challenges that sports parents face—and the top challenges young athletes face.