{"id":5056,"date":"2018-11-29T21:31:57","date_gmt":"2018-11-29T21:31:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/?p=5056"},"modified":"2025-07-10T06:05:37","modified_gmt":"2025-07-10T10:05:37","slug":"helping-young-athletes-who-get-timid-during-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/helping-young-athletes-who-get-timid-during-competition\/","title":{"rendered":"Helping Athletes Who Get Timid During Competition"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5061\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/helping-athletes-who-get-timid-during-competition-1.jpg\" alt=\"Young Athletes Trust Their Skills\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/helping-athletes-who-get-timid-during-competition-1.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/helping-athletes-who-get-timid-during-competition-1-300x150.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_Can_Young_Athletes_Trust_Their_Skills_in_Games\"><\/span>How Can Young Athletes Trust Their Skills in Games?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2><div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_83 ez-toc-wrap-center counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/helping-young-athletes-who-get-timid-during-competition\/#How_Can_Young_Athletes_Trust_Their_Skills_in_Games\" >How Can Young Athletes Trust Their Skills in Games?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/helping-young-athletes-who-get-timid-during-competition\/#But_trust_is_influenced_by_several_other_factors_in_athletes_mental_game%E2%80%A6\" >But trust is influenced by several other factors in athletes&#8217; mental game&#8230;<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/helping-young-athletes-who-get-timid-during-competition\/#Related_Articles_on_Youth_Sports\" >Related Articles on Youth Sports:<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/helping-young-athletes-who-get-timid-during-competition\/#The_Composed_Sports_Kid\" >The Composed Sports Kid<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>A sports parent asks:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>&#8220;When my son plays certain sports, especially basketball, there&#8217;s clearly and no hesitation to &#8220;mix it up&#8221; aggressively. He doesn&#8217;t always translate skills to game situations&#8230; he often fails to let his skills flourish due to the lack of aggressiveness and\/or toughness. (The best example I can provide is that when he drives into traffic, he usually modifies his release so as to avoid contact, thereby seriously hindering his chance to make the shot and eliminating the chance of drawing a foul that is there to be drawn.) I&#8217;m wondering if you have any recommendations for this limitation?&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Often when players perform well in practice but fail to translate their &#8220;practice game&#8221; to real competition, they lack <strong>trust<\/strong> in being able to properly utilize the skills they learned in practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"But_trust_is_influenced_by_several_other_factors_in_athletes_mental_game%E2%80%A6\"><\/span>But trust is influenced by several other factors in athletes&#8217; mental game&#8230;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This lack of <strong>trust<\/strong> is due to fears such as making a mistake and embarrassing themselves in front of their coaches, family, and friends. In essence, this is <strong>fear of failure<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Fear of failure<\/strong> is one of the toughest mental game challenges players face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s because it compounds as young athletes make more mistakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With each mistake, they worry about what others think about their performance. They also start playing more <strong>tentatively,<\/strong> with little <strong>confidence,<\/strong> and that hurts their performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When this happens, it\u2019s critical to uncover what fears are plaguing your young athletes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Are they <strong>afraid<\/strong> of being <strong>embarrassed<\/strong> in front of friends, coaches and teammates?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Are they <strong>worried<\/strong> about making more <strong>mistakes<\/strong> and playing even worse?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Are they <strong>worried<\/strong> about getting<strong> taken out<\/strong> of the game by the coach?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As sports parents, it\u2019s your job to help kids figure out what they\u2019re afraid of if they perform poorly. You also want to encourage them to let go of mistakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Better yet, let them know that mistakes are part of sports. They must have your permission to make mistakes. Give them three &#8220;get out of jail&#8221; cards to help them <strong>overcome mistakes.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Give them a &#8220;flushing&#8221; sign to help them move on after mistakes, as suggested by the Positive Coaching Alliance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In addition, you want your athletes to play all out and trust in their skills no matter how many mistakes they&#8217;ve made in the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"related-articles-on-hockey-mental-game\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Related_Articles_on_Youth_Sports\"><\/span>Related Articles on Youth Sports:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/why-athletes-become-intimidated-peaksports-video\/\"><strong>Why Athletes Become Intimidated<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/when-coaches-yell-insult-and-intimidate-sports-kids\/\"><strong>When Coaches Yell, Insult and Intimidate Sports Kids<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/how-athletes-can-stop-overthinking\/\" title=\"How Athletes Can Stop Overthinking\u00a0\"><strong>How Athletes Can Stop Overthinking\u00a0<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" id=\"block-f49818fa-7c7a-4ee3-b5ee-66581aad2c71\">*Subscribe to\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/sports-psychology-podcast-by-peaksports-com\/id152566009\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Sports Psychology Podcast<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>on iTunes<br>*Subscribe to <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0ynyaalKxbnNmsoeL8gF5X?si=8224669de9b3435b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>The Sports Psychology Podcast<\/strong><\/a> on Spotify<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Composed_Sports_Kid\"><\/span>The Composed Sports Kid<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"225\" height=\"250\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/03\/composed-sports-kid-small-1.jpg\" alt=\"The Composed Sports Kid\" class=\"wp-image-11173\" style=\"width:170px\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;The Composed Sports Kid&#8221; audio&nbsp;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.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em><strong>The Composed Sports Kid system<\/strong><\/em>&nbsp;is really two programs in one\u2013one program to train parents and coaches how to help their kids practice composure, and one program that teaches young athletes\u2013<em>ages 6 to 13<\/em>\u2013how to improve composure, let go of mistakes quickly, have more self-acceptance,&nbsp;<strong>and thus enjoy sports more<\/strong>!&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-26bcd9b3\">\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-903b6244 gb-button-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/the-confident-sports-kid-cd-program\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">GET DETAILS<\/a>\n\n\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-3275f4fd gb-button-text\" href=\"https:\/\/shop.peaksports.com\/collections\/confident-sports-kid-series-digital-version\/products\/the-confident-sports-kid-bundle-digital\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">BUY NOW<\/a>\n\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How Can Young Athletes Trust Their Skills in Games? A sports parent asks: &#8220;When my son plays certain sports, especially basketball, there&#8217;s clearly and no hesitation to &#8220;mix it up&#8221; aggressively. He doesn&#8217;t always translate skills to game situations&#8230; he often fails to let his skills flourish due to the &#8230; <a title=\"Helping Athletes Who Get Timid During Competition\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/helping-young-athletes-who-get-timid-during-competition\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Helping Athletes Who Get Timid During Competition\">Read Sport Psychology Tip<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5062,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17,7,6],"tags":[298,325],"class_list":["post-5056","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports-parenting","category-sports-psychology-for-kids","category-youth-sports-psychology-blog","tag-fear-of-failure-in-sports","tag-trust-in-youth-sports"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5056","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5056"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5056\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5062"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5056"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5056"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5056"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}