{"id":7476,"date":"2022-07-07T10:53:00","date_gmt":"2022-07-07T14:53:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/?p=7476"},"modified":"2025-07-08T07:54:47","modified_gmt":"2025-07-08T11:54:47","slug":"helping-kids-stop-criticizing-their-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/helping-kids-stop-criticizing-their-game\/","title":{"rendered":"Helping Kids Stop Criticizing Their Game"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/what-to-do-when-sports-kids-want-to-quit-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/what-to-do-when-sports-kids-want-to-quit-1.jpg\" alt=\"How to Help Sports Kids Feel Less Pressure\" class=\"wp-image-4947\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/what-to-do-when-sports-kids-want-to-quit-1.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/what-to-do-when-sports-kids-want-to-quit-1-300x150.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Help_Athletes_Be_Less_Self-Critical\"><\/span>Help Athletes Be Less Self-Critical<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-kids-stop-criticizing-their-game\/#Help_Athletes_Be_Less_Self-Critical\" >Help Athletes Be Less Self-Critical<\/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-kids-stop-criticizing-their-game\/#In_reality_what_does_hyper_self-criticism_do_for_kids\" >In reality, what does hyper self-criticism do for kids?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/helping-kids-stop-criticizing-their-game\/#Hyde_knows_that_positive_messages_lead_to_positive_performance\" >Hyde knows that positive messages lead to positive performance.<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/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-kids-stop-criticizing-their-game\/#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-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/helping-kids-stop-criticizing-their-game\/#The_Composed_Sports_Kid\" >The Composed Sports Kid<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>Are your sports kids <strong>critical of themselves<\/strong>? After every mistake or bad game, do they put themselves down?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When kids criticize themselves excessively, they experience fractured confidence, low motivation and underperformance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The <strong>criticism<\/strong> also creates a loop: they perform badly\u2026they criticize themselves\u2026their confidence and motivation sink\u2026they perform badly. Breaking the cycle starts with helping kids change their self-talk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When kids dedicate a lot of time and effort to their sport, they want to see the fruits of their labor. Initial emotional responses are a sign that they care about their performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The problem is not their initial response to a bad game. The problem is persistent negative responses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When young athletes bombard their minds with negative criticism, one bad game turns into two, three or four bad games. A hit-less game turns into a slump. Booting an easy grounder leads to more errors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"In_reality_what_does_hyper_self-criticism_do_for_kids\"><\/span>In reality, what does hyper self-criticism do for kids?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>It doesn\u2019t make them better players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Kids can stop the cycle by changing their self-talk as a first step in getting back on track.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They should think of what they would say to support a teammate who is struggling. Would kids tell their teammates to quit?&nbsp; Would they tell their struggling teammate they will probably under perform for the rest of the season?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>No! They should highlight others\u2019 strengths. They should tell their teammates to keep working hard. They should tell teammates that they\u2019ll experience a breakthrough soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sports kids should tell themselves the same types of <strong>positive messages<\/strong>. Baltimore Orioles manager Brandon Hyde has been giving positive messages to rookie catcher Adley Rutschman, who has been disappointed with his early performance at the major league level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Rutschman is batting .149 in 12 games since being promoted from Triple-A and has been charged with two throwing errors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Still, Hyde&nbsp; keeps giving Rutschman positive messages to get his offense on track. Hyde is confident Rutschman will be a solid major league player.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI told [Rutschman] when he first got here, \u2018I just want you to relax. It\u2019s going to be impossible to relax, but relax as best you possibly can and have fun with it.\u2019 It just takes adjustments, and it takes a little bit of time, and he\u2019s doing just fine,\u201d said Hyde.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Hyde_knows_that_positive_messages_lead_to_positive_performance\"><\/span>Hyde knows that positive messages lead to positive performance.<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI know how hard it\u2019s going to be and difficult it is, and he just has to kind of get over the early stage of being a major league player,\u201d said Hyde. \u201cIt\u2019s not easy. I just think support, that\u2019s what we\u2019re going to do, and that\u2019s what we\u2019re here for is to stay positive with him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When kids send themselves the message to be patient, they will be more patient in games. When they tell themselves they can succeed at the next level, they will perform better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To help develop patience, sports kids need to <strong>talk to themselves in the same manner <\/strong>they would talk to a struggling teammate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Help sports kids develop positive self-talk off the field that they can use on the field. They should tell themselves, \u201cStay patient, let the game come to me.\u201d<\/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\/feelings-can-be-contagious-in-youth-sports\/\"><strong>Feelings Can be Contagious in Youth Sports<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/playing-through-adversity\/\" title=\"Playing Through Adversity\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/control-whats-controllable\/\"><strong>Control What\u2019s Controllable<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/help-your-athletes-close-out-competitions\/\"><strong>Help Your Athletes Close out Competitions<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p 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 <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0ynyaalKxbnNmsoeL8gF5X?si=8224669de9b3435b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Sports Psychology Podcast<\/a> <\/strong>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>&#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><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>Help Athletes Be Less Self-Critical Are your sports kids critical of themselves? After every mistake or bad game, do they put themselves down? When kids criticize themselves excessively, they experience fractured confidence, low motivation and underperformance. The criticism also creates a loop: they perform badly\u2026they criticize themselves\u2026their confidence and motivation &#8230; <a title=\"Helping Kids Stop Criticizing Their Game\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/helping-kids-stop-criticizing-their-game\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Helping Kids Stop Criticizing Their Game\">Read Sport Psychology Tip<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4948,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26,6],"tags":[309],"class_list":["post-7476","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-confidence-in-young-athletes","category-youth-sports-psychology-blog","tag-confidence-in-youth-sports"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7476","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=7476"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7476\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7476"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7476"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7476"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}