How Are Parents Affecting Youth Sports?
As youth sports parents, our involvement can take many forms. Some of us have experienced the thrill of seeing our child come through in the clutch, make the big play, and lead their team to victory. Many of us have suffered through the pain of a devastating loss or a disappointing performance. And all of us in this role have endured the early mornings and the late nights, the long roadtrips and the meals on the go. When our kids commit to becoming athletes at any level, there’s a commitment we’re called to make as parents, too. Their involvement almost always includes our involvement.
The big question, then, for those of us committed to raising and developing champions - on the playing field and beyond - is what does that involvement look like? How are parents affecting youth sports, for better or worse, and how will you affect your child’s experience? At Champions 101, we are committed to helping you answer those questions, and providing you with sports parent resources you can use to help your child become their best, instead of hindering it from happening.
How Do Parents Influence Their Child in Sport?
We should all recognize the incredible power of sports as a teaching tool for life. The game has so many valuable lessons to teach and so many winning skills to build, if we use it the right way. At the same time, we’ve all heard the horror stories of parents that take youth sports too seriously, that lose sight of what’s really important and that miss out on the great opportunity the game provides. So what causes one experience over another? It all starts with the parent’s perspective.
As we alluded to earlier, there are a number of parental influences on youth involvement in sports. Parents influence their children in all aspects of their athletic careers, from the very beginning. When that parent’s perspective is focused on building a love and enjoyment for the game, it can lay the foundation for a successful experience. This positive introduction can take multiple forms, including:
•Watching live sports in person
•Buying sports fan apparel
•Watching live sports on television
•Reading stories about sports
•Playing the game in the backyard
•Going to the local school’s or a sibling’s practice or games
•Watching family friendly sports movies
As a parent, once you’ve laid a solid foundation for your child and as they begin to play the game themselves, you’ll find your influence continues to change. As always, though, it’s your perspective that drives your priorities and ultimately your decisions. Let’s take a look at some of the positive and negative ways parents can shape their young athlete’s experience.
Positive Parent Behavior in Sports
Positive parental behavior in sports can take many forms, depending on the age and ability of your child. Here are a few important roles you can play:
•Role Model
There are plenty of ways you can influence your young athlete, but none is more powerful or more important than your own example. The attitude and energy you bring to this experience, the support and encouragement you provide, and the way you choose to handle the challenges and struggles that come with playing the game will have a huge impact on the kind of athlete and person your child becomes. The truth is, champions breed champions. That means if we want our kids to become their very best, as athletes and as people, then we’ve got to be committed to becoming our very best, too. The most effective and authentic teaching tool we have at our disposal is our own powerful example.
•Fan
There should be no more obvious and no more proud supporter of your young athlete than you are. Of course, there will be plenty of moments of disappointment and even frustration as part of this experience, but a healthy perspective on your role as a cheerleader for your child will allow you to keep this experience fun, for you and for your child. When you recognize the importance of accountable sports parents, and when you show up to the game with a clear sense of joy and gratitude for the opportunity you’ve been given to watch your child compete, it has a positive impact on everyone around you…including your child.
•Coach
Coaching your child, either formally or informally, can be really tough…but oh so rewarding. As always, doing it effectively starts with your perspective. If you allow your negative emotion or unhealthy competitiveness to drive your decisions, your influence as a coach will diminish. But if you can keep your child’s (and the other players’) growth and development as your primary focus, you’ll find that coaching them up can be really fun. Not only are there opportunities for you to help them develop their sport-specific skills like passing, dribbling, or shooting, you also have the chance to help them develop the qualities that real success requires of them in any area of life, like great effort, a positive attitude, a selfless spirit, and a courageous heart.
•And more…
As a sports parent, there’s no telling what role you might have to take on. Some days you’ll serve as the chauffeur. Other days you’ll be the pre-game meal preparer. Today you may be called to be your child’s biggest supporter, while tomorrow may call for you to challenge them or hold them accountable to your unmet but important standard of performance. Whatever it is you’re responsible for doing today, make sure you’re committed to doing it like a champion, so you can help your child learn to do the same.
Negative Parental Involvement in Youth Sports
As we said, the influence you possess as a sports parent can just as easily be used for harm as it is for good. Those same roles we described positively above can turn harmful or negative if we don’t keep things in the proper perspective.These can include but are not limited to:
•Allowing disappointment, frustration, or anger to drive our decisions
•Communicating with negativity or sarcasm
•Verbal or physical abuse
•Unhealthy parental pressure
•Unwarranted criticism or nitpicking
•Robbing the joy from this experience
The sad reality is that there are all sorts of ways sports parents can negatively influence their young athletes. Even more sad, many parents don’t possess the awareness to realize they’re doing it! At Champions 101, we believe that every parent has the ability and the responsibility to positively affect their child’s sports experience. To do that most effectively,
Make it fun and keep it fun.
Maintain your perspective.
Make decisions and act with intention and purpose.
As parents, we need to be the leaders. We know some things our kids don’t know yet. They are counting on our leadership, and can’t reach their potential without it. When we don’t have all the answers, it’s our job to find the resources and information that can help us help them. We created Champions 101 to help you do that most important work.
Champions 101…Winning Resources for Sports Parents
After years of coaching, teaching, researching, and writing, I founded Champions 101 to help empower athletes, coaches, and sports parents. Like any 101 course, Champions 101 is designed to break down the fundamentals of winning habits and perspectives to help each of us become the best in life and in sports. Our online library has tools specifically geared towards parents, players, and coaches, with a mix of free resources and paid courses. To start building your foundation, subscribe or contact us today! We can’t wait to see the greatness we can achieve together.