Weplay Moms
Prioritizing Potential Over Winning – They Are Not The Same
Winning, in its simplest form, is what all athletes want to do―they want to win. The sheer nature of competitive sports being competitive brings forth these winning aspirations; it’s simply part of the “game.” If this was not the case, then..
Parenting Athletes in the 21st Century
Last year, in the winter of 2012, I did an inspirational speaking presentation to a group of athletes and parents at a local high school. At the end of the presentation, as usual, I opened up the conversation to questions from attendees. In the back of the audience a woman…
Nine Attributes Necessary For Athletic Greatness: Part I
When watching athletes like Derek Rose, Drew Brees, Derek Jeter, Apolo Ohno, Evan Lysacek, Shawn Johnson, etc., perform at levels few ever realize, you have to wonder what they have that makes them so special, so different. In other words, the essence of what gives…
Nine Attributes Necessary For Athletic Greatness: Part II
In my last piece, I detailed four of my Nine Attributes Necessary For Athletic Greatness, at least from my viewpoint… In this post I want to focus on the last five of these characteristics, bringing more weight to bear on my concept of what…
A Strong Fundamental Approach
I talk a lot about how important the development of a strong fundamental skill base is to helping determine the level of success any athlete can achieve – their highest level of potential. I have an article…
Building Character Through Sports
The traditionally-held notion that athletes build character through their participation in sports is something that certainly seems debatable based on our current sports and youth sports culture. If we base our opinion solely on what we see in the media regarding athletes and behavior (both on and off the field), you would likely…
A “Fundamental” Difference To Skill Acquisition
Fundamental: “something upon which other things rest and depend.” “So when you talk about the fundamentals of athletics, you’re talking about things that absolutely have to be present, or be done, in order for progress to be made and success to occur in athletics.” A quote from the…
Does Your Young Athlete Get it?
Even though the term “click” conjures up a distinct sound one hears, in the context I am referring to here it is more a situation one sees rather than something one hears. Such is the way a young athlete demonstrates the change from…
How the Best Athletes Perceive Failure
Most of the time when we watch the best athletes compete, we see the end results of the time, energy, and efforts they’ve put in to prepare for success in competition. However, something we are not privy to…
Don’t Underestimate The Power of Parenting
We’ve all heard the comments, “Wow, look how talented that player is” or “Boy, is that kid good, he (she) must have tons of talent” or even “That girl (boy) is going to be great someday, her (his) parents were both Olympic athletes.” Yes, many equate high levels of skill and athletic accomplishment with…
Does Talent Make the Athlete?
Are you one who believes that high levels of athletic success are only available to those born with some type of extraordinary physical gifts; an innate set of wiring that enables only certain athletes to reach levels of skill performance well beyond what most could ever conceive? If so, then you might want to take a hard look at…
Intrinsic vs Extrinsic “Rewards:” It’s What Happens On The Inside That Counts
What is it that keeps athletes interested and motivated over the long term? How are they able to train day in and day out, month after month while keeping their passion alive? And after their athletic career has…
Mastery As The Ultimate Goal: When Real “Winning” Is Set In Motion
This past March I had the pleasure of giving my perspective on what it takes to achieve excellence in sports, especially when facing tough adversity, to a…
When Burnout Ends and Fun Begins in Sports Participation
Over the last ten to fifteen years there has been a great deal of interest and publicity over the number of young athletes dropping out of sports and or organized activities. Commonly referred to as burnout, opinions…
A Time for a Change
In the wake of Tiger Woods’ indiscretions and Mark McGwire coming clean about his steroid use, I can’t help but reflect on how this past decade has inevitably changed the view of many regarding the values taught through competitive sports participation. You would be hard pressed to find a sport that has not been…
Taking The “Im” Out of Impossible: A Matter of Connecting The “Dots”
It is in giving several inspirational presentations to high school athletes and programs, that I have had the distinct opportunity to truly reflect on what allows a select few athletes to achieve greatness through adversity. This “special” ingredient is…
The Benefits of Competitive Athletic Sports Participation
According to the National Council of Youth Sports (NCYS) there were over 40 million boys and girls participating in organized sports in 2008. Considering the continual growth of youth sports participation each year, it would certainly be of benefit to highlight the positives behind these numbers. This becomes especially important…
Gatorade Moms
Foundations for Athletic Success
Organizing practice and game strategy, knowing the X’s and O’s, proper drill work and conditioning — these are just a few of the various responsibilities that encompass the job of being a coach. And this doesn’t begin to touch…
Beware of the Mid-Season Slump
With the popularity of sports and youth sports these days, it is not uncommon for a competitive season to extend 3, 4, 6, even 8 months long, depending on the sport or whether that sport is played for a school or a local club. Case in point…
Benefits of Competitive Sports Not Always Clear-Cut: “The Intangibles”
Skill improvement, teamwork, work ethic, exercise — all are aspects that come to mind when one is asked what young athletes gain from a healthy experience in competitive sports. Other common thoughts (especially from coaches) include…
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