Positive Coaching.org has created this blog to keep in touch with the parent, coach, administrator, media professional or any individual who has a hand in influencing youth sports.
I became involved with Positive Coaching because I saw the passion and dedication of the Executive Director, Tom Van Buskirk and his wife, Mary Ann to the organization. I also believe in the "residual aspects" of sports: working and bonding as a team, experiencing victory-and more importantly-facing and moving through defeat, and the overall positive feeling of accomplishment of having given your all.
Each of these aspects can help a young player as he or she move through life. I'm an example of that. I am still grateful every day (at 48 years old) for the coaches who had a hand in my development as a young athlete and the lessons taken from my experiences.
A vast majority of kids who quit sports do so because of either a coach or parent. I have heard the following rationalizations:
-The coach was too tough
-The coach was not tough enough
-The parents thought their kid was the next (insert ANY superstar's name here)
-The kid's parents are idiots
-The kid has no talent (this coming from a coach of a team of soccer players...who were five years old!)
I coached my son's teams in baseball, basketball and football for 8 years. During that time, I NEVER once spoke of winning or losing. Not once. I had every team focus on simply getting better every-on any level- during practice. Winning and losing is a by-product. We experienced defeat many times, but never had a losing season.
The reason I bring this up is because of an incident that recently happened. I ran into a player that I coached years ago, who was with his mom. After the hugs and "how are things?" his mom said to me that he still talked about the time I hugged him after he came off the field after he ran a long way for a ball that he missed and the team scored a run to go ahead in the game. He was upset as he came off the field and apologized. She said after six years he still remembered my words of "keep running, always run and next time it's yours" as I hugged him.
I didn't remember the incident and have no idea if we won or lost the game. But it struck me that we never really know whom we touch and in what way we can impact someones life-either positively or negatively.
Till next time,
"Keep running"
