Ive been coaching youth sports since 1997. Ive spent much of my time figuring out different ways to motivate and prepare unfocused children. A majority of those young athletes required a coach with a businesslike, serious, stern, and nose-to-the-grindstone approach to keep the team on-task. However, there was always a kid or two on every team who didnt respond so well to such an approach. These kids usually worked hard, were respectful to coaches and teammates, and almost always appeared focused on the games/practices, but at times they seemed paralyzed by fear of failure and by the what if game they played internally. What if I strike out? What if I miss a tackle? What if I miss my free-throws? Whenever a chorus of what ifs echo through an athletes brain, it changes the entire motivation, focus, and preparation for that athlete. Instead of preparing to hit the ball, the what if tangent prepares them for a strike out. Instead of preparing to tackle the runner, they mentally see themselves whiff and usually follow suit. Instead of preparing to sink their free throws, theyve already visualized a reaction and consequence of a missed shot. Some will verbalize these hypotheticals; this makes them easy to spot and ultimately easier to help. But there may be a few players who chose to keep their anxiety private; like I did. A good coach should figure out what makes each of his players tick. What motivates them? Why are they really playing? Do they perform or react differently in games than they do in practice? How much pressure do they feel? What causes that pressure? Their parents? Their friends? How much of it is real and how much is imagined? The bottom line is that these kids fear of failure outweighs their lust for success and their capacity to enjoy themselves. In this case, coaches need to find ways to reduce fear of failure and/or increase the hope of reward/reenforcement for success. A coach can work wonders with an anxious athlete by inventing ways to remove their perceived pressures. Ive had multiple successes in melting players anxiety via humor. Humor cuts tension like a knife. Laughing reminds us to breathe, and breathing relaxes us. To truly change something, we have to be accepting of it first, and when we laugh at something (in this case, our flaws and our fears), we acknowledge a simple kind of acceptance over them, and thats when changes can begin. Above all, laughter and smiles are obvious symptoms of enjoyment. Even if a players performance is subpar, theres always an excuse to enjoy playing around in a ballpark. Help your players find those excuses. Like Willie Stargell said, The man says play ball, not work ball, you know.
Posted on: Wed, 21 Jan 2015 06:28:31 +0000
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