Building Confidence in Young Athletes Over and over, coaches and parents tell us that when kids build confidence in sports, they boost it in other areas of their lives. For example, at Kids’ Sports Psychology, we teach kids how to cope with worries about what everyone is thinking of them. … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Ensuring Sports Kids Are Focused Too often, sports kids simply go through the motions in youth sports, says Bobby Kipper, a former college coach and co-author of the book, “Performance Driven Thinking.” “The kids are there physically, but their minds are not there,” he says. “They’re not giving their all.” … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Embracing Failure to Grow in Youth Sports There’s two ways young athletes can deal with failure and losses, says Eric DeMeulenaere, a Clark University professor, former soccer coach and author of “Reflections From the Field.” They can look at losses from a growth mindset, which means feeling the pain and … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Playing Time in Youth Sports Here’s an interesting study result: If young athletes have to choose between losing and getting to play the whole game, they choose playing time. That’s a tidbit from Steven Frierman, a professor at Hofstra University and a former youth sports coach. Yes, that’s right. Winning … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Valuable Lessons For Sports Kids We work with a lot of young athletes today who struggle with perfectionism. Although perfectionism has many good qualities, it also can sabotage kids’ success in sports. Perfectionists tend to be highly motivated, strive to do their best, and they work hard. However, perfectionists may … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Help Sports Kids Have Fun In Sports Don’t bring a Nobel-Prize winning professor to teach your young sports kids the physics behind throwing a ball. Instead, focus on games like “Simon Says,” and “Hokey Pokey.” That’s the word from VJ Stanley, a retired college hockey coach and youth sports coach … Read Sport Psychology Tip