By Todd Clark (Broker/Sales Coach) 503-524-9494
I’ve coached baseball and softball for at least 5
years now
and one thing I’m not afraid to say is I like to win. But,
it doesn’t and
shouldn’t be at all cost, it needs to be fun, but I do want to make
sure my
players aren’t injured and they play as a team.
What sports are all about
is teaching kids to learn to be part of a team and
working together to reach a common goal of winning. Now if
you play together,
have fun and still lose, then I really don’t care, you tried and that
is all I
ask.
But, my pet peeve is when
parents force their children who clearly don’t want
to play to play anyway. I don’t appreciate parents who
force their kids to play
the sports they played as a kid, so they can re-live their youth. Kids
need to
be happy and find what they are good at and try to excel at that. But,
if you
have a kid that you are forcing to play a sport they say they don’t
want to
play you are actually endangering that child, because when they aren’t
paying
attention, those are the kids that get hurt by a ball coming at them
when they
aren’t looking.
So, please if you are a
parent of a child that doesn’t want to play a
particular sport, then find one they are interested in,
even if you aren’t a
fan of that sport and support them in their growth. I think sports are
very
important for the health and mental progression of kids, but forcing a
child to
play will not help them in any way!
I think learning to win
is very important and I don’t like the new sports
programs that don’t keep score and say that it isn’t about winning,
because the
real world doesn’t work that way.
Todd Clark - Broker / Sales Coach
All Brokers Real Estate
Phone: (503)524-9494
Fax: (503)622-8739
Tigard Oregon Homes for Sale, Tigard OR homes for sale, homes for sale in zip code, 97223,97224, Tigard Oregon Realtor, Tigard OR Realtor, Tigard Oregon MLS Search, Tigard OR MLS Search, 1st time home buying expert, short sale expert, avoiding foreclosure in Tigard, helping families home, LivingBeaverton, Townhomes for sale, home for sale, house for sale, Bull Mountain North, Bull Mountain South, King City, Mountainview, Greenburg, Summer Lake Neighborhood, Summerfield neighborhood, Tigard neighborhood, Walnut Grove Neighborhood. Tigard Oregon Real Estate, Tigard OR real estate, Todd Clark, (503)524-9494, WWW.LivingTigard.com, www.IFoundYourNewHome.com, www.SavingyouFromForeclosure.com
©2010 Todd Clark - Originally posted at Winning isn’t everything, but wanting to play is!
With the young kids, winning has to take a back seat. I think they should be building skills and having fun. The competition will come natually and should be their thing, not the coaches. Good post.
Your post brings back such memories, so many great memories. Thank-you Todd!
Robert, I agree it is skill building, but winning is a skill. Most schools now teach that winning means nothing and now today's kids have no drive. They have no desire to make themselves the best at anything, because they are taught that winning doesn't matter.
Paul - There certainly are a lot of memories for me as well. My dad was my coach and he still comes to as many of the kids' games as he can.
I agree Todd with not forcing children to do something they don't want ... and isn't coaching great! I coached Girls soft ball for over 10 years and those girls (now women) still contact me with how I helped them grow ... over 15 years later!
Having coached some myself over the years, I don't know which is worse: a parent who wants to relive playing a particular sport or one who never played it.
Todd, you are so correct in this, but some parents (more often fathers) live their childhood vicariously through their children often forcing them into sports they don't really want to play.
Todd:
At such an impressionable age it's a bad idea to force a sport or music onto a child who does not want it. It's best to gravitate toward your natural interests and they will grow.
Todd I agree with you 100% on this! I used to umpire and teach kids how to play softball as my first job and saw just what you are talking about alot....great post!