The following is sponsored and opinions expressed are that of my own. A special thank you goes out to my athletes and POWERADE for inspiring this post.
I want my sons and daughter to play sports to learn new skills, not necessarily to WIN the game. I also want them to be inspired happy players.
True story: During a past sport’s season, my son says to me, “Mom, the Coach said If you aren’t having fun, then you shouldn’t be out here.” he then paused and as he began to tear up he continued, “I guess I should leave then”. My boy definitely takes everything to heart, and this was about the time that I felt like never allowing him to play in organized sports again.
However, the reality was the Coach had been belittling him, was only interested in winning not teaching, and probably was not equipped to be handling a group of 5 and 6 year olds. Thankfully after that experience, we came across great coaches in various sports that redeemed leagues for us.
Fast forward to the Fall of 2015, and my husband and I decided to enroll my son in the Upward.org group at a local church. They would be playing Flag Football that season and my young Athlete was itching to go out and participate. His Dad had been taking him to the local High School games and after reading the newspaper, watching professional clips, and of course absorbing any related books he came across, he was ready to start running around and throwing the ball ASAP.
While watching from the sidelines, I could immediately tell the passion that all of the Coaches had for their volunteer positions. They were prompt to practice, kind in their approach, the athletes were inspired by them, and they taught these relative newbies the skills they needed to play. My daughter even signed up for the Cheerleading program and had a great time learning new moves.
What impacted me the most, was the day when my son said after practice, “Coach said that I should try to help others that are in need this week.” So not only was he learning to play, but his Coach was also providing him with great life skills. Needless to say, at the end of season when they gave out awards and ran the slide show for the parents, I was bawling. I was a proud mother, and it was a proud moment for my son and daughter.
POWERADE knows that there is potential in all of us. No matter what you achieve in life, you start in the same place as everyone else: as a kid full of potential and big dreams. At the end of the day, we are all “just a kid” from somewhere and with the right motivation, these everyday athletes can realize their potential.
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Does your athlete or athletes participate in League Sports? What qualities do you look for in a Coach?
I am looking forward to this next Flag Football Season, I can’t wait to see what new things we all can learn.
FFM
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