Is “Fear of Missing Out” Ruining Youth Sports?
Sunday, 12 March 2017
I remember the day I coached my son TJ’s first soccer game. He was only five, and I was so proud, so excited, and couldn’t wait for him to play the game I loved. There was one problem. He didn’t want to play. When the game was about to start, he said, “Dad I don’t
- Published in Sports Parenting
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An Open Letter from the Back Seat
Tuesday, 31 January 2017
Dear Mom and Dad I wanted to start this letter by saying I love you, and I know you mean well. I appreciate all the time and energy you put into taking me to my games and practices, and I know you sacrifice a lot to do it. I also appreciate when you try to
- Published in Sports Parenting
The Unspoken Problem in Sports
Wednesday, 18 January 2017
(This week’s blog was written by Alecko Eskandarian (@alecko11), former US National Team player and current Assistant Coach of the NY Cosmos of the NASL. This article originally appeared 11/18/16 on the Players Tribune and they have graciously granted us permission to reprint it. We have read many articles about concussions, and this one really
- Published in Concussions, Injuries
Let’s Stop the Early Sport Specialization Madness!
Tuesday, 27 September 2016
“I have a question,” said a mother recently at one of my speaking engagements. “I have an 8-year-old son who loves soccer. But the only soccer team in our town requires that he play all year round, and he still wants to play other sports. What are we to do?” Sound familiar? Across the country,
- Published in Specialization
3 Questions That Turn Losing into Learning
Wednesday, 03 August 2016
“Do you want to win every game you play for the rest of your life?” That was a question that Olympic gold medalist and current USA Women’s Volleyball team head coach Karch Kiraly asked his team as they prepared for the 2014 World Championships. “Because we can,” he told them. They could schedule easy opponents,
The Ostrich Effect: Why We Ignore Our Coaching Problem, and How to Fix It
Tuesday, 19 July 2016
“Come on, you pachyderms,” boomed my first soccer coach, Tom Breit, with a big grin on his face. “Squash those bugs! Move your feet. Quicker, quicker! Come on O’Sullivan, is that as fast as you can go?” Calling us baby elephants? Telling us to squish bugs? What was going on here? We were 7-year-olds, learning
- Published in Coaching
It’s Time for the NCAA to Stop the Early Recruiting Insanity
Thursday, 19 May 2016
I recently received a phone call from a friend who is one of the national directors of coaching for a major US sport governing body. He told me the story of a recent phone call his office received from a distraught parent: “We just had tryout for our local club and my son was placed
- Published in College Recruiting, High School Sports, Youth Sports
Why Sports Matter
Wednesday, 02 March 2016
In February 2016 I was speaking at an all day workshop in Montrose CO, and as I was finishing my morning setup the participants began arriving. It was the usual collection of coaches, parents, city recreation administrators, city officials and some younger kids decked out in the gear of their respective sports team. Then another
- Published in Coaches Across Continents, Family Values
What is Your Club’s D.N.A.?
Sunday, 24 January 2016
(This weeks blog is written by Todd Beane, Founder of TOVO International. Todd is the co-founder of Cruyff Football and Senior Advisor to the Cruyff Institute, and has consulted for FC Barcelona, Ajax Amsterdam, Chivas Guadalajara, Melbourne City FC, Mamelodi Sundowns, Austrian Football Federation) “We pretty much let the coaches decide what to do with
- Published in Leadership, Team Culture
Raising the Bar in Youth Sports
Tuesday, 05 January 2016
“Have I ever told you about the defining moment of my coaching career?” long time University of Portland baseball coach Chris Sperry asked me the other day over lunch. “It is a speech that changed everything for me at the 1996 American Baseball Coaches Association convention.” “No, please tell,” I said between bites, and so
- Published in Baseball, Coaching, Family Values
Does Youth Sports Get the Math All Wrong?
Monday, 14 December 2015
“I did not know there would be math on this test,” is something I say (jokingly) when I get a difficult question at my speaking engagements. Recently, I received an email from a frantic mom, and it got me thinking about math. Yes, math. When it comes to our current sporting environment, I think we often
- Published in Problems in Youth Sports, Specialization, Talent Development
Redefining Success: 8 Tips for Being a Great Sports Parent
Wednesday, 28 October 2015
By James Leath “When did parenting get to be so stressful?” began a recent post on the Changing the Game Project Facebook page. “I worry that if I don’t provide them with the best equipment, or get them on the best team, or take them to every camp or tournament, then I am letting my
- Published in Article
Release Your Child to the Game!
Sunday, 27 September 2015
“I don’t know where to turn,” an exasperated dad recently told me after a speaking event. “My son is fast, and he is skilled. We do lots of extra practice, we go to a private skills coach, we are doing everything it takes to get to the next level, but something is not right. He
- Published in Goal Setting, Sports Parenting, TED talks
Do We Have a Coaching Problem?
Saturday, 29 August 2015
ONCE AGAIN, recent news brought us a sad story from the world of youth sports. In the Little League World Series for softball, a team from South Snohomish, WA was found to have purposely given less than their best effort in a game, in order to eliminate a potential competitor from the semifinals. The South
- Published in Coaching
Help, My Child is a Late Bloomer: 5 Tips for Overcoming the “Relative Age Effect” in Youth Sports
Friday, 29 May 2015
“Here is my question,” a mother concerned with her 10 year-old son’s sports experience recently wrote me. “I am not afraid that my son will quit sports by the time he is 13. I am afraid that he will be denied the opportunity to play. My son is coordinated and coachable. He LOVES sports; we
- Published in Problems in Youth Sports, Relative Age Effect, Sports Parenting
The 4 Biggest Problems in Youth Sports Today
Friday, 03 April 2015
When you run an organization such as the Changing the Game Project, you hear many youth sports stories from parents, coaches, and players. Some stories are absolutely heartbreaking, others inspiring. Recently I encountered the absurd. Many of us have seen the news about a volleyball player from Washington DC who was taking her playing time
- Published in Family Values, Problems in Youth Sports, Specialization
The Enemy of Excellence in Youth Sports
Thursday, 08 January 2015
“My daughter is the tallest fourth grader in her class and loves to play basketball,” said a father to me recently. “Sadly, I know that she will ultimately grow to be of average height. Since she is now only allowed to rebound and give the ball to shorter-ball handler players on her team, she will
- Published in Coaching, Problems in Youth Sports, Sports Parenting
The Tipping Point in Youth Sports
Tuesday, 11 November 2014
“What happens to us parents and coaches,” I often get asked, “that turns us from sensible, relaxed people to stressed out adults roaming up and down sports sidelines and screaming at every play?” It is a question I ponder a lot, especially as I often get to watch my young children’s games played side by
- Published in Leadership, Problems in Youth Sports, Talent Development
The Ride Home
Thursday, 01 May 2014
One of the saddest things I had to do as a Director of Coaching for numerous soccer clubs was conduct exit interviews, meetings with players whom had decided to leave the club. Children quit sports for a litany of reasons, and my job was always to see what we could learn, so we could improve
- Published in Confidence, Problems in Youth Sports, Sports Parenting
The Race to Nowhere in Youth Sports
Monday, 24 March 2014
“My 4th grader tried to play basketball and soccer last year,” a mom recently told me as we sat around the dinner table after one of my speaking engagements. “It was a nightmare. My son kept getting yelled at by both coaches as we left one game early to race to a game in the
- Published in Coaching, Problems in Youth Sports, Sports Parenting
The Incredibly Massive Importance of Play
Tuesday, 04 March 2014
Let me be blunt and scream this from the rooftop: the best athletes PLAY sports. They don’t work them, they play them. When sport becomes more work than play, athletes struggle, they grind, and if they cannot get back to playing instead of working, they eventually drop out. From youth to pros, when the fun
- Published in Coaching, Deliberate Practice, Motivation, Sports Parenting
The 4th Path: Reinventing US Youth Soccer Player Development
Wednesday, 26 February 2014
When it comes to the development of young soccer players in the United States, many parents and coaches come to that proverbial fork in the road, and are unsure what path to take. Most parents want their child to try many sports, yet are faced with the harsh reality of high participation costs, nearly year-round
- Published in Coaching, Soccer, Specialization
The 10,000 Hour Myth
Wednesday, 12 February 2014
A myth is a false belief or idea that is widely held. One such myth that has enveloped youth sports is the idea that to become an elite athlete all one needs 10,000 hours of sustained, deliberate training. This is a myth in every sense of the word. I recently gave a talk at a
- Published in Deliberate Practice, Problems in Youth Sports, Specialization
What About the Single Sport Athlete? Specialization Part II
Monday, 27 January 2014
My article on sport specialization, “Is it Wise to Specialize,” prompted quite a bit of discussion, commentary, and controversy, with people chiming in from all across the globe. Certainly the dynamics of single v multiple sport participation, and its effect upon performance, injury, and burnout, is not a settled issue, and arouses many emotions. It
- Published in Problems in Youth Sports, Specialization, Sports Parenting
The Armpit of American Youth Sports: “Friday Night Tykes”
Tuesday, 21 January 2014
The armpit is the part of the body that is dark, stinky, and unattractive. Everyone has one, but no one wants to see it or acknowledge it, and would rather cover it up and move on. The armpit of American youth sports is the culture of win-at-all-costs, uneducated, over the top coaches and parents who
- Published in Coaching, Football, Injuries, Leadership, Problems in Youth Sports
Is it Wise to Specialize?
Monday, 13 January 2014
The greatest difference between our children’s sporting experience and our own is the rise of year round, sport specific organizations that ask – even require – season after season of participation in order to stay in the player development pipeline. The pressure to have your child specialize in a single sport at a young age
- Published in Problems in Youth Sports, Specialization, Sports Parenting
To Cheat or Not to Cheat…Is that Even a Question?
Tuesday, 07 January 2014
“Young players play with a great deal of fairness and sportsmanship. Once they learn how important the game is to adults, they will learn how to cheat.” – Dr. Ron Quinn, Professor of Sports Ethics at Xavier University. My friend Ann Dewitt is a family therapist and parenting expert, as well as the host of
- Published in Coaching, Leadership, Problems in Youth Sports, Sports Parenting
The Surprising Story of Simon Kjaer: Why Talent Selection Does Not Always Work
Monday, 23 December 2013
In 2004, FC Midtjylland in Denmark set out to establish Scandinavia’s first youth soccer academy. As a new club, it did not have the pick of the litter of Danish soccer talent, which went to bigger, far more established clubs. And as the coaches put together their first team, they were short one player. With
- Published in Coaching, Problems in Youth Sports, Sports Parenting
Our Biggest Mistake: Talent Selection Instead of Talent Identification
Monday, 09 December 2013
Many youth sports coaches claim to be great talent identifiers, and point to the results of their 11 year all star team as proof. Yet they are not talent identifiers. They are talent selectors. The difference could not be more striking, or more damaging to our country’s future talent pool in many sports. Talent selection
- Published in Coaching, Problems in Youth Sports, Sports Parenting