I read an article the other day about how coaches have ruined a sport for their child and I. WAS. IN. DISBELIEF. Y’all, I can’t even deal. This person was blaming the coach for their child quitting a sport
Yes, this is a harsh topic and yes I am biased towards the coach’s side, but hear me out.
Growing up I wasn’t allowed to use the word “can’t” and I definitely wasn’t allowed to quit anything. If a season ended and I chose not to do something anymore that was fine, but it was not an option to quit. It definitely wasn’t an option to blame my actions on someone else.
Now, this article mentions that the coach had to earn the player’s respect. Um excuse me? If I ever walked into a room and looked at an adult in the eye as a sixteen year old and said, “You must earn my respect.” No ma’am. I would have gotten home and been grounded for a few weeks. I was taught that, as a child, I respected the adult. Not the other way around.
I am not arguing with the fact that players will work harder for someone they like. I know they do. It isn’t an excuse for your child to act the way they want. I’m sorry. It’s an excuse. A child should be held to standards. These standards will force them to behave a certain way and holds them accountable to a certain level of work ethic.
I have said it before, and he will agree, my husband is a loud coach. Just because his coaching style is louder than others, it doesn’t mean that he is tearing your child apart or taking them down. He is loud when good things happen and loud when bad things happen. Either way, no matter what anyone thinks, he is always looking out for the team.
It makes me sick to my stomach to think that other individuals honestly think coaches dedicate their time to not have their players best interest in their heart. Each player is different and some can take criticism better than others, but just because a coach corrects you or pushes you to be your best, doesn’t mean they are tearing you down.
Coaches are there to help their players learn and grow. They are there to help them be successful, encourage them to play hard, and teach them life lessons. Learning life lessons sometimes means making a mistake and being held accountable. Please, as a parent, when your child comes home and says my coach is mean to me and I want to quit, get to the bottom of it. Are they really mean or is your child upset because they are being held accountable?
