Any individual who has participated in sport at any level has experienced the physical, mental and emotional stimuli that comes with it.
Heart racing, body aching, and gasping for breath, the body reminding you that there’s no quitting now. As the competition comes to a close, it becomes about will pushing one forward to overcome fatigue. You close your eyes, take a deep breath and refocus your mind because it all comes down to this moment. What happens next can be the difference between success and defeat. You find your composure and dig deep. High intensity moments like these are common in the competitive sports arena, but we sometimes forget that these experiences translate into real-world learning opportunities. Athletes – especially student athletes – sometimes fail to see how the benefits of participating in athletics weave into our everyday lives. Situations that unfold between the goal posts, on the ice, or under the net very often mimic the competition-like settings that also challenge us off of the field. These situations can include getting ready to give an important presentation, working tirelessly to balance a hectic work-life situation, or even trying to cut that extra weight around the mid-line. So how do these similar, but contextually different, challenges connect? How does training and competing for sport translate into our everyday lives off the field? To begin with, sports allow individuals to deal with the highs of success and the lows of defeat. Often how someone deals with the disappoint of a loss, or an under performance can help build character. It is human nature to find disappointment to be very unsettling, causing mind to jump in a million different directions, making doubt began to cloud thinking. It can cause individuals to question the time and effort they put into a sport, their job or any other endeavor. Many successful athletes are trained into optimism, so that the mind refuses to dwell on the setbacks. Like in any athletic competition, where you may have dropped that important pass, missed that critical shot, or suffered an unfortunate injury, you accept in life that stuff happens and that tomorrow is another day. The idea of quitting and hanging up the cleats is actually not on the table; getting back on the practice field is the only option. Succumbing to defeat, or to the taboo word of the year FAILURE, is not an option. A simple setback should not stop anyone from looking forward to being in the position to make a difference, of taking that last-second shot as it were. Experiencing those key moments in competition, when everything is on the line, actually helps individuals grow in off-the-field situations. The more someone is able to find composure and success on the playing field in those tipping-point moments, the likelier they may be able to find composure and success off the field when something doesn’t go as planned. Sports is often about delayed gratification or reward. Look at the purest of Olympic athletes for example. They train for 4 years leading up to the biggest stage for their sport, training, making sacrifices, knowing that the pay off will be somewhere down the line. Anyone who only enjoy activities that offer immediate results, then sports will often not male for the best fit. To truly excel in the world of sports, every athlete must be meticulous and consistent in their training in the hopes of experiencing a positive outcome in the future. In most situations, athletes will probably encounter significant pain and struggle before they start to see the light at the end of the tunnel. In life, just like when lifting weights, the only way to get stronger is to lift heavier weights and tear some muscles. Only when you push yourself through the pain can new heights be reached. In most situations, we hope that with consistent hard work, we will reach a desired outcome. Yet it is the athletes who are aware of the likelihood of encountering pain and slow progress in the short term when chasing a dream. As an athlete, you learn that it takes time to see real results. The only way to get there is to embrace the longer time-frame and to adopt an unwavering work ethic. One of the biggest benefits of sport and an area that I think might have the biggest level of empowerment for youth, is the notion of teamwork. Whether in a team sport like soccer or an individual sport like track and field, the individuals that are around any athlete are often the biggest determinant of success. Most importantly, sometimes to be successful in sport, it requires individuals who might not be of like mind, who might not have any other connection but their involvement is this specific sport, to find a way to work together. In individual sports, it’s training partners who will push in training sessions each day to make an athlete be better than they were the day before. In team sports, it’s the teammates who each play an important role in creating a strategy that allows the group as a whole to reach maximum results on game day. Teamwork is also about individuals having roles that best meet their skill set. Not everyone can do everything and accepting this fact is often the first and sometimes most important step towards success with any group. Both situations require that the individual utilize others to grow within their respective roles. Each person plays an important role in driving their own growth, as well as that of every other member of their team. The teamwork built through sport translates into successful team dynamics and leadership off of the field. Athletes understand the necessity of working together and realize that a greater impact can be achieved as a collective, rather than working only independently or in isolation. The connection between practice and competition is best characterized as a love-hate relationship. The practice is an athlete’s homework, while the competition is their test. Competition offers athletes an objective moment of self-realization, standing as an “I told you so” that underscores what has or has not been built through practice. When the sweat and blood transform into winning, it’s much easier to appreciate those long hours of dedication. However, it’s often the daily grind that happens behind the scenes – once the athlete steps off the winner’s podium and gets back to work – that goes unrecognized. When it comes down to it, the only person who truly cares and understands about what is happening during practice, is the individual. No one cares how man three-point shots are made or goals are scored in practice if it doesn’t transfer into the game. Similarly, in the real world, no one cares how much hard you work is put into a project if it doesn't produce results. Bosses aren’t always concerned when an employee up all night working on the presentation; they will judge the work only by what is presented. Did it blow the client away or did it flounder it the midst of pressure? The point is that, athletes are forced to come to terms with this reality at an early stage. Supporters won’t be concerned by how much or little training is happening, whether the athlete is eating fast-food or not taking care of your body, but they certainly won’t be impressed when athletes arrive unprepared for competition. The results or the endgame are usually what people evaluate, not the process. As athletes move up the competitive ladder from amateur to professional athletics, the mind becomes the most important muscle that must be trained. In university and in the pros, everyone trains at a high-intensity. Everyone commits equal time to in the weight room and the practice fields, hoping to maximize their athletic potential. So the questions is worth asking," if everyone trainis the same, puts in the time, then why is it that competition results vary so greatly on game day?” The true champions are the ones who are able to find the warrior mindset before the gun even goes off; the ones who envisioned themselves crossing the finish line first. If persistent training and incredible hard work build the base for success, it is the competitive mindset that uncovers the athletes who are winners. Sports at most levels teach about the work - life balance. Anyone who has played any type of athletics during the academic season, can understand the work-life balance of juggling when it comes to improving as an athlete, keeping up grades, and maybe having a bit of a social life. Don't forget, sleep and eating are also part of any persons needs? ! As student athletes, learning to manage time effectively is quite beneficial. Everyone has different strategies to overcome procrastination and ways of re-ordering their lives to make sure they can complete important tasks, foster close relationships, and enjoy personal time. It’s generally easier in school, even though while you’re in it you think otherwise, to manage work-life balance. As people move into adulthood, start a family, a career etc that balance can be even more so difficult to manage. Working to find ways to master this juggling act early is as much as skill set as anything else that can help save much needed time and frustration. Finally, sports provide skills that allow leadership and building connections to come naturally to great athletes and student-athletes of any age. Athletics has a way of bridging communities, overlooking differences and getting everyone working together for a shared vision. Sports teach individuals to consider the well-being of the team over their own success. Maybe that’s why for centuries sports have been used as a vehicle to bring communities together from all walks of life. I won't say that sports are essential to someone being highly successful, there are too many examples which would prove any statement of that nature false. However sports for the reasons above, for the benefits on health and well being and for the pure joy of participating, are definitely a tool that can help our youth to be empowered and well rounded, especially in our times of techno-dependency.
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AuthorAfter many years of coaching at various levels and with different teams, I thought I would share some of my experiences and thoughts about coaching. Archives
January 2023
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