Building Confidence in Young Athletes

Research shows that girls' identities can get too wrapped up in sports, said Marlene Holmes, a mental health advocate, sports social worker and regional director at Netball America. Girls also grapple with low self-confidence and challenges visualizing themselves as being successful and leaders in their community. The Netball American program teaches middle school girls and boys netball as a vehic...

Sabrina Yavil, sports mom to three boys and founder of Gryme, struggled with encouraging her kids to clean up after practices and games. What's more, the boys didn't seem to want to put time into practicing for games. She began asking them to make their beds and put away their dishes in the morning and take showers after practices or games. She asked them to take more responsibility for getting th...

The human brain tends to lean toward negativity. It doesn't understand the difference between protecting us from a snake or lion and protecting us from emotional states, said Debbie O'Connell, president, Live Positive and Golf Positive. She provides three tips to help sports kids overcome negativity, including changing their posture. Contact us with podcast ideas: Email LisaEllenCohn1@gmail.com Su...

Without grit and discipline, young athletes won't be successful, said Cary Knox, retired head coach and author of "I Believe," which explores the legacies of Illinois Sports Legends. We live in a selfish society, and kids who lack discipline are being selfish because they're not good teammates, he said. He provides examples of grit and discipline on one of his teams. The players struggled for two...

Adolescent runners are still growing, and it's critical to support their growth with nutrition that supports their brain and bone health, said Michele Pettinger, author of The Young Runners' Guide to Nutrition. She provides nutrition tips for parents of runners, and also touches on how runners struggle with body image challenges. Send us podcast guest ideas: https://www.youthsportspsychology.com/c...

Young athletes often stop enjoying sports because they're perfectionists, compare themselves to others or "mind read," or make assumptions about what others are thinking, according to Jaclyn Ellis, a mental performance coach at Peak Performance Sports. She explains how she helps sports kids overcome these challenges and begin enjoying sports more. Send podcast ideas to  Ultimate Sports Parent Subs...

The emotional, social, physical and academic benefits of youth sports are well documented. But the rising costs of participating are undermining young athletes' access to sports and its benefits. That's the message from Christy Keswick, president and co-founder of the nonprofit Good Sports. She shares the results of a Harris Poll that found 90% of sports parents polled understand the benefits of s...

Young athletes lack competitiveness in sports in part because they compare themselves to others, when they need to focus on their own strengths. They also overthink and focus on negative "what if" statements. Georgia Miller, a mental performance coach with PeakSports.com, explains the mental game issues that contribute to lack of competitiveness and how to overcome the challenges. Send us podcast...

Gifted kids often focus exclusively on sports and fail to make friends or participate in other activities, said Susan Williams, a clinical hypnotherapist at SportHypnotherapy.com. Parents and coaches need to encourage them to try other activities and to develop a circle of supportive friends, she said. She uses hypnotherapy to put kids in a light trance that opens them to new possibilities. Send u...

If people who lead in youth sports--coaches, captains, players and parents--are emotionally inteligent, they're more likely to help a team weather its ups and downs. Caleb Chambliss, a licensed mental health counselor, leadership coach and athlete development specialist explains how emotional intelligence begins with self-awareness--a trait that helps both adults and players better understand thei...

Negative thinking hurts sports kids' confidence and performance. But juggling, hypnosis and posting notes all over a sports kids' house can combat this way of thinking, said Ignacio Segovia, a hypnotherapist, psychologist and mental performance coach. Juggling--or even tossing a ball from one hand to the other before a game--can interrupt negative thoughts by occupying the athlete's mind and sense...

Young athletes should respond thoughtfully to setbacks, using visualization and breath control to ensure they don't react with emotion. That's the message from Dayton Hansen, COO at ICL Academy, an online school that helps kids pursue passions such as sports. When kids learn to respond this way to mistakes or other setbacks, they'll use this lesson in other areas of their lives, he said. Send us i...

Good coaches can motivate athletes to try their hardest. They can help kids move on from mistakes. They can even change kids' lives, said Dylan Meyer, 22, founder of Legacy of Legends, which helps parents choose sports camps for their young athletes. Send podcast ideas: https://www.youthsportspsychology.com/contact-ultimate-sports-parent/ Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/...

Young athletes have very open minds, which is good and bad news in sports, says Susan Williams, a clinical hypnotherapist at SportHypnotherapy.com. On the one hand, criticism from coaches and parents can affect them at the subconscious level, creating mental roadblocks. But beccause kids' minds are so open. such challenges can be overcome with hypnotherapy, she said. When kids receive positive mes...

Cathy Spaas was a professional equestrian show jumper at a young age and suffered from pressure to perform. At age 14, she was riding at international shows, but began to feel like she wasn't good enough, she said. She lost her confidence and passion for the sport. Now, her goal at Your Success Trainer--Cathy Spaas is to ensure athletes don't have the same experience. Send podcast guest ideas: htt...

Young athletes who set high expectations often get frustrated when they don't meet their expectations. Mike Mancini, a certified mental performance coach, explains why setting process goals is important and gives examples of these goals. The aim is for young athletes to stay grounded in the moment, and avoid focusing on stats, scores or wins. Send podcast guest ideas: https://www.youthsportspsycho...

As a former college athlete, youth sports coach and sports parent, Eric Collins says his biggest challenge is being a sports parent. It's sometimes hard for him to let his son follow his own sports journey, he said. One way to allow kids to embrace their own journey is to encourage them to communicate directly with coaches. This gives them important skills that will serve them in other areas of th...

Competence, relatedness and autonomy are three characteristics that help sports kids feel intrinsically motivated, said Caleb Chambliss, a licensed mental health counselor, leadership coach and athlete development specialist. With these three characteristics, young athletes are more likely to feel in control, and as a result, motivated, he said. When sports kids feel out of control, they become de...

Often, kids are reluctant to step up as leaders. They may lack confidence or be afraid of being teased. Krissy Webb, co-founder and executive director of Student ACES, provides leadership training that focuses on developing core values such as respect and responsibility. This also improves kids' mental health, she said. Send podcast guest ideas: https://www.youthsportspsychology.com/contact-ultima...

Because hockey can be an emotional game, youth who play hockey need to develop an emotional IQ. That's the message from Luc Beausoleil and Jeff Jarvis, co-founder of Ventura Vikings, a program for young athletes interested in playing hockey in college and professionally. The former professional hockey players give tips about how to help kids control their emotions and let go of games and mistakes....

When sports kids are feeling burned out, they aren't as interested in going to practices or games. They don't get as excited about wins, says Andrew Simpson, chief vision officer for Player's Fitness and Performance. But being burned out is a choice, he says. He helps kids understand their choices and suggests ways to avoid burnout--taking a day or a season off or switching to positions that suit...

Parents of kids as young as 7 or 8 are asking for Ashley Eckermann's help. Most of them are grappling with fear of failure. Eckermann, founder of Maximize the Mind Mental Performance Coaching, asks for lots of detail about kids' worries and goals so she can tailor her suggestions to each young athlete's situation. She also avoids using the term "be positive" because she thinks it creates high expe...

It's possible to speed up young athletes' thinking and reaction time, says Dr. Ryan D'Arcy, a sports dad, professor and president of NeuroCatch, a medical device startup that evaluates cognitive function. For example, he recently used red light therapy to speed up a football player's cognitive processing by 70 milliseconds. Speeding up processing this way can help young athletes perform better and...

When kids make mistakes or are struggling during a game in youth sports, it's not easy to quickly switch to positive thinking. Instead, young athletes should embrace neutral thinking first. This involves focusing on improving one skill. This gives kids something positive to focus on, rather than filling their minds with negative thoughts. Send us podcast ideas: https://www.youthsportspsychology.co...

Rather than telling sports kids how to play, parents and coaches should help kids develop their signature style, says Craig Lambert, former chief sports writer at Harvard Magazine. Kids should begin with strategy, and build their game around that. Technique should follow, he said. Parents should let kids experiment and improvise to develop their own style. This will help them build confidence. Sen...