The Importance and Value of Youth Sports

Hey folks. Welcome back. J.C. here. Today's conversation is gonna be about youth sports, the benefits of youth sports for our children, and I believe equally important, the benefits of youth sports for families that can share fun times and go to games together. And I definitely cannot stress the importance of youth sports. If you have several children. The impact on my youngest son watching his brother play sports was just immense and such a neat experience. To watch my little guy, when he was about five years old, he would just look up to his brother like he was a superhero carrying his football, his helmet, and the coach was a really neat guy and he would allow my youngest son to go out there and sit next to his brother when they were doing calisthenics and stretching during practices, and even pre. He actually thought he was part of the team. I'll never forget one particular instance where the field coach realized there wasn't enough players in the field and he hollered, We need a player out here now. And Steel, my little guy, he grabs a helmet and he heads out in that field, salutes the coach and he's ready to play. And the coach had to explain to him that. He really needed him on the sidelines, rallying the team and keeping the players up so that we could win the game. And that made him feel great. And he walks off the field and then the sideline coach and the players were all pumping him up. Like he's a little hero to them, which he was actually, he was like their mascot, but just such a beautiful thing to watch him interacting with the team, Pat and the guys on the back, it was just his day. He loved that stuff and lived for it, and I think it made him a better. Lead because he was always striving, ever since he started playing athletics to be as good as his brother or better. And that's such a great thing. It's very inspiring to see, and I know many of you are already experiencing the same with your youth athletes and you know the importance of it and the benefits of it. But for many of you that have not gotten the opportunity to get your children involved in youth sports, I highly recommend it first of. It's a team, and teams are great because those folks actually become your family and you'll be friends for many years. I love going into town and running into folks that had athletes on teams that my older son played on, and we can stand there and shoot the breeze for hours about fun events, positive times, just good stuff. Now my older son was an exceptional athlete and he's well respected whenever we go places he runs. Old teammates and parents that remember his athletic endeavors and always coming up and patting him on the back and talking to him. But this year my oldest son actually looked at his little brother and said, I think you're gonna be a better athlete than I was because you're very committed. You're focused and you have all the talent in the world. And I will tell you, you wanna see a 13 year old beam with light. It was like his finest hour. He would've thought he just won the biggest award on the planet. So just great stuff, great family stuff. I believe a youth athletes success is dependent upon the support that they get from family. From friends, from organization, and oftentimes even community. So an important section for me to talk. And whether you're a parent that's a seasoned veteran, because you've had lots of youth athletes or maybe even a parent that is considering putting your youth in sports hopefully gets good perspective out of it. And I give you a little insight to think about. There's a lot of benefit to have youth athletes in the community and in our schools because they can stand out as leaders. And hopefully good examples for others to follow in the way that they conduct themselves. If you look at professional sports today, we have so many bad leaders, so many bad examples that are taking our children in the wrong direction. So I believe as parents, we have to pay attention to all of that stuff. I think as a parent, I'm constantly learning. And there's a lot of challenges to parenting and when you enroll your youth into sports, the challenges increase exponentially, but we can get through it and it could be a good experience for all. I wanna talk a little bit about parenting, and a lot of this conversation applies to parenting of a youth athlete as well as just our young students today. There's a lot to be done. You got your work schedules, you got grocery shopping, maybe multiple children going in different directions. But I just think it's so very important that we do everything we can to get our children to practice on time and get 'em to the games on time. And I think it's very important for parents to attend the games, especially if it's a full contact sport. You're out there on a field engaged in battle, and it's comforting knowing that if you get injur. The parents that you count on to make decisions in those times are gonna be right there for you. I was a very good youth athlete. I played football. I wrestled, but I didn't have any parents showing up at any games. My dad wasn't around. My mother was an alcoholic, and for most of my sports and athletics, I felt all alone out there, and it's not a comforting feeling at all for me. I had the comfort of the team and a coach that I looked to immensely for support, but that's all I had. Don't make your children go through that. I happen to be a single dad and co-parent, and I feel very blessed that I still have a great deal of respect and admiration for his mother as well as her husband, who I think is an amazing guy and has been a great stepfather for my son. But we work together. We coordinate for the benefit of the child, and that's exactly what parents need to do. In the same situation. Even if I didn't like his mother, even if I didn't like his stepfather for the benefit of my son, I would do whatever was necessary to get along with them for his benefit. It's not about me. And many of us have seen where parents can't get together on the same page after divorces and separations for the benefit of children. And it's pure selfishness. There's no other way to put it if you're gonna have children take on the responsibility and role of being a responsible parent. And that's part of it. So very important in childhood development and being good leaders for our children and teaching them the right lessons for their future. Now again, I am very fortunate that his mother, his stepfather, and I are all able to work together and coordinate, whether it's his education or whether it's his athletic endeavors. We stay in constant communication and we coordinate to make sure that whether he's at my house or their house, that all of his needs are taken care of, that he makes the tallest practices and it takes constant communication and coordination, but we make it work. Two different houses supporting our son in the same manner in fashion, so he gets a consistent quality experience in life. This morning involved a little extra coordination because we all had to leave early to meet at the hockey store so that we could get him a new helmet in skates. Now, in today's case, it's because he's constantly growing so fast, and if you're a youth sport parent, you know the experience. But I did want to talk about the importance of good quality equipment. We really need to suit our kids up for battle because in any contact sport, that's exactly what they're doing. Now, oftentimes they'll be provided the equipment by the school or organization that they're playing for, but we like to go over and above to make sure that the helmet. Is the best that you can get because of the dangers of concussions. also, the skates are so important in hockey because comfortable skates mean that they have a comfortable experience out there. On the ice. Make sure that you're getting your children the right equipment. But as parents, we have to look out for the safety of our children. And safety means that they have the right equipment. So by whatever means necessary. If you can afford it, ask a family member, a friend. I've even heard of organizations that folks work for that have put up funds or collected monies at work to make sure that a young athlete is suited upright and prepared to have a safe, quality, athletic experience. Now when it comes to coaching, I'm no good at it. I'm old school. I was raised by a father in my early years that was more of a drill sergeant than a father, and I never really learned the knack of coaching. I'm more like a drill sergeant myself, although I've been trying to work on that. But I cannot stress the importance of good coaching, the detriment of bad coaching. take some time, get to know your child's coach. If you see anything that doesn't look right, question it. Talk to the coach. Any good coach is willing to explain to a parent their methods and ideology on what they're teaching your children the form of skills and life skills that are just as important that children gain from sports. Oftentimes parents will see coaches that'll be yelling at their kids out on the field or in the box at hockey, and they'll question whether that's necessary. But if you have faith because you've taken the time to get to know the coach, you'll understand this. Sometimes that's necessary in sports. Because a coach has to scream to overcome the noise of the group or the crowd or the play, the game that's being played. And as well, they're giving instructions oftentimes from the sidelines telling a player to come in and out the game or giving specific instructions, and they have to yell As long as it's not being done in an abusive manner or a manner in which is degrading. I think that it's just part of sports and it's something we have to accept and understand why it's being. I'm not an advocate of coaches that are consistently using foul language towards youth athletes. I think that's despicable and shouldn't be done. But again, I understand the dynamics of being in the heat of battle, and once in a while a swear word will come out. I find it acceptable because it just means the coaches out there are fighting along with the team fully engaged and things happen. Sometimes words come out of our mouths that we don't mean in those situations. But take the time to get to know your coaches, have enough faith in them that when they're out there coaching your children, you leave them alone to do their job. Because out there, when they're conducting practice or more important in a game, they're leaders, they're mentors. Not only do you have to have trust in them and faith in them, but more importantly, your youth athlete has to be able to respect and have faith that coach can lead them through the battle that they're in. So understand it's okay to ask a coach questions, but it's never okay to question the coach to your youth athlete because you're not there. You don't know what's going on, and you do not know what that coach is trying to accomplish with your youth athlete. Good coaches can have such a positive impact on children, but sometimes it doesn't look good from across the field because of the job that they're undertaking. They're molding our. Good coaches take individuals and they work on individual talents and coordinate that all to make great teams, and it's just a symphony when it's all working well. But it takes a lot to get to that point where it is all coordinated. But I believe most importantly, as parents, we have to respect the process. And take some time to understand the process and it'll make you feel better when you're watching it. I was very fortunate to have great coaches when I was a kid playing football, and they used to scream at me a lot. Literally scream at me right in my face. But I was a kid from the wrong side of the tracks and I didn't take instructions well, and I was bullheaded hardheaded. And I was roomed to do battle with almost anybody, even the coach often. But I am very thankful that they did not give up on me. And stayed the course with me, and today I am a better man for it. And I look back and I'm very thankful for those coaches. And if you're a youth athlete ever comes after a practice or a game and says, Oh man, my coach yelled at me. Maybe it's time for a parents to step up and explained that coach actually cares about you and he's doing it for a reason. He's doing it because he sees. Better in you than maybe you don't even see in yourself. So tighten up your shoelaces and get out there and play to the level that your coach is expecting you to because he knows your capabilities. He's the one that's been working with you, not me. Whenever coaches yelled at me, it would anger me, it would frustrate me, but I understood deep down inside that they were just trying to build a better man, and some of the skills that I learned from those coaches have been invaluable throughout my entire life. And as a teen, my father wasn't in my life, and those coaches just taught me so many life skills and leadership skills that I could not even begin to thank them for. They were my mentors. In molding me into who I am today. I believe the most valuable lesson that I learned from my coaches is that it's important to stand up for yourself and what you believe in, but they taught me how to stand up for others and help them believe in themselves, and what a lesson that has been just so valuable throughout my lifetime. It's probably why I'm podcasting right now. So to conclude on good coaches, on great coaches, I've always found throughout my athletics that good coaches are not liked, but they are loved. They're loved because at the end of the day, at the end of the practice, at the end of the game, you see the results that they're producing. As an athlete, you end up having a great deal of admiration, respect, and love for that individual because you know they're pushing you and making you better. There's even gonna be those times where a child comes home and he tells a parent, I don't know why the coach isn't putting me in. I believe I should be out there playing. Trust the coach. He's building a team. He's building your child into something better than they were when they showed up on the field. And he'll know when they're ready and when they're ready, he will put 'em in. And in the meantime, it's a good thing for parents to support the coach and tell the kids, Work harder. Do your job. Listen to the coach, follow instruction, and he will put you out there to play because you have proved yourself worthy of being. And you're ready to be out there. Now the last thing I want to cover is that oftentimes the greatest coaches don't have the winningest teams. They might not have enough time to build a great team, or when we honestly talk about it. Might not have the quality of player that a coach needs to build a winning team. But if that coach is out there and he's committed and he's building character and values in your children, then he is a great coach no matter what the scoreboard says. Oftentimes our greatest learning experiences come from losses, and that leads to wins if not on the field, in other areas of our lives. But parents don't ever get down on a coach or an organization because they're not the winningest team in the league. Be patient. Understand. Again, trust the process. Which is founded on instilling great values in our children, teaching them drive determination and the will to get up when they're down, and that is invaluable in a child's life, as well as being a huge benefit throughout their entire lifetime. I wanna mention a little bit about bad coaching. If you ever see a coach teaching the wrong lessons or values to your child on the field, encouraging them to conduct themselves in un sportsmanlike manner or. encouraging a child to cheap shot or do things that are wrong in the field of play that are against the rules, that's the immediate time to step up and call that coach out. And you can take steps to get that coach removed from coaching, which I advise, but if that fails, Then it's the immediate time to take your child off the team and find them a place for sportsmanship. Conduct is being taught properly and the guidelines and rules are being followed. There are gonna be times when mistakes happen and events happening on the field, but a coach that. Conducts himself in an unsportsmanlike matter or promotes that amongst the team is just endangering the lives and wellbeing of children, and it is despicable and it cannot be allowed for one minute. So with all that said, folks, man, get your kids involved in sports because it's a great thing. Pick the right sport that meets up with their athletic ability and support them. Support the coach, Support the team. Support the organization and participate. I think participating in our youth sports is just a great thing and it's a great way for children and parents to connect. I have always been active in any sports that my children will play. I'm not a coach. I don't pretend to be. I don't try to be, I do encouragement. When my kids are at home, I talk positive around the dinner table and I lead by example because I'm constantly going to the gym and staying fit and I take my children to the gym and we have a great experience together. But there are so many ways for parents to participate in youth sports, supporting the organization and just doing things that I think that shows the youth that you're committed to their sport and their success. And it's actually great for building relationships between parents and youth. Now, personally, I always like to get involved in a little extra when it comes to my kid's athletics and I'll volunteer for pretty much any task that gets me onto the field or close to the action, and it's just fun for me. I love the experience and there's plenty of things you can volunteer for. My son's played lacrosse. I volunteered to be the scorekeeper or the stat keeper. And the stat keeper's a tough job actually, cuz you've gotta keep track of the entire game. You've gotta write up all the stats of each player's accomplishments as the game's going on, which always gave me the ability be right there in the field of play, which was neat because I get to see more of the action on the field. And with hockey, what I found is that I work the penalty box. It's a volunteer position, and I'm the individual that lets the players in and out of the penalty box, which some games can be very active, but I'm right there on the ice next to the team in my own little box. And boy, you want to talk about the best view in the house. I think that it's a little chilly, but it's the best seat in the. So I will volunteer for penalty box anytime they need a person, and I'll even ask if somebody will exchange and give me the opportunity to be in the penalty box, cuz I'm just loving the heck out of it. Now the last thing I want to cover is how sports can actually benefit the individual child. And I think that anytime we can get our kids off their phones, out of the houses, off the couches, away from video games and tv. And they can be out playing and participating in anything that is athletic is going to be good in helping curb obesity and the overall promotion of just good, healthy habits and lifestyles. Some of the other benefits that children will receive by participating in sports is motor skills development, social skills. Improving vision, self-confidence, the lessons of sportsmanship. In my belief, there are no drawbacks to enrolling children in youth sports. Many of our great leaders of today, entrepreneurs, business leaders, will reflect back while giving speeches to inspire others. On how sports and participating in team play gave them an early advantage by providing them with a foundation for success that they were able to build on while climbing the ladder of success. And they'll talk about their coaches and the teammates and this. Port of their family and loved ones throughout these endeavors, and it's an amazing process. It's an amazing thing to listen to those speeches and find out how important sports were in molding them into the individuals that they are today, the success stories they are today. So friends, I believe sports can be an invaluable. Learning experience for our youth. I think there's so many benefits, not a lot of drawbacks, but the rest is up to you as parents. For those of you that are parents who already have youth athletes, you know the benefits, you know the struggles, you know the commitment. You know what it takes. Hopefully, I've given you insight to things you haven't thought about. For those of you that do not have your children enrolled in sports, maybe it's time. Maybe you should give it a look. Find something that your children enjoy. And enroll them in, support them in it. I believe you'll find it's a great experience for the entire family. And there's nothing saying that your child can't try out different sports until they find the one that they're really comfortable with, the one they like and the one that they excel in. So that's just a little perspective on what I think about the benefits of youth sports. Folks, I've really enjoyed doing this podcast. I hope you enjoyed it too. And for now, this is J.C. and I am out of here.