YOUR 7 SIMPLE GUIDELINES

FOR POSITIVE SPORT PARENT INFLUENCE

According to Dr. Patrick Cohn, a sports psychology expert, coaches and parents have a tremendous impact on how children will engage in sports. You will find bellow Dr. Patrick Cohn's view on how to make sports a successful and fun experience for your child and use it to make your sports parent influence positive for your child. These seven simple guidelines will help you understand how in sports parent influence their youth athletes game.

• Sports should be fun for kids!. The primary goal for your kid should be to have fun and enjoy the healthy competition.

• You should keep in mind that young athletes compete in sports for different reasons. Some enjoy the competition and the social aspect, and others like being part of a team, and enjoy the challenge of setting goals. Parent involvement in sports is important but you need to recognize that racing is your child's sport, not yours.

• Because we live in a society that focuses on results and winning, you should teach your child to focus on the process of the challenge of playing one shot, stroke, or race at a time instead of the number of wins or trophies. Always remember that parent involvement in sports should emphasize a mental focus on the process of execution instead of results or trophies.

• How in sports parent influence their kids' sport behavior? You become a role model for your kid athlete in how you react to a close race or the questionable behavior of a competitor. When you are at competition, your kid mimics your behavior as well as other role models. So, you should stay calm, composed, and in control during games so your young athlete can mimic those positive behaviors.

• During competition you should refrain from game-time coaching. All the practice should be set aside because this is the time that young athletes need trust in the training and react on the court or field. Be careful because too much coaching (or over-coaching) can lead to mistakes and cautious performance (called paralysis by over analysis). Save the coaching for practice and use encouragement at game time instead.

• Parent involvement in sports should help young athlete understand that they are a person FIRST who happens to be an athlete instead of an athlete who happens to be a person. Success or number of wins should not determine your young athlete's self-esteem.

• Keep in mind this example of how in sports parent influence their kid's game...if you ask you young athlete, "Did you win?" your child will think winning is important. However, if you ask, "Did you have fun?" he or she will assume having fun is important. So, ask your young athlete the right questions! Asking the right questions after competition and games will show your positive parent involvement in sports and tell your kid what you think is important in sports. Dr. Patrick J. Cohn is a master mental game coach who works with athletes of all levels including amateur and professionals.