The First Step Sports Parents Must Take to Raise Mentally Tough Kids
If you are a sports parent and you want to raise mentally tough kids, then the first place to look is in the mirror.
- Do you want to win more than your child wants to win?
- Are you more excited about practice than they are?
- Do you want your kid to get a D1 scholarship more than they want it?
- Are you more bummed out about a loss than your kid?
If the answer is yes to any of these questions then you’re at risk of limiting your child’s mental toughness. What’s more, you are at risk of burning your kid out before they reach their potential.
The First Step To Raise Mentally Tough Kids
The first step to raise mentally tough kids is to allow them to own the process. By allowing your kids to own the process your kid will:
- Develop discipline
- Learn from mistakes and failure
- Become intrinsically motivated
These three areas are key to building a foundation of raising mentally tough kids.
- With discipline comes the ability to sacrifice comfort and the will to endure positive training pain
- The ability to learn from mistakes and failure provides growth and fuels comebacks.
- Intrinsic motivation will prevent burn out and maximize potential beyond anything external / extrinsic motivators could provide. In addition, increasing intrinsic motivation also increases the will to grind.
Allowing your kid to own the process includes simple things like giving them the freedom to pack their own bag for practice and competitions. If they forget something, let them face the consequences instead of swooping in to save the day.
Author, speaker, and mental toughness coach Dr. Rob Bell says it best:
It’s tough to be driven when you are always being driven.
With that said, if you want to raise mentally tough kids then the first thing you must do is let them take the wheel and drive.