Three Character Traits Good Youth Coaches Teach Young Athletes
One of the things I always say is that youth sports reveals character in children, it doesn’t build character. It’s up to parents and coaches to build character using youth sports as the classroom.
With this intention in mind, there are three character traits in particular I think good coaches consistently use youth sports as their classroom to teach.
- Discipline
- Resilience
- Purpose
Discipline
Discipline is the summation of hundreds of small decisions. With discipline comes the ability to sacrifice comfort and the will to endure positive training pain.
The root of learning discipline is learning to believe that daily habits and routines are necessary for success. Youth sports is the perfect classroom to teach this lesson. A good coach will always have a plan to develop their athletes that is based on developing good habits and consistency with routines.
What’s more, a good coach will also explain the reasons behind the habits they’re building and routines they use to further instill the importance of discipline as a character trait.
Resilience
Resilience is a mental muscle. Therefore, just like a physical muscle, the lack of deliberate strength training will leave that muscle underdeveloped.
When you simplify the concept of resilience, it comes down to one’s ability to bounce back from adversity. Unquestionably, success in sports is 100% about overcoming adversity.
When kids play youth sports under the guidance of a good coach, they are constantly taught to learn from mistakes and bounce back from failure. These lessons then fuel comebacks, and in turn build that resilience muscle.
Purpose
Purpose is the combination of passion and the desire to achieve a goal with an impact bigger than just you. Purpose prevents burnout and helps drive the will to maximize one’s potential. In addition, having purpose also increases the will to grind.
Setting goals is the first step to having purpose. Good youth coaches always help their players set goals. But not just any goals, goals that go beyond just winning and goals that go beyond the self. These “it’s bigger than me” goals are the goals good coaches emphasize and use to fuel the importance of having purpose as a character trait.