Why is Developing a Young Athlete’s Self-Motivation So Important?
Why is developing a young athlete’s self-motivation so important? It’s probably obvious. So why even ask this question? I ask because it’s tempting to ignore the answer.
It’s tempting to shortcut the often difficult process of developing self-motivation and instead rely on carrot and stick motivation. It’s also tempting to view getting what you want in the short term as a signal for being on the right long term path.
Unfortunately, parents succumbing to these temptations is usually the reason why so many young athletes struggle as they get older and competition gets tougher. It’s at this point when self-motivation is critical.
After puberty hits, as well as talent, access to quality coaching and resources levels out, self-motivation becomes the differentiator. What’s more, self-motivation doesn’t appear overnight.
If a parent motivates their child with rewards and punishments throughout their entire youth and high school sporting career, by the time college rolls around self-motivation is non-existent. As a result, a severe performance drop-off is not only likely, it’s inevitable.
So to answer the question “why is developing a young athlete’s self-motivation so important” I say this. It’s important because success in college is more important than success as a child. It’s also important because success in life is more important than success in sports. To put it another way, developing a young athlete’s self-motivation is important because their success in the future is more important than their success in youth and high school sports.
Unquestionably, every parent understands this. Unfortunately however, every parent doesn’t understand that not having the patience to develop a young athlete’s self-motivation undermines this future.