Getting the Parents Involved in Practice
Toward the end of every season, I schedule a "kids vs parents" game. A great time to do this is when the team is not doing so well and needs to have some fun, or at the end of the year party. There are many different ways to do this. Here are some tips to make it go smoothly:
Learning about your new team
Those simple, quiet moments you have with an athlete are the moments they will remember for the rest of their lives.
Playing in the Absence of Fear
As a youth coach I believe it is my job to model confident behavior for my athletes and coaches. It starts with intelligent preparation and ends not in winning (though that often is a by-product of great preparation) but in performing at the highest ability in which I am capable.
Dear Coach, I want to quit.
Hello Coach Leath, My dad says I can't quit my team, but I don't want to play football anymore. All I do is sit on the bench during the games. What should I do?
Intentional Growth
Learn the thing, then do the thing. It is not enough to know a thing; you must do the thing you know. Years ago I ran across a book called "How to Read a Book" (1940) by Mortimer J. Adler. If you are like me, you were never really taught how to drink deeply from a good book. I highly recommend it as a place to start on how to read a book. Not all books require the same amount of energy to read, and Adler's book gives you a frame of reference to use when selecting a book to read.
The Difference Between Winning and Losing
“You got it. Winning and losing is not in your control,” I explain. “Instead of concerning yourself with the score, be a competitor. Who is coming in first during the sprints? Beat them. Who stays after practice to catch a few more throws? Catch more. A competitor does not worry about the scoreboard or stats or social media fans. A competitor shows up to be the best they can be and their hunger for improvement is never satiated.
Not everyone gets a trophy
As for you, my fine friend, you are a victim of disorganized thinking. You are under the unfortunate delusion that simply because you run away from danger, you have no courage.
5 Ways to Increase Coach-to-Athlete Communication
What are some other communication tips I should include next time I write about communicating to athletes?
There isn't more to life than this...
There isn't more to life than this--A baby's smile, a loved one's kiss A book, a song, a flower, a friend And just a little time--to spend.
Top 10 reasons why kids quit organized youth sports
Cheer for the athletes, not the team. It is okay to appreciate talent from the other team. When a coach told his athletes’ parents to root for the other team at a football game in Texas a few years ago, it literally changed the lives of the players on that team.
When you’re up against a trouble
When you’re up against a sea of trouble,
Meet it squarely, face to face;
Lift your chin and set your shoulders,
Plant your feet and take a brace.
When it’s vain to try to dodge it,
Do the best that you can do;
You may fail, but you may conquer,
See it through!
What is Wrong with Youth Sports?
Young athletes are kids; they are not mini-adults. They have a hard time paying attention to one thing for a long time because deep down they know, they are out there to play, and this is just a game.
Keep it simple. Let the kids play.
![Invictus, aka "I am the captain of my soul" [poem]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/65292b6b06d20e4a3c9fdb80/1698678065416-S6U5CIXWLLXIANY7KN4D/image-asset.jpeg)
Invictus, aka "I am the captain of my soul" [poem]
Invictus, by William Ernest Henley (1894-1903)
Question for you...
What is wrong with youth sports? Don't hold back. Be honest, I won't hold it against you. If you don't have any connections to youth sports now, what was wrong with them back when you participated as an athlete? Ready? VENT!
Don't Quit
I don't know who wrote this poem or where I first got it. I found it written on a 5x7 card in my sophomore year high school yearbook. Don't Quit
Hall of Fame inductee John Smoltz
I want to encourage the families and parents that are out there to understand that this is not normal to have a surgery at 14 and 15 years old, that you have time, that baseball's not a year‑round sport, that you have an opportunity to be athletic and play other sports.
The Cookie Thief
A woman was waiting at an airport one night With several long hours before her flight She hunted for a book in the airport shop Bought a bag of cookies and found a place to drop
What if Your Teammates Don't Like You?
I received an email about an athlete who believes a few teammates and his coach do not like him. I thought you might be interested in how I responded to him.
The Victor
If you think you are beaten, you are.If you think you dare not, you don't. If you like to win but think you can't It is almost certain you won't.