Avoiding the Talent Trap
Carol Dweck of Stanford University, author of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, has identified two different "mindsets" that possess enormous implications for coaches.
Marquette University High School, 2010 Wisconsin state lacrosse champions  | The first is the "Fixed Mindset," in which an athlete sees ability as set. The other is the "Growth Mindset," in which an athlete believes in his or her ability to grow and improve, regardless of the starting point.
As Dr. Dweck states, "We did a study of college athletes looking at whether they believed their coaches valued effort and practice or natural talent and outcomes. The more they believed their coaches valued effort and practice, the better they did that year and the more they improved."
Rich Pruszynski, PCA staff member and head coach of the 2010 Wisconsin boys lacrosse state champions, got the most out of his athletes' growth mindsets. After winning the state title he said, "Our kids don't fit the pre-conceived notion of what great athletes look like. In stature, they're small. But they have a positive, competitive demeanor."
Help your athletes improve by avoiding the "talent" trap and embracing a "growth" mindset!
adapted from The Power of Double-Goal Coaching by Jim Thompson
To purchase books by PCA Executive Director Jim Thompson, please
visit:
Balance Sports Publishing
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Pressure To Specialize
After practice, your child's coach tells you your child has great potential. The coach says your child can be a standout in high school (and possibly beyond) and will be best served by specializing in that sport. What should you do? Here are some thoughts about the decision to specialize (or not):
 Consider the right age for specialization...Research indicates that for most sports, specialization before the age of 12 is not a good idea.
Multiple sports help...General sports skills such as balance and game sense can be enhanced by playing other sports.
Beware the dangers of specialization...Repetitive stress injuries increase with specialization. Whereas kids playing multiple sports get sore muscles at the beginning of the season, athletes who specialize early tend to develop increasingly sore and often damaged tendons and joints all year long from repetitive use with little rest. The shocking increase in overuse injuries among youth athletes in recent years is a testament to this.
Include your child in the decision...If your child says he wants to focus on a single sport year round, he will be less likely to burn out. Learning to weigh the pluses and minuses of important decisions is a life lesson.
adapted from Positive Sports Parenting by Jim Thompson
To purchase books by PCA Executive Director Jim Thompson, please
visit:
Balance Sports Publishing
|
Ask Shane Battier:
Can I Be a Leader if I'm Not the Best Player?
Shane Battier, PCA National Advisory Board member  | I've never looked at the talent level of the players on my team as a way to judge them. I look at how hard they work. I look at their attitudes. I look at whether or not this guy is helping us reach our final goal. I believe you have to be one of the hardest workers to be a leader. Leadership has very little to do with talent. Leader has everything to do with attitude and how hard you work daily.
If you're one of the hardest workers, one of the people who come early and stay late, THAT'S leadership. And leadership doesn't always have to be vocal. Leadership can be done with your actions. You gain credibility by working hard every single day and never taking a day off. It shows your teammates that you're playing for the right reasons. You're letting them know you play for the team, not just for yourself.
Shane Battier was named National Player of the Year in 2001, his senior season at Duke University.
He was also a three-time NABC Defensive Player of the Year.
Shane is currently the starting small forward for the NBA's Houston Rockets. |
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