Being an athlete can be difficult, especially for the youth. Aside from the trials and storms they must endure just for being a teenager, they also must endure the challenge of mastering their chosen sport. It can be quite challenging, especially that there will always be a curve, and mistakes and frustrations are bound to happen with any learning type. This is why confidence becomes a key player in mastering any sport, especially for the youth. Let us look at why confidence is important in youth sports.
Reasons why Confidence is Important in Youth Sports
- Improves performance
Confidence becomes a key player in sports performance as there is a direct positive correlation between the two variables. If you feel more confident about your sports skills, your performance will also increase. In fact, it is confidence that sets apart ordinary players from great players. Believing in yourself and your skills and what you can do will do wonders in your mindset and overall sports performance. Specific for the youth where they are still in the formative years of their sports life, they need all the confidence they can get!
What are the sources of confidence?
- Practice, practice, and practice
It may sound overused but practicing and honing oneself and his or her sports skills can do wonders for building confidence for the youth. Here, he or she can quantifiably see his progress every day – may it be the number of baskets he can shoot, his endurance duration, or even his toned muscles! All of these will come into play when it comes to becoming more confident.
- Support from Others
Validation from other people, like family members, coaches, and friends, can definitely build confidence for the youth. Even a simple pat on the back or verbal encouragement can motivate the youth to do better in his practice sessions or the next game. Sports can encourage teamwork, camaraderie, and collaboration at a time where adolescents are at their most tumultuous period of their lives.
- Mental Fortitude
When it comes to sports, it is the physical aspect that people focus on most often than not. They do not know that sports are a mental activity as much as it is a physical one. The youth needs to be disciplined physically and mentally by envisioning what they want as goals for their chosen craft and walk towards that goal. It is also important for youth athletes to understand that there are frustrations and challenges along the way because not everyone starts as the best. They have to appreciate the journey to greatness.
- Mastery of Control
In sports, many things are perceived to be uncontrollable. However, youth athletes need to understand that there is one thing that they can control amidst the chaos – themselves. They have to focus on getting better and stronger every day through hard work and training, and their success will follow. They have to focus on what they can control and ignore the aspects they cannot control like the crowd, online haters and critics, and their opponent.
