 Posted 5/8/2008 1:35:00 PM
Throughout my playing and coaching years I have heard
this expression over and over again - I have even felt it myself.
However, the pressure I felt was from myself. I knew that when the game
was over my mom and dad would tell me 'nice job' or 'nice try' and that
would be the end of it. Unfortunately, that is not what I am seeing
generally these days.
When I think of pressure I think of soldiers on the front line who
have other soldiers lives in their hands. I think of an ER physician
that has a dying child in his hands and is the only one who can save
him. I think of the pilot flying a jet liner and can't make a mistake or
hundreds of lives could be lost. When it comes to high school
athletics, nothing should make a kid feel those kinds of pressures.
Sure, there are times during an athletic career that you feel
some pressure to perform well. You may not want to strike out or make
an error. But what I am seeing put on kids now da...
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Posted 4/29/2008 4:01:00 PM
I think that this is a very touchy topic when discussing high school sports,
especially softball. Over my 10 years of coaching I have been fortunate
to have many players that have truly been committed to the sport. The issue
that I have been struggling with the last few years, especially with my
athletes, is where do you draw the line between commitment and burnout?
I have seen a mass influx of personal skill instructors that
allow players to train year round. Is this truly good for the sport and for the
athlete? I am all for an athlete getting all the opportunities they can to
improve their skills, but I feel that there is a fine line that can be crossed
that can lead to burn out. Sometimes it is the athlete that cant get enough.
Other times it is the parents that push their kids too far. I believe that
there has to be a balance and a break for these kids.
I am a true believer in p...
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