Fall sports season lurks ahead and young athletes have to contend with summer camps and the forthcoming tryouts. For sports parents, this is also a stressful period because they want the best for their kids. Of course the pride of every mom is to get their child in the team, whether it’s baseball or football. The competition keeps growing stiffer. As a parent, your role is more important both as a consultant and mentor for the young athlete.

Here are some tips to use when preparing your child for tryouts:

  1. Emphasize the need for immense effort: Your child might have impressed the coaches in the last level but you must emphasize the need to hone this talent. It is important to inculcate a sense of effort in training for the child to bring the best game forward.
  2. Prepare the child mentally that they might not make it. It is not easy but you should not confine their active mind to that spot on the team. You need to work closely with the young athlete and encourage them to be realistic about their chances. For instance, talk about sporting greats who never cut it in college; think Michael Jordan for instance among others.
  3. Temper your emotions: Every parent is excited about their child’s sporting prospects. Make sure you temper your emotions by not being too optimistic lest you overstress the kid. On the other hand, don’t be pessimistic as this will kill their morale or desensitize them to losing.

Every parent wants their child to make it to the team but whatever happens, remember you are first a parent and not a coach. If they don’t make the cut, don’t stop showing love and support and more importantly, validate their feelings to ensure the enthusiasm doesn’t die. You also need to go back to the drawing board for more ideas for the next tryout. Private coaching can go a long way in improving the weak areas during off-season.