Man… this is one of the most important things a dad coach can understand.
Kids absolutely absorb the emotional environment around them. You can literally watch confidence shrink or grow depending on the tone, body language, and pressure coming from adults.
“Fun and competitive. Structured and encouraging. Demanding and safe.” That part especially hit me.
A lot of kids won’t remember the score years later, but they will remember how playing for you felt. Incredible piece, Jeremy.
Kids can usually tell the difference between “this adult believes in me” and “this adult is frustrated with me,” even if the words sound similar on the surface. And once pressure turns into fear or shame, performance usually follows it downhill fast.
The line “Kids don’t just hear coaching. They absorb environments” stopped me cold because it’s the same in climbing, baseball, or any sport where a kid’s eyes are on you before everything else.
That “heavy” practice you described? We’ve all been there, and the worst part is realizing we dropped the weight on them, not the other way around.
I appreciate it! My team had an off one the other night. Stunk it up starting at warmups. It wasn’t until the second inning that I realized they were feeding off of my energy. It’s hard to realize, but they absorb EVERYTHING!
Man… this is one of the most important things a dad coach can understand.
Kids absolutely absorb the emotional environment around them. You can literally watch confidence shrink or grow depending on the tone, body language, and pressure coming from adults.
“Fun and competitive. Structured and encouraging. Demanding and safe.” That part especially hit me.
A lot of kids won’t remember the score years later, but they will remember how playing for you felt. Incredible piece, Jeremy.
Yes, and the worst part is that emotional environment doesn’t just affect how they feel, it completely rewires how they perform under pressure.
The nervous system doesn’t know the difference between 'support' and 'pressure', but it sure remembers which one made it expand.
That’s such a good way to put it.
Kids can usually tell the difference between “this adult believes in me” and “this adult is frustrated with me,” even if the words sound similar on the surface. And once pressure turns into fear or shame, performance usually follows it downhill fast.
Love this.
The line “Kids don’t just hear coaching. They absorb environments” stopped me cold because it’s the same in climbing, baseball, or any sport where a kid’s eyes are on you before everything else.
That “heavy” practice you described? We’ve all been there, and the worst part is realizing we dropped the weight on them, not the other way around.
Great work!
I appreciate it! My team had an off one the other night. Stunk it up starting at warmups. It wasn’t until the second inning that I realized they were feeding off of my energy. It’s hard to realize, but they absorb EVERYTHING!