What Tom Brady thinks about Youth Sports

As the parent of a young hockey player, someone who played youth sports himself, and has coached youth hockey, you can certainly say that I have an interest in the world of youth sports, and it appears I’m not the only one!

No, recently, Tom Brady himself gave an interview for a radio station in Boston in which he talked about youth sports

He talked about how, when he was a child, sports were “localized,” meaning kids didn’t travel way out of their way to play in serious, high-pressure games. He went on to say that he was also encouraged to try his hand at different types of sports, including everything from baseball to basketball to soccer and beyond. He also touched on how most of this playing happened at home, in his street and yard, and was informal and just plain fun in nature.

Sadly, though, it seems that the kind of fun, frivolous play that Brady enjoyed as a child is a real rarity these days. Today’s kids are often forced to specialize in just one sport, rather than being allowed to try out different things. They also, more often than not, have to commit themselves to demanding travel teams and playing in high-pressure games. They’re taught to worry about scholarship opportunities and the possibility of “going pro” before they’ve even really gotten the hang of the sport they play.

Do you see a problem with all of this? If you don’t, then…well…you should. Children should be allowed to JUST play and enjoy like they were back in the day. Obviously, it worked out just fine for Brady and for many other professionals. They should be allowed to enjoy any sport they like just for the sheer fun of it. After all, they’ve got the rest of their lives to get serious about a particular sport and to actually worry about what they’re going to do with the rest of their lives.


Do everything you can to make sports FUN for your child. If he or she is meant to “go pro,” the rest will follow without anyone forcing it. In fact, not pushing your kid too hard lessens the chances of burnout and actually increases the chances of a successful, long-lasting experience with sports, so stop the pressure and start the fun.

Is Your Player a Late Bloomer?

Across all kinds of youth sports, there is a special kind of kid- the kid known as the “late bloomer.” This is the kid who, despite doing his best and trying his hardest, doesn’t come into his “sports skills” until a little later in life. It might be the kid who hasn’t quite grown into his body yet, the clumsy kid, or just the kid who is too shy and lacking in confidence to really have success. However, a great many fabulous athletes have started their careers as late bloomers themselves.  

Take Carson Wentz for example. Wentz, who dabbled in a great many sports before settling on football, became the second pick in the recent NFL draft. However, he wasn’t always such a success. He didn’t even become a starting quarterback until his senior year, and he didn’t even really become an NFL prospect until later in his college career.

Wentz isn’t the only famous and successful example of a late bloomer, either. There have been a great many others like him who have taken time to find their sport and then to find success within it.

So, what’s the takeaway here? Well, it’s that if you think you may have a kid who fits the “late bloomer” profile, don’t despair. Give your child room to have fun, to try different sports, and to grow in confidence and ability. Encourage your child every step of the way, and most of all, truly believe in your child.

With enough nurturing and encouragement, your little one is sure to find the sport of his or her choosing, and if it’s meant to be, to find great success within that sport. No matter what happens, he or she will certainly grow in confidence and self-belief,which, after all, is the most important thing of all!

The Fear in Youth Sports

Whether it’s happened to your own child or to another athlete you know, “self-sabotage” is a real thing among young hockey players. There’s the player who practices so hard and so much that he’s completely burnt out come game time. Then you have the player who sets impossible goals and then acts disappointed and surprised when he finds he can’t possibly reach them. Self-destruction takes a lot of different forms, but more often than not, it’s due, in large part, to a fear of failure.

Take the two examples mentioned above. In the first, you have a player who is working hard to reach his or her goals. The player is so scared of not reaching those goals, however, that he works harder and harder to the point of exhaustion, actually preventing and sabotaging his dreams from ever

coming true. In the second, you have a similar situation. The player wants to badly to succeed and to not fail that he sets his goals and standards impossibly high.

When a young hockey player is battling fear of failure, possible symptoms may include:

l  Anxiety

l  Stress over scores

l  Stress over reaching goals

l  High personal standards

l  Perfectionism

l  Putting oneself down when a mistake is made or a goal isn’t reached

l  Lack of “fun” and “joy” as they relate to the sport

Just as the fear of failure is a real and troubling phenomenon among young athletes, you also have those who struggle with the fear of success. That might sound crazy at first. After all, who would ever be scared of being successful? Well, in truth, a lot of young players deal with stress and anxiety over what might happen if they become too good at their sport of choice.

When you think of success, you might think of all of the positive benefits your child would experience as a result of his or her achievements. Your child, however, might think of the additional responsibilities, practice times, publicity, attention, and other stresses that go along with achievement. Young athletes who are scared of success often self-sabotage in the same ways as those who are scared of failure. Or some just plain stop trying their hardest, letting their games suffer in the process. 

Whether it’s fear of success or failure or something in between, today’s young athletes struggle with a lot of fear in general. Common fears expressed by hockey kids include:

l  Fear of losing a game, especially a big or important one

l  Fear of disappointing their parents, coaches, and/or teammates

l  Fear of being viewed negatively by their peers

l  Fear of losing love and attention if they play poorly or lose

l  Fear or being an embarrassment to one’s self or others

l  Fear of “not having what it takes” to be successful

l  Fear of being negatively compared to teammates

l  Fear or rejection

l  Fear of working hard and still not being “perfect”

This fear culture is far too prevalent in today’s youth sports, and the pressures we put on our kids has a lot to do with it. By focusing on the fun and joy of the game and not on winning and by praising our kids no matter how they perform, we can reduce fear in our young athletes. Other things we can do to stop our children from feeling so scared include:

l  Talking with our kids about their fears openly and honestly.

l  Focusing on what our kids do well

l  Focusing on improving for improvement’s sake, not for the sake of “being the best” or winning

l  Explaining why perfectionism is never a good choice and how it sets athletes up for failure

If you can follow these tips and keep open communication with your young hockey player, you can help him or her to escape the “fear culture” of youth hockey and to get back to the fun parts!