Printable Version (PDF) 1. The main reason kids play is to have fun. Winning finishes much lower on the list. We need to keep it fun by meeting their needs, not ours. Ours are often about winning to fuel our egos and to get the parents to think we're a good coach. But you can lose a lot even if you're a good coach, depending on the strength of your opponents. 2. We can expect players only to try their best. 3. We can find reasons to praise each of our players often to help them feel good about themselves. If they learn new skills and show good sportsmanship, even if they're not great players, they should be complimented for their effort. 4. Participation is a key to players' enjoyment. Let parents know your group's policy on playing time. It should allow each player to play as close to equal time as possible up through eighth grade. If our young athletes don't play much, they won't gain the extra confidence which helps them improve. 5. Some of us get angry and critical when our players make mistakes. But we all make mistakes. We should be calm and offer suggestions in a friendly tone of voice. We can motivate them without being loud, negative, angry, abusive or embarrassing them. Negativity can cause even very skilled players to quit. A goal of youth sports is to help kids enjoy the game and keep them participating. 6. Think about it: If we win most of our games consistently, it means more than anything else that we're not playing tough enough competition and therefore our kids cannot improve as much as they would. That's because having to play as hard as possible against equal or a little better competition is the best way to increase their focus and boost their skills which then carry over to future games. 7. Learning to accept losing is an important lesson in life that we along with parents and others can help teach. We all suffer setbacks. We need only to rebound and try again next time. 8. RESPECT. We should not criticize referees and umpires. They do the best they can. Sometimes they make mistakes as we all do. They almost never change their calls. Many quit because of the abuse they receive. Respect is a lesson we should help teach. 9. Do not discourage team members from playing other sports. If you do, it demonstrates that you're too concerned about winning. By playing other sports, the chances of burnout and overuse injuries are reduced and the skills learned probably complement those in your sport. Athletes like Cal Ripken, Jr. and Yogi Berra say playing multiple sports is a positive. 10. We should not worry about whether others view us as great teachers of the game. We are giving a lot of our time and doing our best. If we are treating the players well by teaching with fun in mind and without anger, we are fulfilling our mission.