Raising Competitors | A Show for Parents of Youth Athletes

Raising Competitors | A Show for Parents of Youth Athletes

By Jake ThompsonSportsKids & Family
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Raising Competitors | A Show for Parents of Youth Athletes episodes

  • You're Still Supposed to Have Fun Playing with Southbay FC founder Kelly Gray

    Kids are kids and they need to have fun. Nowadays, there’s a tendency to push kids into picking a particular sport at a young age. There’s the prevailing idea that if a kid isn’t specializing early, they’re falling behind.

    Southbay FC founder Kelly Gray says in actuality, kids should be doing the opposite. They should be able to try out as many sports as they want when they’re young, and hold off on choosing a main focus until they’re older.

    For nearly a decade, Gray played in Major League Soccer. He became a coach soon after retiring from the field. He saw both kids and adults questing for player perfection when they should have been focusing on progress. Kids need to be able to enjoy their experience in sports, Gray says, and have the opportunity to learn different skills.

    Those extra abilities will serve them well as they get older and put them ahead of the competition when it really counts.

    What You’ll Learn:
    • Aim for progress, not perfection
    • Encourage diversity of experience
    • Allow young athletes to fail
    • Wait to specialize until kids are older
    • Offer breaks to prevent burnout

     

    Support the podcast by using code PODCAST for 15% off any order at CompeteEveryDay.com

    28 min
  • But What’s Being Built?

    My nephew has been struggling in school lately. He battles ADHD as I did, and I know he’s gotten frustrated by how long it’s taken him to get some concepts. I can relate. You just want to bang your head against a wall when a subject isn’t “clicking.”



    He came in town this weekend with his family, and I wanted to encourage him. I got him a TCU football t-shirt with the words Built. Not Born. It was the perfect message I wanted to share with him.



    I wrote him the following letter that I hope also encourages you – and your young Competitor – too.



    Hey buddy,



    I wanted to get you this shirt because I love the message of “Built. Not Born” – and I think it’s very important. It’s one I talk about a lot in my work every day.



    It’s easy for us in life to make two small mistakes:



    * We rely on our natural ability – how “smart” or “athletic” we naturally are in order to help us succeed. We think the skills we are born with are the most important to determining how high we can go in life.* We worry that any learning disabilities, attention disorders, or challenges we face will forever hinder us.



    One thing I learned in my 20s that I wish I’d known at your age is this simple scientific fact:



    Our natural talent is great – but the most important thing about us is what we choose to develop and build.



    Like playing video games, we can continue to level up and improve how well we play by trying things, working through the difficult levels, and building our skills in school, in sports, in video games, and in life by working them over and over again.



    There’s a lot of kids in school who may seem smarter or more talented than you right now. When I was your age, there were a lot of kids more talented than me. I thought that meant I’d never move past them in grades or in life.



    And I was wrong.



    What I know now – what I’ve learned as an adult – is that success in the big picture is about what we choose to build.



    That on the days we get beat in Fortnite, we choose to learn how we got beat so we can play better next time.



    That on the days we struggle in a class, we choose to put in some extra work so we can better understand the subject.



    That on the days we feel angry or like no one understands us, we choose to work on building a positive attitude.



    Just like you’ve continued to pay attention, put in work, and grow in your youth group at church, you’ve got the same opportunity to continue building your brain, your strength, and your skills in life.



    I want you to not only cheer for my team when you wear this, but I want you to be constantly reminded that the most important thing you can do is to focus on building the skills you want to be great at.



    * Fishing* Math* Fortnite* Football



    You name it. Just focus on working at it. When you get frustrated, continue to work at it. And when you start to have success with it, keep working at it.



    It’s not about what we’re naturally born with that matters – it’s what we choose to build.



    And winners choose to build themselves up every day. I’m proud of you. Keep competing



    – Jake
    8 min
  • Dear Competitor: What Are You Building?

    My nephew has been struggling in school lately. He battles ADHD as I did, and I know he’s gotten frustrated by how long it’s taken him to get some concepts. I can relate. You just want to bang your head against a wall when a subject isn’t “clicking.”

    He came in town this weekend with his family, and I wanted to encourage him. I got him a TCU football t-shirt with the words Built. Not Born. It was the perfect message I wanted to share with him.

    I wrote him the following letter that I hope also encourages you – and your young Competitor – too.

    RaisingCompetitors.com

    8 min
  • Being a Front Row Dad with Jon Vroman

    When you look at your calendar, does it reflect your priorities in life? How about the priorities you want to have? This week’s guest Jon Vroman looked at his own calendar several years ago and realized that although he talked about his family as the center of his world, work was taking precedence when it came to his time.

    That realization inspired him to start Front Row Dads, which works to help men reframe how they think and talk about fatherhood.

    Vroman says men need to step up and take responsibility and pride in having a front row seat.

     

    Join the Front Row Dads community.

    26 min
  • Kip Watson, BrainCode Corp

    Kip Watson is a former tackle football player with a seminary degree who raised two kids while building a business. Kip helps people discover and improve beliefs, habits, and tools to be successful and achieve more than they thought possible.

    Kip has more than 20 years of experience assisting individuals, teams, coaches, leaders, families, and couples. Today, she is a certified trainer for the Positive Coaching Alliance and one of the few Certified High-Performance Coaches (CHPC) in the world obtaining her credential by the highest-paid personal development and performance coach Brendon Burchard, coach to influencers such as Oprah Winfrey, Arianna Huffington, and Usher.

    On today's podcast conversation, her and Jake discuss:

    • Can you really "Fake it until you make it?"
    • Practice mindset vs. competitive mindset
    • The importance of our beliefs to our mental toughness
    • Parenting with temptations
    • Specialization vs. multi-sport approach

    Learn more about Anne 'Kip' Watson's work at BrainCodeCorp.com. Mention this episode of the Raising Competitors podcast and receive $100 off her athlete/executive assessment!

    32 min
  • Priscilla Tallman, RESET Your Mindset

    Priscilla Tallman understands the importance of focus and growth mindset. She as SEC Conference Player of the Year during her time playing volleyball at the University of Georgia. She later went on to play for the US National Team.



    Now, after years a high school and club coach, Priscilla is a Pac-12 Conference volleyball coach, helping the next generation of players win and off the court. 



    In today’s episode, we discuss teaching a growth mindset, why journaling is a key-component of her work with The Reset Group, and how she’s parenting two athletes in her own home.







    Learn more about Priscilla’s work with The Reset Group and learn about their digital programs for youth athletes at TheResetGroup.com!



    Follow Priscilla on Instagram at @PYTallman.



    Click here to support the show!
    27 min
  • Pac12 Coach Priscilla Tallman on Resetting Your Focus

    Priscilla Tallman understands the importance of focus and growth mindset. She as SEC Conference Player of the Year during her time playing volleyball at the University of Georgia. She later went on to play for the US National Team.

    Now, after years a high school and club coach, Priscilla is a Pac-12 Conference volleyball coach, helping the next generation of players win and off the court. 

    In today's episode, we discuss teaching a growth mindset, why journaling is a key-component of her work with The Reset Group, and how she's parenting two athletes in her own home.

     

    Learn more about Priscilla's work with The Reset Group and learn about their digital programs for youth athletes at TheResetGroup.com!

    Click here to support the show!

    27 min
  • Elizabeth McVickers, Branched Athletics

    Elizabeth McVickers knows what it’s like to play without purpose. The former collegiate athlete is now driven to help others find their purpose on and off of the course and help them succeed.

    We sat down this week to discuss her “Dear Athlete” letters at Branched Athletics, what “playing with purpose” means, and how her unique collegiate career created this unique opportunity to pay it forward.

    Learn more about @Branchedathletics on Instagram or their website, BranchedAthletics.com.

    25 min
  • Lay Down a Bunt Every Day

    It’s easy to get caught up in the idea that you have to hit home runs every day in order to become successful.

    The best hitters in the game aren’t swinging for the fences every time they get to the plate. Just like the best quarterbacks aren’t throwing for the endzone every pass.

    There’s nothing wrong with chipping away at your goal and your growth with small swings, every day, that add up to significant success over time.

    In this solo episode, Jake uses fairy tales and baseball games as illustrations for how to slay big obstacles and move closer toward success that you can use in sharing with your youth athlete.

    Click here to support the show

    Mentioned in the Episode

    • Pound the Stone by Joshua Medcalf (link)
    • Atomic Habits by James Clear (link)
    13 min
  • Caroline Burckle, RISE Athletes & Being MORE Than Just an Athlete

    Former Olympic swimmer Caroline Burckle joins this week's show to discuss her athletic journey and the co-founding of RISE Athletes, a program that partners young athletes with Olympians for mentorship opportunities.

    Burckle discusses the importance of diversifying their experiences (outside of sports) helps set them on the path to success in the future, as they can choose from many skillsets at different times in life.

     

    Click here to support the show.

    Rise Athletes: http://www.rise-athletes.com/

    Show notes: http://bit.ly/carolineb_rc

    37 min

About Raising Competitors | A Show for Parents of Youth Athletes

From the publisher's feed

Raising Competitors™ is a podcast for parents raising youth athletes with strategies to help them develop the mental toughness, resilience, growth mindset, & leadership skills for success in school, sports, and life.