No matter how popular the figure, no matter how great the legend, no one has been able to reach their peak without the help of others.
There is a famous quote claiming “it takes a village” to raise a child.
This saying holds true because your experiences in life and how you respond to them shape you into who you will be remembered as.
The sports world is no different; the experience of participating in team sports at the grassroots level enhances character.
Lessons that are taught and learned through youth sports assist in building character the more important characteristics a human should possess today.
Most of these skills are based around human interaction and communication, overcoming adversity, and accountability in regards to work ethic.
The willingness to compete and fitting into a group are other very important skills groomed while participating in team sports. Team sports build self-esteem, so much so sometimes that the ego of an athlete can be massive.
Humility is a skill that can take an individual very far. It is also very versatile in that you can apply it in so many different ways. One could learn to fit into a role and become a team player by putting their ego to the side.
The competitive nature of athletes can make this very hard to do, but if accomplished, could even take their game to the next level. One could also be taught humility through defeat, especially if a journey began with a lot of success.
Life has not been all sunshine, nor will it be for anyone, and team sports are a good means to teaching this lesson.
A successful team, in the sports and business worlds, has a number of individuals communicating and working together to achieve a common goal. The plan will not always go smoothly, which is where perseverance is key.
You must be able to stay the course and finish strong as a unit, finding different ways to achieve your goal. This skill could push someone later in life to stick with a certain aspiration they may have had, and give them the fight needed to pursue whatever goal it is.
Last, but not least, team sports has successfully groomed solid disciplinary qualities in many. Sports contain many rules, so to behave and control emotion is needed in the field of play. Even in stressful situations, being disciplined enough to still focus on the task at hand is vital for our everyday decision-making.
Making decisions based strictly off of emotions do not always turn out to be positive long-term, so something as simple as logical decision-making is a skill that team sports at the grassroots levels are successful at teaching.
No successful individual has gotten to where they are all by themselves.
There was someone or something there that they had to lean on or adjust to, to ultimately lead them to their position.
Such is similar with the skills youth sports teach you: you can lean on the key values learned through sport, and they can take you many places and earn you much respect in the working world.
Dallas Haywood
Sports Reporter
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