Write your search in the input below and press enter.
Esc to close.

The Sports Doc Chalk Talk with Dr. Chris Stankovich

Peak Performance:
Not Just for Sports, for Life

  • Products
    • Toolkits
    • Audio
    • Videos
    • Books
    • Apps
  • Services
  • Chalk Talk
    • Recent
    • Athletes
    • Coaching
    • Sports Parenting
    • Sports Administrators
    • Life
    • Administrators
  • About Dr. Stankovich
  • Testimonials
  • Contact
  • Products
    • Toolkits
    • Audio
    • Books
    • Videos
    • Apps
  • Services
  • Chalk Talk
  • About Dr. Stankovich
  • Testimonials
  • Contact

Hello. Sign In

My Account
  • Login
  • Register
0
The Sports Doc Chalk Talk
Subscribe
The Sports Doc Chalk Talk with Dr. Chris Stankovich
  • Recent
  • Athletes
  • Coaching
  • Sports Parenting
  • Life
  • Administrators
Home / Blog / 5 Big Tips for Helping Improve Athlete Motivation

5 Big Tips for Helping Improve Athlete Motivation

By: Dr. Chris Stankovich | @DrStankovich | Sep 29, 2015

No Comments

11999715-large

Human motivation is an fascinating construct to study.  With a high level of motivation, nearly anything is possible, and people with otherwise average skills often end up doing quite extraordinary things.  Conversely, individuals with great potential but low motivation will almost always fail to live up to their talents, leaving observers to scratch their heads why such talent would be seemingly squandered away.

When parenting or coaching kids in sports, motivation (or lack thereof) is often the single biggest piece to sports success.  Even kids without much natural talent quickly experience the benefits of motivation by showing up early to practicing and being the last one to leave — resulting in better skill acquisition and proficiency, as well as endearing them to their teammates for their hard work.  When motivated kids begin to see the fruits of their labor, their confidence increases, and they often continue to set new goals and see their game take off even further.  In some ways, they “play over their head” because they are motivated to succeed.

cover225x225

Can you help kids improve their motivation?

While it is true that there is a genetic component to motivation (borrowing from the long standing debate in psychology of ‘nature v nurture’), kids can also learn to improve their motivation as well.  To the extent that we can create intrinsic motivation (or self-driven motivation) is subject to debate, but there are ways to improve upon extrinsic motivation (motivation based on tangible rewards) that will still lead to improved performance — and possibly even better intrinsic motivation.  Some important tips that parents and coaches can use with kids involved in sports include:

  • Getting to know your players (coaches):  Taking time out to talk to your kids and learn their names, interests, and goals can pay big dividends when it comes to helping them increase their motivation to succeed.  Like the old saying goes “Your players don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”
  • Use a ton of positive reinforcement.  Try to “catch” kids doing things right and putting in healthy effort (even if the results aren’t always there), and reinforce with hearty, positive praise!  When kids fail, use the experience as a teachable moment, and giving them every ability to right the situation.
  • Break the season into sections.  Sometimes kids get tired, overwhelmed, and burned out playing sports because it seems like the season never ends.  As a parent or coach, make it your job to break the season down in sections and help guide kids through the process by lending support and creating time for breaks whenever possible.
  • Talk!  Try and talk with kids throughout the season and listen closely to what they say — if you discover they have lofty goals (a good thing!), work with them to set goals and teach them how to keep a journal trekking the results.  This connection and help you provide will improve motivation, and make sports more fun for kids, too.
  • Vary routines and experiment.  Sport seasons can become long and monotonous but they don’t have to be if you vary routines (coaches) and experiment with kids playing different positions and doing different things on the field.  In fact, great coaches sometimes even let the kids run a practice just in an attempt to mix things up and prevent staleness and burnout.

www.drstankovich.com

 

athlete, motivation, parent, psychology, reinforcement, sport, student, success

  • Author
  • Comments
  • Details
Get to Know the Author

Dr. Chris Stankovich

Dr. Stankovich has written/co-written five books, including Positive Transitions for Student Athletes, The ParentsPlaybook, Mind of Steel.

Latest Blog Posts

  • November 28, 2023 Understanding Psychology: The Backfire Effect, and Why Facts Don’t Always Matter
  • November 28, 2023 Artificial Intelligence is Delivering Your News More Often than You Think
  • November 20, 2023 Experiencing Depression isn’t a Bug, it’s a Feature of the Human Condition
  • November 15, 2023 If You’re Tracking Stats in Youth Sports, You Might be Doing it Wrong
  • November 13, 2023 A University Just Paid their Football Coach $77 Million Dollars – to Go Away

Comments are closed.

PREVIOUS POST

Football Coach Admits He Directed the Hit, What Happens Now to the Kids Involved?

NEXT POST

High School Football Faces Biggest Challenges Yet Regarding Safety & Future of the Sport

Category

Amateur , Athletes , Athletic Counseling , Boys Sports , Burnout , Coaching , College , Communicating with Coach , Confidence , Girls Sports , Goal Setting , Mental Toughness , Parent Training , Performance Enhancement , Playing Time , Prep , Sport Philosophy , Sport Psychology , Sport Sociology , Sports Administrators , Sports Culture and Society , Sports Leadership , Sports Parenting , Sports Performance Science , Team Building , Team Chemistry , Team Cohesion , Training and Development , Uncategorized , Youth and Interscholastic Sports , Youth Sport Burnout , Youth Sports

Tags

athlete, motivation, parent, psychology, reinforcement, sport, student, success

  • Recent Posts
  • Most Read
  • Understanding Psychology: The Backfire Effect, and Why Facts Don't Always Matter
  • Artificial Intelligence is Delivering Your News More Often than You Think
  • Experiencing Depression isn't a Bug, it's a Feature of the Human Condition
  • If You're Tracking Stats in Youth Sports, You Might be Doing it Wrong
  • A University Just Paid their Football Coach $77 Million Dollars - to Go Away
  • Increasingly More Student Athletes Make it to College -- Then Quit
  • Rather than Focus on Youth Sport Results, Try Embracing the Power of Play
  • Exercise Patience with Growing Kids Working Hard for Sport Success
  • Here's What Your Kid Might Not Tell You, But Tells Me
  • The Impact of Psychological Identity Development on Young Athletes
  • The Sports Doc on TV

    Catch Dr. Stankovich’s tv, radio, and print interviews and columns here!

    Dr. Chris Stankovich Watch Videos
  • Sport Performance Assessment

    Dr. Chris Stankovich Quickly and accurately test your level of mental toughness in just a few minutes using the Sport Performance Assessment.

    (SPA), an easy-to-use sport psychology system specially designed to help you REACH YOUR FULL ATHLETIC POTENTIAL.

    learn more
  • SportsSuccess360

    Life strategies for performance and character development for coaches, parents, and student athletes competing in youth and interscholastic sports.

    Life Strategies learn more
  • Contact Dr. Stankovich

    1207 Grandview Ave., Suite #218, Columbus, OH 43212

    (614) 561-4482

    Media & General Inquiries

    information@drstankovich.com

    Sales & Product Support

    sales@drstankovich.com

  • About Dr. Stankovich

    • Media
    • Blog
    • Testimonials
  • Products

    • Toolkits
    • Videos
    • Books
    • Audio
    • iPhone Apps
  • Services

    • Athlete Performance Training
    • Parent Community Forum
    • Coach Education & Development
    • Athletic Crisis Response and Intervention
    • Drug & Alcohol Assessment
    • Life Success Programs
    • Counseling & Consulting Services
  • Blog
  • YouTube
  • twitter
  • facebook

All rights reserved © 2023 Advanced Human Performance Systems™

↓ ↓