brag·gart [noun] – a person who does a lot of bragging.
We all know that sports parent — the braggart who seizes every opportunity to tell you about how fast, strong, skilled, and great their kid is in youth sports. You know exactly what I am talking about, as you have likely been in his or her company many times in the past. The bragging sports parent often has no idea of how boastful he or she sounds, and therefore goes on endlessly talking about his kid while seemingly having no interest at all in talking about your kid. Yes, this type of parent could definitely use some couch time at a sport psychologist’s office!
With warm weather just around the corner, it’s important that we all be reminded to not become that parent this summer sports season. Of course, it’s easy (and very understandable) to be your kid’s biggest fan, but you don’t need to be the one to tell the world about how great your kid is – instead, allow others to make that judgement for themselves. Rather than using words like how “unbelievable” or “amazing” or “dominating” your kid is, try some of the following, more humble ways to talk about your kid:
- First, try not to ever brag about your kid — instead, cheer him or her on and simply be a supportive parent (your kid will be thrilled with this, trust me).
- If someone compliments you about your kid, try responding with a simple and genuine “thank you,” or if you want to expand a little more try to think of fair and accurate ways to describe your child’s efforts and interactions with teammates and coaches, not her results (i.e. “she works really hard,” or “her improvement can be attributed to great coaching and really supportive teammates”).
- Never say “did you just see that?” with an exacerbated look on your face when talking about something your kid did on the field. That’s a form of gloating, and people don’t like gloating.
- Never be “showy” when congratulating your kid after he does something good for the team — normal applause and cheering out “great job” is plenty! Some parents feel the need to go bananas and yell and scream while hoisting their kid in the air after hitting bunt single — instead, keep your cheers in perspective.
- Bonus — try to find as many genuine ways to offer praise to other parents about their kids! Not only is this a very nice thing to do, but you will likely benefit from reciprocal comments from them about your kid!
Be sure to support and love your young athlete as much as possible, but also be aware to not go overboard and boast about his every sport accomplishment. The best way to teach humility is to model it, so make it a goal to be a supportive — and humble — parent this summer.
