😀 Thread on the importance of FUN and how this is misconstrued, particularly in the youth sectors of big pro clubs in Europe. This creates a perpetuating cycle which other youth coaches then emulate, damaging the experience players have of our sport.
Many GMs and coaches don’t think high level youth prospects can be developed while having fun. I have no idea why this is the case. Credit to a great book I am reading “Myths of Sport Coaching” (HIGHLY RECOMMEND), where many studies on this topic referenced.
🧠 Where does this stem from? The work of Daniel Kahneman was referenced in the book. As humans we hold onto existing schemas that result in errors in our thinking. This is very prevalent in 🏀 coaches, seeing fun as something only needed for rec ball.
😁Myths of Coaching highlighted the work of Visek et al., with studies showing that what was considered fun in sport is far more universally similar among different ages, genders and playing abilities than previously thought.
Visek’s study observed Trying Hard, Positive Team Dynamics and Positive Coaching were a top priority for both girls and boys. ➡️ Unfortunately two of these elements (Team Dynamics & Positive Coaching) are frequently neglected in a lot of youth practices I observe here in Europe.
Recently heard of one of the “leading” academies in Europe bans players for 3 days from practice for making mistakes/ going off script in a set (which is what we want anyway)! What type of example is this setting? This is simply totally archaic.
Large amounts of money are being spent by Euro clubs to buy prospects, but nothing is spent on surrounding them with transformational, growth-mindset coaches as well as coach education. Imagine the results these clubs could get if they created proper player development pathways?
A lot of “big clubs” in Europe turn a blind eye to abusive coaching practices which are tantamount to bullying. As a coaching community it is so important we challenge such behavior and create more fulfilling environments for our players.
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