Why do we participate and honour sport? When we have children, why is one of the first classes we enrol them in is sport? Why is sport an important part of most good education systems? Why do we all strive to be great at sport, to represent our country, to play for the Olympics? Or as a spectator, why do we watch, support a team, and sometimes even have our mood depend on the result of our team? And what does sport teach us about life?
Whether sport is played at a competitive level or socially, whether as an individual or as a team, sport teaches us many things that carry forward into everyday life – be it family or work.
Through playing sport, we learn about tenacity, focus, perseverance, patience, strength, concentration, timing, courage, adaptability and skill and a whole lot more. Sport is just as much about teaching us to challenge ourselves mentally as it does physically.
And because we want all this for our children, they should all play, and continue to play sport! We want to prepare our kids mentally and physically for the challenges of adult life.
I played sport all my life. From when I was five years old, I played organised cricket in the summer and soccer in the winter. It was not about being the best all the time, it was also about being with friends, and giving things a go. Sport became a part of what I did. In my 20s, I played hockey for New Zealand. This was one of best times of my life, wearing the silver fern on my chest, singing the natonial anthem and representing my country. Yes it was just sport, but playing sport taught me many things that have taught me valuable lessons that can be applied to everyday life.
Some of the learnings were:
Teamwork – in sport and work, teams are not always “one big happy family”. Successful sports and work teams are able to put aside individual differences to achieve a collective outcome. Sport taught me to be more task oriented and helped to overcome any personality issues.
Social Skills - Sport helps participants to learn communication, negotiation and conflict resolution skills. These are all important in our working lives. Sport also helps to make new friends through having a shared interest.
Leadership – As with work, leaders of sports teams have different leadership styles. Leaders of successful sports teams are able to motivate and coerce the best out of their team through a range of different methods. A “captain” or “boss” is really just a label and a well-organised team doesn’t really need “rah-rah” team talks or anything but instead just tangible guidance, feedback and communication.
Time Management – playing sport results in athletes needing to juggle their schedule to train and play, to study/work, to socialize, meet family commitments, and other things. You do have a rather full schedule. Playing sport didn’t make me better at maths, chinese or English, however it forced me to allocate time effectively and efficiently to make sure that my grades didn’t suffer. Just like in work, our day is made up of many projects and tasks, which all require 100% attention.
Discipline and Behaviour – Sport has an unwritten code of conduct based on respect for others and how you conduct yourself in front of others. Early exposure to these norms helps to deal with disappointment, interesting work colleagues and situations and managing conflict.
Responsibility and Accountability – we all make mistakes and in sport, sometimes those mistakes can lead to the team losing. Owning up and being honest with yourself in these situations allows you to “get over it” and start again. Being responsible and accountable, also means that you are better able to plan and prepare for the future.
Risk Management, Problem Solving, Decision-making and Creativity – Should I dribble, pass or shoot? When playing sport, athletes are constantly analysing information, evaluating alternatives and making decisions – all in a short space of time.
Learning How to Learn – there really is nothing magical about sport, it’s all about a bloody-minded pursuit of doing things better and continuous learning – always working on developing skills, fitness and game knowledge. In our working careers, as we get promotions or new job opportunities, there is always a need to learn and grow.
Doing Homework and Checking – making sure your equipment and gear is all packed and ready to go, remembering team moves, set ups and running lines. Sounds a bit like school or having to check numbers and logic before submitting business proposals doesn’t it?
Attitude and Commitment to give 100% always, regardless of obstacles and setbacks. The competitors do not really care about any excuses that you come up with.
Confidence and Self-belief – scoring goals, executing skills, pinpoint passes, making tackles all help to build confidence and make you want to do those things over and over again. Sport can give you a massive confidence boost which can carry over into non-sporting life.
Being “in the moment” – Playing sport helps you stay in the “Now” – not worrying about what has happened previously or what could happened. Being in the Now makes it easier to make rational and conscious decisions all of the time.
The Shaws Little League Programme has been developed to provide your children the best opportunity learn sports skills and all the good things that sport can help in everyday life. Yes we do some activities that may not be “real” sport, but we do them because we want your children to succeed in life, not just in sport. Not just today or tomorrow but forever.
I love sport, I love coaching sport, I love seeing your children improve.