I love watching my kids play sports. They’re all heavily involved. Just as my Dad taught me when he came to my games, I don’t say much from the stands. I just listen and cheer respectfully for the teams.
In my daughter’s recent youth soccer game for the Monroe Woodbury Force girls’ soccer program, one of her teammates made a clear error. It was an easy ball to get, but she just misjudged it. There were loud ‘ooooohs’ from the crowd.
The world is made up of all different types of people with different levels of excitement, critiques, and more. Shortly after the play, the coach, Jay Key, clapped his hands and said, “You were in the right spot, kiddo. Get the next one.”
I was so impressed by Coach Jay’s simple phrase. He could’ve easily yelled at her, said come on, or hey, you should’ve had that. The crowd knew she should’ve had it, the girls knew she should’ve had it, and she knew too. I thought the coach’s response was magical. It didn’t belittle her efforts. Great job Coach Key!
What can we learn from that simple statement? A few things come to mind.
Number one: Build people up, don’t break them down. His statement was uplifting and positive.
Number two: Acknowledge the positive. In every situation, there’s a silver lining, good or bad. Look for them and acknowledge them.
Number three: Move forward. Get the next one. What a great answer. Life is a journey, and we will all have missed steps, missed hits, and missed judgments. Get the next one. Shake it off and keep moving.
I commend Jay for selecting his response at that moment. Adults need to model the behavior we’re looking for in others. Well done! Jay does this constantly from the sideline and off the field.
Keep rolling on your journey, friends, and if I can help you in any way, don’t hesitate to reach out.
