We spend countless dollars making sure every youth sports coach gets proper training, yet we spend minimal resources educating sports parents. And now a South Carolina Soccer Club is mandating that parents stay silent on the sidelines. Is this the right answer?
Sports Parent Need To Be Part Of the Process
At iSport360, we insist that sports parents are part of the process. We give coaches tools to set realistic expectations with parents and kids at the beginning of the season. We also give coaches and parents tools to share fair player evaluations and ongoing feedback. And we educate parents on proper sideline behavior (see our recent articles “Understanding the Sports Parent Psyche” and “Knowing What is Cheerworthy”)
Learn How To Be Part of the Process
After studying sports parents with the help of psychologists and educators, we’ve learned that parents will either be part of the process, or part of the problem…..we prefer the former. So we are engaging sports parents with our mobile app, helpful tools, informative articles and whenever possible, humor. That way we can share the lighter side of the “serious” business of youth sports.
Ian Goldberg is the Founder and CEO of iSport360, a new SportsTech venture bringing objective standards, fair player evaluations and a platform for ongoing feedback to the parents, coaches and players in the chaotic world of youth sports.