Welcome back to regular readers and warm greetings to those finding the Prepared Blog for the first time. Whilst much of what I do involves sport at the elite level, throughout my career and to this day I have had a specific interest and involvement in the journey from youth sport to senior level. This area is variously described as talent development and long term athlete development, but these are largely academic concepts. One question that is not fully resolved is how we can create a learning environment that provides the challenge and support so that young performers acquire the necessary tools and abilities. But today we tackle a more fundamental question: how can we help to ensure that young performers have the fuel to sustain them through this journey which may span many years?
STARTING WITH THE FIRE…
The fire within is a highly individual phenomenon. We have all come across people who bring a burning intensity to all they do and certainly this is a trait we associate with top performers. Equally there is no single archetype for what an elite performer looks like. Usain Bolt is a great example of somebody who liked to keep things light and fun, even on the biggest stage. The fire within is manifested in different ways!
Irrespective of personality type the challenge we face is how to find an equilibrium. As we are entering barbecue season (in the northern hemisphere at least) the fire analogy is a good one. If we dump all the fuel on at once there will be impressive pyrotechnics for a brief moment, but we will find we are then left with singed eyebrows and dying embers! On the other hand if we bury the flame under too much material we suffocate the fire and deprive it of the oxygen it needs, so that it soon becomes extinguished. In essence these are the scenarios we are seeking to avoid with young performers.
INTRINSIC DRIVE…
Most performers start participating in a particular sport for the inherent enjoyment of doing so. If it was no fun at the outset then it is highly unlikely they would persist with it. Individuals typically discover an affinity for the sport and become intrigued with it. In most instances they also find they have a natural aptitude and pick it up relatively quickly, which adds to the enjoyment.
In other words, when we do something for the simple joy of doing so that is what constitutes intrinsic motivation. We have an inherent desire to engage in the particular activity for the positive feelings we derive from the experience. Intrinsic drive leads us to freely choose to continue to invest time in the activity for its own sake.
Intrinsic motivation is a primary source of the enthusiasm we feel towards participating and performing. It is this drive, which is not dependent upon anybody or anything else, that we need to preserve in young performers.
RENEWABLE ENERGY…
One of the fun parts about working with young performers is that they have boundless enthusiasm. They will happily run around and play the sport, with or without a coach or parent being present. Over time we need to temper this enthusiasm with self-discipline in order to continue to progress and keep them in one piece, but we cannot ever lose the enthusiasm. In many ways, enthusiasm is our most direct fuel source.
“You want to keep enthusiasm because that’s your fuel.
You have to balance discipline and enthusiasm.
Discipline is critical. You have to be able to show up.
But you have to enjoy it: enjoying it with discipline is key.”
Mastering skills provides ongoing motivation and is a renewable source of energy. As a performer becomes more adept, participating in the sport naturally becomes more enjoyable. Performing our newly acquired skills in itself brings us pleasure and is inherently rewarding. Happily, attaining mastery is a journey without an endpoint - we can always find ways to develop and improve. Seeking mastery thus has the potential to provide endless fuel for our journey!
Challenge is highly motivating for most of us. This challenge can be presented in different ways according to what drives the individual. For instance, I have always been very easy to motivate - bright coaches (and colleagues) soon figured out they just needed to tell me they didn’t think I could do something and I automatically redoubled my efforts to prove them wrong!
However, challenge does not always mean throwing down the gauntlet. Many of us enjoy challenging ourselves to solve a complex puzzle. Once again, sport and acquiring athletic skills offer an endless source of new puzzles to solve! This fascination is part of what makes sport so captivating and again this is something we need to emphasise and preserve.
FRAMING IS IMPORTANT…
Earlier in the piece I mentioned choice and this is a critical element we need to emphasise at all times. For instance, it benefits performers to acquire the habit of speaking in terms of choosing to do things - i.e. ‘I choose to practice’, ‘I choose to go to training’ and so on.
The opposite of this is framing things in terms of what I have to do, or where I have to go (I have to practice, I have to go to training, etc.). This becomes problematic because presenting the scenario in this way makes it seem like a chore.
A sense of obligation is generally not conducive to feeling enthusiastic about the prospect. The reality is that some young performers do feel obliged to participate in sport out of a perceived sense of duty, perhaps towards their parents or other notable people in their life. This can create a sense that they are no longer engaging in the activity of their own free will, but rather to keep others happy or to justify the investment made in supporting their participation.
Feeling a sense of responsibility (such as towards their team-mates and those who helped them) is not inherently a bad thing. However, the performer must retain the sense that they would freely choose to participate of their own accord and for the intrinsic rewards they derive from doing so, irrespective of whatever responsibilities they might feel towards others.
REMAINING CLEAR ON WHO WE’RE DOING THIS FOR…
As young performers start to achieve success inevitably they start to receive acclaim and attention from others. These external rewards and recognition can certainly make performers feel good about themselves. However, this carries the risk of displacing the intrinsic drive to participate.
These extrinsic sources of motivation have the opposite characteristics of the intrinsic drive we described earlier. These external rewards are entirely in the hands of others. They are also contingent on the outcome (and dependent upon a successful outcome) rather than the act of participating itself.
External rewards and recognition can come to overshadow the more pure positive feelings and simple pleasures derived from engaging in the activity itself. Not only can this extinguish this all important energy source over time, but it also places the performer at the mercy of others and external factors that are not under their control.
Throughout the journey the performer must remain clear that they are not doing this to impress others. It is nice to get recognition but external validation must not become a driver for their behaviour. When performers start to become more concerned about what others think this naturally makes them more averse to trying things. The endeavour can quickly become a continual exercise in protecting their precarious status in the minds of others. This can be particularly problematic during the teenage years, albeit grown ups are also not immune!
Perception is hugely powerful in shaping our experiences. We need to coach performers to contemplate both practice and competition in terms of the challenge and opportunity it offers, rather than a potential threat to their personhood! When errors are made performers need to develop and preserve the habit of responding with intrigue and being curious about how to solve the problem, rather than with negative judgements about themselves. Being unduly concerned about the opinions or judgements of others (up to and including coaches and parents) are clearly not conducive to the mission from either of these perspectives! It follows that both coaches and parents play a key role in guarding against this.
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