Development is the cornerstone to real success.

Words like “development” and “fundamental” have always been associated with a new player or a younger athlete’s journey. This is very true in the basic definition of both words. But where many coaches, and parents, get it wrong, is that those two words are not synonymous with just the beginning of a player’s journey. It is a constant and consistent repetition that happens over and over again. 

This isn’t just isolated to sports, of course. For the sake of the message, let’s stick to sports. Though this merits a bigger conversation about how this applies to life.

In the years I have coached, there is this constant drive to reach the next level. Now, I am all about winning AND pushing ourselves to reach new heights. It is there that you see what you’re made of. But you rarely hear the applause for the development that took place, which is the key to actually making this happen… and successfully! 

Development is the core to success, perseverance, winning and never giving up!

It is in the developmental stage where a player learns to train. It is where they learn the concept of competing. It is where they learn to not quit when they fail. It is where they learn to fail! It is where they learn what winning is all about!

We are training YOUTH athletes. They are not professional athletes. They are not adults. They are kids who are growing. Not just physically, but emotionally and mentally. Their cognitive ability is what it is for the age and stage they are at. You can not rush that, though many people have. And it is to the demise of the kid, unfortunately. 

The concept I always echo to all coaches and adults is to, “meet kids where they are at.” If you took this actual concept and focused on where they are at, you would start to see what their abilities are and build off of that. You can’t make a kid run when they are learning to crawl. You can’t make them understand how to compete if they don’t even know how to train. 

Can you push kids beyond this ability? Sure. In a healthy way. In a way they will thrive, not break down. YES, you can overwork a kid. 

Some examples of this are:

• A kid quits because of one bad hit or bad moment
• They have anxiety
• They only do it because the adult asks them to (conditional)
• They aren’t finding joy in the sport anymore
• Depression
• Burn out
• The worst possible thing….. Suicide

You notice that all of these things have nothing to do with their physical ability but everything to do with their mental and emotional capacity? Development is where you teach kids to manage all of this. Help them to learn hard things in a safe environment. And that is a daily, annual, lifelong process. This never ends.

A really great barometer for this is to ask yourself:: Are the kids you are teaching going backwards? If they are, they are not ready. And it does not mean they are failing. It means they are not ready! And THAT IS OK! You can also gauge whether your training is working by the retention. And I am not talking about the kid that floats from team to team. I am saying, do you have the same and even newer players coming out each season? There is an honest answer that you can’t hide from.

As adults…. Parents, coaches, caretakers, even siblings…. It is our responsibility to set them up for success. This means to never forsake development. 

I won’t ignore the other side of the coin that some kids are beyond their years. They are ready for the next level, even if it’s beyond their age. But we have to be very careful to remember that their physical maturation is not always in line with their mental and emotional maturation. That is why developing players is an absolute must! 

I’ve talked a lot about the developmental side of a player mentally and emotionally. The physical aspect of a player also has to be developed over and over again. With new levels of skill, you can never forget or forsake the fundamentals and the mindset of constant development of a player. Some may think this is boring. But it’s in the process where you see what a kid is made of. Where they can see what they are made of! It’s the hours on a wall doing wall balls. It’s the hours shooting free throws in the driveway or at the local court. It’s the hours of working out and perfecting footwork. 

I’ll give you a secret….. If your kid doesn’t learn to love the process in development, they will not succeed at the next level. And even if they are more gifted and excel quicker, sooner or later, they will be faced with learning to love the boring stuff and building deferred gratification in the hours spent practicing fundamentals. You see, champions aren’t built in games. They aren’t built under the big lights on game night. They are built in the passing and catching in their yard when no one is watching…..over and over and over again. 

In a world where instant gratification is the common language, our youth athletes are somewhat set up for failure…..But only if we don’t do our part as coaches and parents. We are the ones that help them to work hard for the things they want. We are the ones to teach them that if you do something enough, you WILL succeed. And to never forsake developing.

You want them to win? You want them to win BIG?  Don’t let development die. 

– Coach Nat