Confidence and self-esteem are what make kids feel accepted, liked, capable, proud, and willing to try new things. We all want to raise kids who believe in themselves, think positively about themselves, and always try their best.
When kids have healthy levels of confidence, they’re better at coping when things don’t go their way. Even if they fail, they’ll try again, and they won’t allow others to treat them poorly.
Self-esteem and confidence develop over time. Kids need to feel safe, accepted, and loved, and as they grow, they’re able to do more and more things by themselves. In a world where many kids are already playing the comparison game on social media, activities that help them increase their confidence are a must.
One great way to do this is through team sports like football. Here are just a few ways that football can help increase your child’s confidence:
When kids play a sport like soccer they need to be able to master a variety of new skills. They soon learn that they’re not going to learn everything they need to know in a few weeks, and instead, they’ll need to slowly learn each skill, only to find that there is always more to learn.
The constant act of setting and achieving goals is crucial for building confidence. Through this, kids learn that they won’t always succeed first try, but if they keep trying, they’ll eventually meet their goals- a lesson that will help them for the rest of their lives.
If kids never learn to make mistakes and fail, they develop a fear of failure, which can massively impact their confidence when they do eventually experience a setback. A large part of growing up is not only making mistakes but also dealing with the consequences of those mistakes.
Soccer is a fast game which often requires quick thinking and decision-making. This naturally means that players will continually make mistakes, until they learn not to make those mistakes, and instead make new ones. Learning to shake off these mistakes and most importantly, to learn from them, will help them become much more confident and well-rounded.
Kids are used to their parents cheering them on. After all, it’s natural to be your child’s biggest cheerleader. But when they receive constructive criticism from a coach who can help them improve their skills, they’ll often be more likely to take positive feedback onboard as they slowly master those skills.
Soccer is a team sport, which means your kids will need to learn how to work with their peers. Not only is this a great way to build their interpersonal skills, but learning how to interact with kids from other backgrounds and cultures will help them become more confident when it comes to making new friendships.
Kids cheer each other on, celebrating their successes and small wins. They’re also remarkably good at building each other up after a mistake or particularly hard loss.
If you’re hoping to increase your child’s confidence, football is a great way to help. Get in touch today to learn more.