Parent Coaching: Essential Advice for Building Resilient Young Athletes 

In this episode of Car Ride Conversations, Valerie Alston and her former coach/dad share crucial advice for parent coaches. Discover how to define your role, why life skills trump the scoreboard, and managing emotional highs and lows while coaching your own child. Learn about transforming average athletes into game changers through mental skills like anticipation and awareness. Perfect for both novice and experienced coaches, this episode is packed with insights to help build confident, resilient young athletes. Join us for practical wisdom and honest reflection to enhance your coaching journey.

00:00 Introduction to Coaching Your Own Kid

01:14 Defining Your Role as a Parent Coach

03:13 Building Life Skills Through Sports

05:50 The Mental Side of Sports

07:34 Practical Tips for Parent Coaches

11:39 Conversation Prompts for Parents and Kids

15:15 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Discussion questions:

1. When a coach makes a decision you don’t like—about playing time, positions, or strategy—how do you usually react? Parents: How do you think your reactions influence your child’s attitude? Kids: What kind of support do you want in those moments?
2. What do you think is more important—winning games now or learning skills for the future? Why? How can both parents and athletes keep the focus on growth instead of just results?
3. What’s one mental skill—like anticipation, awareness, or focus—you could both practice this week?How would practicing that skill change how you play, coach, or support each other during games?
4. As a family, how can we better handle the “car ride home” after games What’s the best way for us to talk about effort, learning, and next steps without focusing only on stats or outcomes?

Thanks for joining me on Confident, Calm, and Clutch Car Ride Conversations! If you found this episode helpful, please subscribe to the podcast so you never miss a moment. Share it with other parents or coaches who could use a little extra inspiration on the go.

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For more specific tips on building mental toughness, buy my book Confident, Calm and Clutch: How to build confidence and mental toughness for young athletes using sports psychology

Parents join my Facebook group to Help Your Athlete Gain Mental Toughness for Parents

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Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email me: valerie.alston@valstoncoaching.com

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