Archive for the ‘Strengths and Weaknesses’ Category

Do The Unexpected!

Monday, August 2nd, 2010

Thanks for stopping back by my blog.  I know I was a day late in getting this up; thanks for your patience.  On that note, I’m going to take a break from my weekly blogging.  I’ll still be writing an occasional post, but at least for the time being it won’t be on a weekly basis.  Please, sign up to follow me on twitter so you can receive a tweet any time a new post is available, or check back periodically to see the most current posts. 

Now, without further ado….. this weeks post.

Try This At Home………………….. 

Play rock, paper, scissors with your child.  For ten games in a row choose to be the same thing.  After a few games your child will figure out that you are playing in a predictable fashion.  Then on the 11th game switch your item of choice.  Afterward, explain to your child that having a wide variety of tools and skills will make him more unpredictable and versatile, allowing him to gain the upper hand on his opponent or make an extra good impression at school or work.

There are times in life when being predictable is important, but when you child is trying to out whit his opponent, the last thing he wants is for his opponent to know exactly what he is going to do.  The concept transfers to other areas of his life as well.  Your child’s teachers and future bosses will value your child’s consistency, but it is when your child goes above and beyond their expectations that he will really get noticed. 

I specialized in track cycling, and while the match sprint event wasn’t the race I specialized in, I did race it occasionally and I always enjoyed watching it.  The sprints are probably the most well known track event.  Based on the rider’s 200 meter time trial time, a bracket is made and riders compete in several rounds of racing.  Each race is three laps and is generally raced between two or three riders.  The first rider across the finish line wins.  Riders generally do not go all out for the entire race; riders most often employ cat and mouse tactics to gain the upper hand.  The race is very short, fast and explosive.  Because it generally is a race between two people,  it is very important to know your opponent’s strength and weaknesses.   The best way to win the race is to force your opponent to race in a manner that doesn’t allow him to use his strenths, allowing you to gain the upper hand and win the race. 

I heard many of the United States sprinters talk about the tactics they planned to emply against their opponent. Many of them had to resisit the temepation to be predictible themselves; it was very tempting for them to revert to their own “bread and butter” tactics, because it was what they were most comfortable with.  By having a wide variaty of tools and strengths the sprinters made themselves more versitle, less predictable and thereby tougher competition.

As I said before, it is good for your child to have a standard that they hold themselves to and in that sense be predictable.  In some situations though your child will gain the upper hand by doing the unexpected.  Talk with your child about times in his life when being unexpected would be benefiicail.  He should be able to come up with several examples on the sports field, but encourage him to think outside the box as well.  For example, if he suddenly does a big, unexpected , extra chore at home, maybe he’ll gain your favor and trust and have the opportunity to earn extra allowance.

Thank you again for being a loyal visitor to my site.  Please check back occasionally for new posts.

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Posted in Opportunities, Strengths and Weaknesses, Uncategorized, competition | 1 Comment »

Genetic Testing

Monday, February 15th, 2010

This week I’m breaking from my normal routine and focusing on a news story I saw about Atlas Sports Genetics.  The Boulder based company does DNA testing on kids to determine their genetic predisposition as an endurance or sprint athlete.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with having your child tested, I just think in 99.9% of the cases the money is best spent elsewhere. The company claims that the information derived from the test will help kids select their ideal sport, and may increase their chances of a college scholarship.  While this may be a true, it is also a fantastic marketing scheme that plays on the emotions of loving, well intentioned parents, who want to give their child every advantage.  The truth is, you don’t need a fancy test to tell you what your child is predisposed to, all you have to do is watch him. 

The Atlas First basic test, priced at $169, tests both copies of the ACTN3 gene for the presence of the R577X variant.  It’s been a long time since I’ve studied genetics, but according to their website, if both genes have the R577X variant, then your child is predisposed to endurance events.  If only one gene has the variant, your child may do well at both endurance and sprint events, and if neither gene contains the variant your child is predisposed to sprint and power events.  In addition to the basic test, they offer the Atlas Pro test for a measly $999, which in addition to the DNA test, includes a vertical and broad jump assessment chart, electronic timer and EPIC Talent Identification Ratings based on your results. 

The Atlas Sports Genetics tests don’t tell you exactly what sport your child should play, only the type of sport he may excel at.  While I don’t doubt that the results would be accurate and informative, I find them unnecessary.  There is a much simpler and free way to determine what your child is predisposed to.  All you have to do is enroll your child in a variety of activities, or just watch him play.  If he’s a swimmer and excels at the long events, but is not as good at the short events, then he’s probably predisposed to do well at endurance events.  If he plays basketball and has a great vertical and can sprint faster than most of his teammates, but lags behind on your family’s 10 mile bike ride, then he is probably predisposed to do well at sprint and power events.  If he seems pretty good at both, then he probably can go either way and should try to find a sport that requires both endurance and speed and power.

Encourage your child to try a wide variety of sports and activities that utilize whichever area he is predisposed to.  He will find the sport he loves and wants to pursue.  If it happens to be a sport that doesn’t fit into the category he’s predisposed to, I wouldn’t worry too much.  You can always introduce him to new sports you feel he’d be better at, while he is playing the one he chose.  The important thing is that he loves it.   Even the most talented kid on the field won’t have any success if he doesn’t want to be there.  The reality is that kids, like adults, like to do what they are good at and will naturally gravitate towards sports that suit them. There is certainly nothing wrong with encouraging your child to try something new, just make sure not to take away what he already loves.

I found my strength simply by trying a wide variety of events within cycling.  When I was fourteen I set a national record in a 200 meter time trial, a sprint power event.  For years I thought I was destined to be a track sprinter.  A few years later, I remember doing very well on a long, hilly road ride while at a training camp at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. At the end of the camp they encouraged me to road race and I insisted that I wanted to be a track sprinter.  Thankfully, I continued to compete in the endurance events as well, and in 1996 I was invited to move to the Olympic Training Center as part of the endurance track program.  I am a combination athlete, I can go either way.  What I found was that I excelled at events that combined both endurance and speed and power.  While I was a good sprinter, I was not as strong and fast as an elite sprinter.  Similarly, while I had good endurance and loved to climb, I did not have the endurance and stamina of an elite endurance rider.  I was perfectly suited for events, like the points race, that combined the two.  

There is great value in determining what your child’s strengths and weaknesses are, but there is so much more that goes into it. Drive, determination and work ethic often out weigh raw talent. 

Atlas Sports Genetics offers additional testing in its Atlas Pro package, the vertical jump, 10 meter dash and Pro agility run.  There is no doubt that these are good tests to gauge improvement.  However, you and your child can do them, or something similar, at home for much less than $999. While their testing equipment may be fancier and their rating system may give you some insight, I’m not convinced they’re necessary.  I don’t think having a rating would really help you or your child.  A high rating doesn’t guarantee success, and a low one doesn’t guarantee failure.  As your child moves through the levels of his sport: local, state, regional, national, and international, you’ll see each step of the way how he rates.  

One of my hesitations about the test is the potential for the information to be used carelessly, either inflating egos unnecessarily, or discouraging kids prematurely and damaging their self confidence.  As much as we all want our kids to be great athletes, every child has their own special and unique talents, and not all of them are going to be Elite athletes. I’d hate to see your child hang his worth and potential on a rating, when so much more is involved in being a successful athlete.  Throughout my career I was told by a handful of people that I was no good.   After finishing fourth at the Olympics I certainly felt vindicated, but some of their wounds left scars. 

I think, in this case, the best bet is to skip the fancy expensive testing, and instead, offer your child a lot of different experiences and opportunities.  I don’t think Atlas Sports Genetics’ tests are going to make or break your child’s chances of getting a college scholarship; if your child is talented and has work ethic and discipline, his accomplishments will speak for themselves.

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Posted in Peak Performance, Selecting a sport, Strengths and Weaknesses | 1 Comment »

Raising Confident Kids

Monday, November 30th, 2009

Try This At Home………………

Take a glass jar and at least thirty colored strips of paper.  On each strip of paper have your child write down one thing that he or she likes about his or herself or does well.  Fill the jar with the strips and have them put the jar someplace they will see it everyday.  The next time your child is feeling down or is lacking confidence, have he or she read through all of the papers in the jar and remember how blessed and loved he or she is.  You can always have your child add five or ten more strips to the jar for good measure.

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I recently spoke to a group of moms with children ages 0-5, about how sports can facilitate teaching their children the fundamentals for success.  One of the discussion questions afterward asked if there was a related issue that their child was struggling with.  Two of the moms said their child lacked self-confidence and one said her son was over confident.  This caught me off guard; I hadn’t expected children to be struggling with confidence at such a young age.  It reaffirmed for me what an important topic confidence was and how vital a healthy self-confidence is to a child’s happiness and well-being. 

This post is going to focus on lack of self-confidence and I’ll tackle the issue of being over-confident next week. 

Sports, or any activity that your child loves, are a great opportunity to increase confidence.  The most important thing, is to help your child find a sport, or activity, that he or she loves and can excel at.  Your child’s success will help them gain confidence in his or herself and abilities.

In addition, being in sports, especially team sports, makes it easier for kids to meet people and make friends.  Two of the biggest concerns for children and adults alike are being accepted and worrying what people think of them. In sports your child already shares something in common with his or her teammates and that makes developing a friendship that much easier.  Furthermore, sports offer the opportunity to develop social skills such as teamwork, tact, cooperation and compassion.  

We all worry about what we look like. For tweens and teens their changing bodies can be a confusing and sensitive subject.  An added bonus of sports is that they make kids more aware of, and in tune with, their bodies.  Athletes tend to be very comfortable with their bodies and have a more realistic expectation of what their bodies should look like.  They can compare themselves to other athletes instead of the models they see in magazines, and they’ll understand that bodies can be used for more than just looking good. 

Another added benefit is that self-confident kids are less likely to fold to peer pressure, more willing to try new things and probably more successful, because they believe they will succeed.

There are two steps to gaining confidence, building it up and maintaining it.  Sometimes an incident can get in your head and mess with your confidence forever.  It’s happened to all of us and years later we are still haunted by it.  That’s why it is so important for your child to get back up on the horse after a fall, so to speak.  While my husband Chris and I were discussing this week’s post, he pointed out that in the NFL, teams often give the ball back to a player immediately after they fumble or miss a catch, in order to rebuild their confidence right away.  The longer your child has to think about a mistake before he or she performs again, the more it can shake his or her confidence. It is better to address it as soon as possible.

Lastly, whether it is in sports, school, or in daily chores around the house, celebrate your child’s accomplishments big and small.  You don’t have to compliment him or her for the sake of it, but when they have earned it, go ahead and give it.  A compliment coming from you will mean so much to your child and will build his or her confidence immensely. Sometimes it’s easy to take accomplishments for granted, or to brag to your friends but forget to tell your child how proud of him or her you are.  Your child wants to please and impress you, and you can use that to help build his or her self-confidence by praising them.

I won my first senior national points race championship when I was 20 years old.  I had one of the greatest races of my life.  I raced hard and finished the race absolutely exhausted.  By the time I recovered, I was whisked away to awards, drug testing, etc., etc.  Afterward, my very proud boyfriend, the one I married, commented that I hadn’t even seemed to enjoy it, and I didn’t even take a moment to celebrate with him.  I realized he was right.  I was so busy doing what I was supposed to, what was expected of me and focusing on what was next, that I forgot to enjoy it.  If the person winning can forget to celebrate, then it has to be even easier for parents and others to forget to share how proud they are of their child.

Confidence is a fragile thing.  Help your child build it and nourish it, so that he or she can enjoy success of all kinds. 

In my children’s book, Gracie Goat’s Big Bike Race, Gracie struggles with confidence and fears.  the book is a great way to start a conversation with your kiddo about these important things.

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Posted in Confidence, Overcoming fears, Strengths and Weaknesses, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

Raise your child’s game through competition and modeling.

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

Try This At Home……………………………

Here is a great way to help you child improve in a sport or activity that he or she is already interested in and good at.  Find out who is the most celebrated person in that sport or activity and do some serious research on them. (Research them on the Internet, watch videos of them, etc.) Analyze the specific things that make that person successful and encourage your child to emulate and model them.  Have your child work on improving those characteristics or skills you identified.

Next, find someone locally who is just a little better than you child and, if possible, have your child practice with him or her on a weekly basis.  Encourage your child to learn from them.  Monitor the situation to make sure you child is having fun and isn’t getting frustrated.

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Competition makes you better.  If your child is always the best player on the team or in his or her league, then they aren’t being challenged and pushed to improve. If at all possible, find someone for you child to train with who can push and challenge them.  This will prevent their progress from becoming stagnant. Without competition your child ends up a big fish in a small pond. Later, it’s hard to move from the pond, where he or she is the star and accustomed to winning, to the lake or ocean, where he or she is just a little fish and won’t necessarily find success immediately.  (It’s not a bad idea to get a realistic idea of what you child can expect when they bump up to the next level, but I’ll save the details of that for another post.)

My first year training at the Olympic Training Center was a gradual immersion into the world of elite international racing.   My second year however, felt more like getting thrown into the deep end of a pool to see if I’d sink or swim.  Thankfully I didn’t sink, but that was in large part because I was training with stronger, more experienced women.  They pushed me every day, physically and mentally, and their presence both encouraged and forced me to raise my game if I wanted to succeed.

I vividly remember a training day at a World Cup selection track camp in Plano, Texas. Nicole Reinhart*, Karen Dunn and I were all vying for a spot in the points race at the upcoming World Cup, and each work out was considered by the coaches in selection. This particular work out was on the velodrome (a cycling track.) Our coach was driving the motorcycle and we were taking turns coming around the motor and leading out sprints to the finish line.  The goal was to win the sprint.  Karen and Nicole were much more experienced than me.  For the first few sprints my timing was all off; I would either go hard too soon, or I would kick too late.  I’ve very competitive, but instead of getting frustrated I tried to figure out what the other girls were doing that I wasn’t.  We were rotating through and taking turns leading out the sprints, so every third sprint I had an opportunity to watch them from behind.  I noted how they made their moves, when they made their moves, and how successful they were at it. I started copying their successes and by the end of the workout I was winning sprints. 

That year I trained with, lived with, and vied for spots against those same women, over and over again.  As difficult and stressful as it was at the time, it was probably one of the best things that could have happened to me, because I never became complacent and improved immensely.

Later on in my career I didn’t have that same benefit.  I found that training with guys was another way to raise my game.  This is one advantage women have over men, women always have the opportunity to train or practice against someone stronger and faster than them, because they can train with the men. 

I am grateful that I learned this lesson early on in my career. If you child has aspirations to make it to the next level, then he or she needs to constantly be looking for ways to improve.  Training with and modeling after people who are better are great ways to do that. Just like in a free market, we all benefit from healthy competition.

* Nicole Reinhart was a fantastic road sprinter, fierce competitor, a good, kind person, and someone I looked up to and admired. Her life was tragically cut short in a cycling accident during a race on September 17, 2000.  I’d like to dedicate today’s blog to her memory and encourage you to visit www.nicolefund.org for more information about her.

For more information about me or my children’s books, please visit www.erinmirabella.com.

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Posted in Goal Setting, Modeling, Role Models, Strengths and Weaknesses, competition | 2 Comments »

Strengths, Weaknesses and PB&J

Monday, September 28th, 2009

Try this at home….

Ask your child what their strength is in their sport.  What are they best at? If they don’t play a sport, it can be general trait.  For example:  I run well.  (It could also relate to school or another activity.)  Then ask your child what their weakness is.  What are they worst at?   Ask them of the two, which they like to practice more.  (99.9% of the time they will say they like to practice their strength best.) 

Next take out two pieces of bread, peanut butter and jelly.  Ask your child which part of the sandwich is their favorite, the insides or the bread.  I know my son’s answer, he opens up his sandwich and eats the jelly and peanut butter off the bread and then asks me to spread more on so he can do it again.  But alas, I digress…..back to the analogy.  Most will say the insides are their favorite.  Switch the following analogy around if they say they like the bread.  Once they have picked the peanut butter and jelly part of the sandwich as their favorite, tell them to think of those as their strength, what they said they are best at.  The two pieces of bread are their weakness, what they said they are worst at.  Scoop out some Jelly and spread it on a plate.  Next scoop out some peanut butter and smear that in with the Jelly.  Then say, “Here you go, here is your sandwich.”  You may hear, “Mom, (or Dad) that is gross.  How am I supposed to eat that?”  Or, “That isn’t a sandwich, you forgot the bread.” (My son would just lick it off the plate.)  That is exactly the point.  If you just take your favorite part, the peanut butter and jelly, and leave out your least favorite part, the bread, you can’t make a whole sandwich.  Likewise, if you just practice your strengths and neglect working on your weaknesses, you aren’t a complete player and you can never achieve your best.

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We all like to practice what we are good at because it is easier and it makes us feel good about ourselves.  The stuff we struggle with is no fun and makes us uncomfortable.  If we only work on the stuff we are already good at we can’t improve much, but if we work on the things that we are horrible at, there is a lot of room for improvement.

When I moved to the Olympic Training Center, I, along with several other girls, trained under the National Endurance Track Coach.  My strength was the short, fast stuff, due to both natural ability and focus.  On the flip side, my suitemate’s strength was her endurance.  We were both training for the same events and therefore the National Team Coach had us following the same training program.  The program’s main focus was on improving endurance.  Over the next year I improved by leaps and bounds.  My suitemate made less dramatic gains.  I know she was extremely talented and I firmly believe the biggest reason she didn’t improve as much was that she was working mostly her strengths and not her weaknesses.  I didn’t understand this until later in my career, but I’m now very thankful that the program focused on my weaknesses.  Even though I really suffered through training, it was all worth it when I was standing on the podium and eventually named to the Olympic Team.

Your child has to work on his or her weaknesses if they want to be the best at something, whether it is a sport, school or music.  They need to be a whole sandwich; they can’t leave out the bread.  If they are serious about improving, then knowing this should make it easier for them to tough it out through the training they like least.

Analyzing strengths and weaknesses is just as important for a team as it is for an individual.  Every team, as well every member of the team including the coaches, has strengths and weaknesses.  Realizing this will help direct the focus of practice as well as the creation of a plan for game day.  Knowing your opponents strengths and weaknesses is equally important.

Another thing to think about is if your child’s current program/team is addressing their weaknesses.  If it isn’t, have a chat with the coach.  If your coach isn’t able or willing to address the area in which your child needs work, then you have two choices; work on those skills at home, or find a new coach/team. 

 Enjoy your PB&J this week!  For more information about me or my children’s books please visit www.erinmirabella.com.

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