In general, sports offer plenty of benefits to children’s health. Not only does it provide them with a good dose of exercise; it also helps them become mentally and emotionally healthy. Furthermore, there is one important edge kids get when joining these kinds of athletic activities – the opportunity to learn valuable life skills.
Team sports, in particular, offer children a way to become more resilient and knowledgeable about things that they can use throughout adulthood.
In fact, there are certain skills team sports can teach them to gain an advantage when they start launching their careers. This has been proven by a study from the British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS), which explained that those who joined team sports as students earn an average of 18 percent more academically than those who didn’t.
If you’re still unsure, here are six life skills your child can learn from participating in team sports.
1. Teamwork
Teamwork is essential not only in sports but also in a career. One advantage that team sports have over individual activities is the chance to work with others as part of a team.
For instance, a dragon boat can only race its quickest if all the members of the rowing team move in a unified rhythm. In the same manner, scoring in football is best achieved when each member of the team tries their best according to the part they’re assigned to play.
Remember: knowing how to work well with others and appreciating the different skills and talents each member can contribute are essential to the success of a company in any industry.
2. Time Management
Children who play sports and study at the same time can also learn to manage their time well. When your child participates in sports, he should find a way to balance his schedule well to accommodate both activities without sacrificing the quality of his performance in either undertaking.
For instance, if your child can juggle his homework and school projects with training sessions while maintaining a social life, he will surely know how to maintain a healthy work-life balance when he grows into an adult.
3. How to Handle Pressure
Pressure is inevitable in life. No matter how “zen” you try to make your child’s life, he is bound to be faced with situations that will put him under a certain degree of stress.
Because of this, your child must learn how to handle pressure appropriately, being able to enjoy any activity he participates in while still staying on point in his other tasks. In this case, joining team sports can definitely help.
From training for big-league basketball games to starting in a swimming race, it is only natural that your child will experience pressure in sports. However, this will allow him to learn how to cope with what he’s feeling and work his way toward success.
Although not every job entails a stressful environment, having the capability to cope well when the going gets tough is a valuable skill that companies appreciate in employees. Be it staying calm during an interview or tackling a task given on short notice, someone who has practiced handling pressure as a child has a better chance at succeeding.
4. Decision-Making
Playing sports also involves situations that require children to make important decisions. In fact, plenty of situations in sports force athletes to make quick and decisive actions that can make or break the team’s chance of winning the game.
For instance, sports like basketball and soccer require that basketball agent and soccer agent learn to every player to decide the perfect time to shoot or pass the ball to their teammates. While personal achievements are important in these sports, allowing the entire team to benefit is the primary objective. This is why assists are included in the criteria when determining the most valuable player of the game.
5. Effective Communication
Although it may not be as apparent as convening for a group project, sports can hone a child’s communication skills. For a team to work well, communication must always be open.
Aside from verbal communication, there are plenty of unspoken words that are passed on between teammates with the use of hand gestures, eye-to-eye cues, and other forms of body language. Whichever it may be, the bottom line is that every part of the team works efficiently through effective communication, regardless of the personal dynamics among members.
6. Empathy
Playing sports hones a person’s empathy – the ability to understand what another person is feeling or experiencing. Whether it is covering a position or role for a teammate, or taking their turn at missing the critical shot, there are opportunities to improve this trait abound.
With empathy, teammates can motivate and support each other to perform their best during a game. When this happens, the team establishes a solid bond of trust that can help pave the way to triumph.
Playing Sports Now to Succeed Later
The concept of sports is not solely focused on winning the current game – it encompasses the potential for bigger successes in the future. To help your child enjoy this now and during adulthood, encouraging him to join team sports is certainly the responsible thing to do.
AUTHOR BIO
Possessing more than two decades of experience in the leisure and hospitality industry, Tony Kouris joined Zayed Sports City as General Manager in January 2018. With extensive career experience, a value on interpersonal relationships, and strong negotiating experience, he is positioned to support Zayed Sports City’s strategic growth and continue to innovate the site as an internationally recognised sport and entertainment destination.
