8 out of 10 kids will quit the game.

You hear that your chances of playing professionally are slim to none.

You hear that failure builds character.

Most optimists preach and advise, “fail and fail often. The more times you fail, the closer you get to success.” Just remember this quote for now and continue reading.

Kids soccer today is consumed with fear and failure is definitely in the air. You can’t help but breath it in.

My advice to you

Don’t Inhale!

Don’t be fooled by the status quo. Don’t buy into the stats. If other players quit, it has nothing to do with you. If other players don’t want to develop and play in the big leagues, it has nothing to do with you. If other players refuse to train, it has nothing to do with you. If other players fear the game, well, you get the point.

Have you ever heard the phrase, “you must learn from your mistakes.” A little too simplistic for me as I try and catch a fly between my chopsticks.

What do you really learn from your mistakes? Apart from the obvious, you might learn what not to do again. That’s a good start. If you make a mistake, struggle with fitness or you’ve failed to complete a drill, do you know how to correct these? The bottom line is this, if you’ve failed, do you know how to succeed?

Try the other end of the spectrum

How about learning from what works. Forget about “fail and fail often”. When something works, you can leverage this and do it again and again. If you find success and gains through a certain passing drill, do it again and the next time, you’ll probably do it even better.

Books, magazines and the so-called gurus that preach, “fail and fail often” need to remember that failure is not a prerequisite for success. Don’t look so surprised, how do you think nature works?

Think about this for a moment, EVOLUTION doesn’t stop for past failures. Just ask the dinosaurs. Evolution, survival of the fittest builds on what works. Don’t you think you should do the same?

“May the winds of destiny blow you to the stars”