04 Nov Raising Good People, Both On and Off the Court
Do you work with young guys involved in athletics? You might be the high school soccer coach or an athletic planner, or perhaps you’re the parent of a son who loves sports. If you are any of those individuals, this post is for you since you’ve got the opportunity to influence tomorrow’s men.
In today’s world, our boys are bombarded with messages about what it means for a guy. Many young men feel like they have to”prove” they are manly; to do otherwise is occasionally somewhat like social suicide. When they are playing on a courtroom or on a field, it is simple for them to feel as if they”fit the mold”. But what about instructing them what it means to become a good man in precisely the exact same time we are having them run drills, lift weights, or training their 3-point shot?
Here at First Class Tours, we have the privilege of providing transport. This is some thing we adore to perform. We get to see the energy, camaraderie, and enthusiasm involved in matches. But being manly isn’t defined by enjoying sports, only speaking about girls, and never crying, and it’s important that we teach these things to our boys.
It’s as though there is an unwritten code for that which means to be man, and Connor Beaton explains the code this way: you can’t cry or show emotion unless it’s aggression or anger, you can’t empathize with others, fighting back is synonymous with strength, and you never wish to exhibit any”female” behavior. Sound familiar?
If it does, then maybe you’ll be persuaded by a query we heard Justin Baldoni say:”Instead of just teaching our children to be’courageous boys’ or’pretty women’, can we maybe only teach them how to be great humans?”
In precisely the same vein, he also issues this plea to guys:
“I challenge you to see if you can use the same qualities which you feel make you a guy to go deeper into yourself: your strength, your bravery, your strength; will we redefine exactly what those mean and use them to explore our hearts?
Are you courageous enough to be vulnerable, to reach out to another man when you want help, to dive head first to your shame? Are you strong enough to become sensitive, to shout, if you are hurting or you’re happy, even if it makes you seem weak? Are you confident enough to hear the women in your life, to listen to their ideas and their answers, to maintain their distress and actually believe them, even when what they’re saying is against you? And are you going to be man enough to stand up to other men when you hear locker room speak?”
As today’s adults, we’re the models for our kids. We are living in a world in which you will find swirling debates about identity and gender, and these are important conversations to have with the young people we interact with. We can help them navigate life on and off the court by adopting these thoughts and speaking to our children about them too. When we focus on character, we give them something which will help them succeed in the sport and in life. At First Class Tours we hope we can do this together. When you’re on the lookout for team transport, we hope you will remember us! We’ll show you why traveling with charter bus Texas is team travel!
The advice for this post came in the next 2 TED discussions:
https://www.ted.com/talks/justin_baldoni_why_i_m_done_trying_to_be_man_enough/up-next#t-911229