Insights - Focus On The Field

Scheduling is the Sport

Fri, 27 Feb 2026 19:54:51 GMT

Sports are Schedules, simple as that.

There is recent hype in youth sports that the magic lives in the uniforms, the content videos, the sponsorship banners, or the five-year growth forecast. It doesn’t.

Sports begin with a date, a time, a patch of land, and an agreement.

That’s it.

This spring, in a moment of either courage or temporary insanity, I took the reins as the Firehawks Lacrosse club scheduler. I have seen things.

Scheduling, at its core, is what makes sports happen. Not the logo. Not the video package set to dramatic music. Not the board meeting where we discuss “vision.” A field.

A clock. Two teams. If you can coordinate those, you have a game.

You can still do it with pencil and paper. For decades we did. Now we have software platforms, shared calendars, automated notifications, and enough color-coded grids to make a NASA engineer sweat. AI is circling the space and will likely take scheduling software’s lunch money soon enough. Fine. Even when our robot overlords arrive, I’m confident we’ll still be able to agree on 4:00 PM at the park for lacrosse—assuming we’re not occupied negotiating with Skynet.

But because scheduling is the sport , the act of building it is intense.

It comes in violent bursts. Registration closes and suddenly every coach has a constraint, every parent has a preference, and every referee has a wedding. There are blackout dates, field closures, tournament conflicts, competitive balance concerns, sibling overlaps, weather threats, and that one team that cannot play before noon but also cannot play after 3 PM.

It is a puzzle where the pieces occasionally light themselves on fire.

After a season in the chair, here’s my advice:

Fill the voids. Where there is silence, negativity moves in and redecorates. Communicate early. Communicate often. Communicate when you think you’ve over-communicated. If people don’t know what’s happening, they will invent something worse.

Accept that you will disappoint everyone. If no one is ecstatic, you’re probably being fair.

Follow the rules - your league parameters, your field inventory, your timelines. Own the decisions. Don’t blame “the system.” You are the system.

You will receive very few thank-yous. But you will know what it took to turn chaos into a calendar.

And those who know, know.

Because without the schedule, there is no sport.

The schedule is the sport.

A day with the Dodgers Foundation

Fri, 30 Jan 2026 02:06:08 GMT

Seeing the Dodgers Foundation up close was a powerful reminder of why Focus On The Field exists.

This past week I spent some time in Los Angeles with the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation, working alongside their Parks & Recreation partners who deliver baseball to nearly 20,000 kids across LA County. Seeing that work up close was a powerful reminder of why Focus On The Field exists in the first place.

LADF isn’t just the official charity of the Dodgers - they’re one of the most serious, thoughtful operators in youth development anywhere. Through Dodgers Dreamfields alone, they’ve invested over $21 million into 67 safe, high-quality baseball and softball fields in communities that have historically been overlooked. Fields matter. They’re where kids gather, where trust is built, and where opportunity starts to feel real.

Their cornerstone program, Dodgers RBI (Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities), is where our missions intersect most clearly. RBI isn’t just about baseball—it’s about access.

Access to sports, health resources, education, and to consistent adults who show up. That kind of work is complex and operationally demanding, and it only works when the people on the ground can focus on the kids, not the paperwork.

That’s where we come in.

The LADF trusts us, in partnership with our friends at LeagueApps, to build the infrastructure behind the scenes - the registration, the compliance, the payments, the communications - so the great parks and rec directors across Los Angeles can do their job, and programs like RBI can scale without losing their soul.

When we do our job right, coaches coach, organizers organize, and kids play. It's great to see it come together.

Huge credit to the people actually doing the work every day - especially Jen Santos and Elvis Carrillo at LADF. Their leadership and care are obvious the moment you step into the room.

This is what it looks like when sport is used the right way. And we’re proud to be a small part of it.

Playing for a Cause, When It Matters Most

Wed, 17 Dec 2025 20:45:56 GMT

It's better when you make sports intentionally good

As youth sports continue to professionalize—bigger events, bigger brands, bigger balance sheets—it’s worth pausing to ask a simple question: *what are we building all of this for?*

At Focus On The Field, I’ve been fortunate to work with organizations across the entire spectrum of youth sports. But some of the most meaningful work we do happens with events and organizations that intentionally tie sport to something bigger than the scoreboard. This past month, two such events stood out: the Burning Flower Lacrosse Tournament , held outside Houston in Hockley, Texas and the Oakland Lacrosse Club Jamboree in California.

Both events are run by nonprofit organizations, Cy-Fair Iron Maidens Lacrosse Club and Oakland Lacrosse Club , respectively, and both are explicitly connected to causes larger than wins and losses. They serve as reminders that even as youth sports races toward a more professional, profit-driven future, its soul still lives in community-driven efforts built around purpose.

Six years ago, I wrote about the idea that sports are not inherently good or bad—they’re neutral. They only become a force for good when they are “intentionally designed” to be so. In Linda Flangan’s book Take Back the Game , she expanded on this notion as sports have become more influenced by profit motive and the recent influx of capital. When competition is detached from purpose, we see the worst of youth sports rise to the surface: pressure, burnout, misplaced priorities, and environments where winning crowds out joy.

But when sports are attached to a cause, something powerful happens. Playing “for” something bigger changes behavior. It reframes pressure. It unifies teams. It softens the sharpest edges of competition without dulling the intensity or desire to win. And regardless of cause, parents will still get crazy on the sidelines, but at least they’ll have a higher purpose behind their temporary insanity.

That’s what we see in events like The Burning Flower , which is held in honor of 13-year-old Julia Marie Briggs, a former Iron Maiden player who suddenly and very unexpectedly passed away from a very rare and aggressive cancer, Mediastinal Lymphoma. To support Julia’s efforts that she began prior to her passing, new stuffed animals are collected for donation to police departments to give to children to hold for comfort in times of crisis. Julia’s parents and family have attended every tournament since its inception and explain the cause to the new teams coming to play each year.

It’s what we see at the Oakland Lacrosse Club Jamboree , where participation, access, and connecting across the community are core to the event’s identity. In addition to being a fundraiser for the Oakland Lacrosse Club’s extensive operations , the Jamboree is guided by a players council that connects young men and women from across the Bay Area. The resulting event has player led teams at the high school level and encourages teams to embrace the fun as much as the competition.

These aren’t tournaments chasing prestige. They’re gatherings intentionally designed so that the act of playing itself becomes a contribution.

Supporting events like these is crucial. Not because they reject growth or competition—but because they remind us what growth should and could be anchored to. In a landscape increasingly shaped by consolidation and capital, nonprofit, cause-driven events act as cultural counterweights. They preserve space for values that don’t always show up on spreadsheets: belonging, empathy, perspective, and shared responsibility.

The lesson from years ago still holds. When teams play for a cause, parents cheer differently. Coaches coach differently. Players compete just as hard—but with a sense that the game is part of something larger than themselves. The beauty of sport isn’t diminished by purpose; it’s amplified.

As we look ahead, Focus On The Field remains committed to supporting organizations and events that design sports intentionally—especially those rooted in nonprofit missions and community causes. Because if the future of youth sports is going to be bigger, faster, and more professional, it must also remain deeply human.

Until next time, have a wonderful Holiday season and Joyous New Year-

Tyler

Focus On The Field Announces Strategic Partnership with Club Capital to Support Youth and Amateur Sports Organizations

Mon, 15 Sep 2025 14:21:47 GMT

Focus On The Field Announces Strategic Partnership with Club Capital to Support Youth and Amateur Sports Organizations

Press Release
For Immediate Release

Focus On The Field Announces Strategic Partnership with Club Capital to Support Youth and Amateur Sports Organizations

Redwood City, CA – September 8, 2025 – Focus On The Field (FOTF), a leader in providing administrative and operational support for youth sports organizations, today announced a strategic partnership with Club Capital , a premier provider of financial, accounting, and tax services tailored for sports clubs.

This partnership combines FOTF’s expertise in sports organization management services—such as registrations, communication, marketing, and facility management—with Club Capital’s strengths in monthly accounting, CFO services, and industry-specific tax solutions. Together, the two organizations aim to alleviate the off-field burden on directors, coaches, and volunteers, allowing them to focus on what matters most: delivering an exceptional experience for young athletes.

“Focus On The Field was founded on the belief that kids thrive when their coaches and directors can focus less on paperwork and more on play,” said Tyler Kreitz, CEO of Focus On The Field . “Partnering with Club Capital allows us to bring an unmatched combination of operational and financial expertise to youth sports clubs across the country. We’re excited to join forces to make a real impact for organizations and the families they serve.”

Annie Gavett, COO of Focus On The Field , added: “This partnership is about providing clubs with a full-circle support system. From registration to accounting, our teams are aligned in helping clubs run more efficiently so leaders can stay focused on their mission—supporting kids on the field.”

Lisa Wolf, VP of Youth Sports at Club Capital , shared: “At Club Capital, we understand the unique challenges that sports clubs face when it comes to financial management. By working with Focus On The Field, we’re able to provide clubs with streamlined operational and financial solutions. Together, we can give directors peace of mind, knowing that both the front office and back office are handled with care.”

As part of the agreement, clients of both organizations will enjoy benefits including waived onboarding fees, discounted service packages, and shared access to club management and accounting expertise.

For more information about Focus On The Field, visit www.focusonthefield.com . To learn more about Club Capital, visit www.club.capital .

When Growth Misses the Goal

Mon, 25 Aug 2025 00:50:36 GMT

As the world of youth sports changes dramatically, it helps to look for wisdom in unexpected places. Sometimes the clearest lessons come not from another coach or league director, but from a completely different field—like medicine.

That connection became real for me through a chance introduction to Dr. Sanat Dixit , a neurosurgeon working on Sideline Ortho, a venture aimed at solving the long-standing problem of adequate medical coverage in youth and amateur sports. Our conversations quickly moved beyond medicine into broader discussions about sports, health, and problem solving. It was through Dr. Dixit that I was introduced to The Doctor’s Lounge podcast, where physicians candidly discuss the forces reshaping their profession.

Listening to one particular episode, I couldn’t help but notice parallels between healthcare and youth sports—two worlds that couldn’t be more different in stakes, yet share a strikingly similar challenge: how consolidation and misaligned incentives can quietly undermine the very mission they are meant to serve.

At Focus On The Field, we talk a lot about mission drift. In our corner of the world—youth sports—the mission is simple: kids on the field, playing with a caring coach by their side. In healthcare, the mission is just as simple: patients cared for by doctors who know them, trust them, and want to heal.

But when consolidation takes hold—when hospital systems or league operators start to swallow up smaller players—the incentives shift. And when incentives drift away from care or play, the people who matter most pay the price: patients in the doctor’s office, kids on the field.

Two Different Worlds, One Similar Problem

Let’s be clear. Healthcare decisions are matters of life and death. Youth sports, as much as we love them, are not. A missed diagnosis is not the same as a missed ground ball. But there’s a parallel worth noticing, because it helps us understand why so many families and communities feel squeezed.

In healthcare, large systems often prioritize billing, efficiency, and market share over the relationship between doctor and patient. The Doctor’s Lounge podcast recently highlighted how these forces erode trust and quality of care. The incentives reward throughput, not connection.

In youth sports, private equity and national operators are consolidating leagues and teams. The result is a system that increasingly rewards revenue growth—higher registration fees, expanded travel schedules, premium “elite” programs—over what kids actually need: fun, development, and affordable access.

The effect in both cases is misalignment. The goals of the enterprise no longer line up with the goals of the people it exists to serve.

What Misalignment Looks Like on the Field

We see it every season:

Skyrocketing costs —average families spending over $1,000 per child on a single sport.
Overemphasis on travel and specialization —kids in hotel ballrooms more than neighborhood parks.
Barriers to entry —whole communities priced out of participation, when sports should be a universal language of play.

Just as patients feel like numbers in a system, kids and families are being treated like customers in a marketplace, rather than participants in a community.

What Alignment Could Look Like

Here’s the good news: unlike healthcare, where the regulatory fixes are complex and slow, youth sports leaders have the chance to reset incentives now. At Focus On The Field, we believe alignment starts with four commitments:

Local First. Build schedules that keep kids in their communities. Travel should be a choice, not a requirement.
Transparent Pricing. Families deserve to know the all-in cost before the season begins.
Access for All. As organizations grow, so should scholarship funds and community access. Scale should expand inclusion, not narrow it.
Development over Specialization. Leagues should design seasons that give kids breaks, encourage multiple sports, and put long-term health ahead of short-term trophies.

These aren’t anti-growth. They’re pro-mission. Just as healthcare reformers push for “site-neutral” payments to level incentives, youth sports can adopt “play-neutral” standards—where the real measure of success is participation, not profit.

The Call to Coaches, Directors, Parents — and Investors

The parallel with healthcare reminds us of what’s at stake. No, youth sports aren’t life and death. But for millions of kids, they’re the difference between belonging and isolation, between health and inactivity, between joy and pressure. That matters.

If consolidation and professionalization are inevitable, then accountability must be too. Growth can’t come at the cost of play. Every new dollar of investment, every acquisition, every expansion should be judged by a simple test:

Does this get more kids on the field, with a caring coach by their side?

And this is where investors—especially those entering through private equity—hold the keys. Their capital can either accelerate the misalignment, squeezing families and narrowing access, or it can fuel a positive alignment that strengthens the very things money can’t measure: community, belonging, mentorship, and joy.

If investors understand those community-binding incentives correctly, their involvement could unlock real progress—scaling opportunity without sacrificing mission. Because the ultimate return on investment in youth sports isn’t measured on a balance sheet. It’s measured in kids who stay active, stay connected, and stay in the game.

The Silent Strain - Why Youth Sports Needs Admin Help Now More Than Ever

Mon, 04 Aug 2025 22:34:02 GMT

Save sports through spreadsheets...

In the world of youth sports, the action on the field often overshadows the grind behind the scenes. But if you listen closely—to the club directors, technical directors, and operations leads—it’s clear: administrative overload is reaching a breaking point .

In a recent episode of the Institute for Youth Sports Leaders podcast , leaders from high-performing clubs gathered in “Leadership Circles” to discuss today’s most pressing challenges. The resounding theme? Administrative capacity is out of step with the modern demands of running a club.

During peak seasons, clubs report being overwhelmed by fragmented tech systems, repetitive manual tasks, and limited staffing . Beach FC’s Steve Danbusky noted that his team is “frustrated by the sheer volume of repeat admin tasks,” recommending internal training tools and hiring admin specialists as relief valves. Others echoed the call for virtual assistants, streamlined processes, and decentralization of responsibilities during technical staff’s downtime.

But this isn’t just a workflow problem—it’s a culture and retention issue too. Clubs struggling to retain top coaches, secure meaningful sponsorships, or govern effectively at the board level often trace their challenges back to operational chaos. If you're constantly in fire-fighting mode, there's no time to innovate, mentor, or plan for the future.

Administrative support is not a luxury—it’s foundational. Without it, even the best coaching philosophies, sponsorship strategies, or facility dreams fall apart under the weight of burnout and broken systems.

The solution is not one-size-fits-all, but the direction is clear: professionalize the administrative backbone of youth sports clubs. That means:

Investing in full-time or fractional admin specialists.
Building internal training systems.
Adopting integrated digital platforms.
Redesigning staff roles with off-field support in mind.

For too long, the hidden work has stayed hidden—and unpaid.

If we want sustainable, values-aligned, growth-ready youth sports organizations, we must build the back office with the same care we give the front lines.

The scoreboard might not reflect it, but administrative support could be the biggest win a club can secure this season.

The professionalization of Youth Sports needs balance, not a ban

tyler@focusonthefield.com (Tyler Kreitz) — Sat, 26 Jul 2025 01:34:54 GMT

There's much to learn from the early days of public education.

We’ve heard it all before:

“Youth sports are out of control.”

“It’s all about money now.”

“Parents are ruining the game.”

But rewind 150 years, and you would’ve heard similar critiques about something else—public education.

What started as local efforts—Sunday school, tutors, one-room schoolhouses—gradually transformed into a national system. Standards were introduced. Teachers were certified. Access was expanded. That professionalization didn’t destroy education. It lifted it .

So what if youth sports are going through something similar?

At Focus On The Field, we see the tension daily. Parents, coaches, and directors all want to do right by the kids, but the demands feel heavier than ever. Here’s the truth: Professionalization isn’t inherently bad . It just needs to be done right.

When Done Right, Professionalization Helps Kids

Better coaching. Safer environments.

With certified coaches, evidence-based training, and clear safety protocols, kids are simply in better hands. It’s like hiring a teacher with a teaching credential instead of a neighbor who once played the game.

Stronger systems. Less burnout.

Centralized scheduling. Streamlined communications. Shared best practices. Professional back-end systems allow coaches and directors to focus on what matters: being present on the field, not buried in spreadsheets or inboxes.

More opportunity. More access.

Organized leagues—when done right—can actually open doors for kids: better training, wider competition, college exposure. Like public education, structure can expand reach, not just restrict it.

Let’s Not Pretend There Aren’t Tradeoffs

Money Can Distort Priorities

Today, youth sports in America is a multi-billion-dollar industry. Families spend thousands on club dues, private trainers, hotels, and showcase tournaments. And the system often rewards those who spend most—not those with the most potential.

Author Linda Flanagan calls this out powerfully in her book, Take Back the Game .

She describes how youth sports has shifted from community-centered play to a status-driven product—where childhood joy is often traded for parental anxiety, elite optics, and the illusion of college scholarships.

The result? Many kids are priced out. Others are burned out.

We can’t let professionalization mean exclusivity. We need scholarships, sliding scales, and public-private models that keep the door open for every kid who wants to play.

Parents Need Boundaries Too

One of our core messages at Focus On The Field:

“Are we helping—or are we adding to the stress?”

Professional environments come with professional expectations. But that doesn’t mean coaches are on call 24/7 or that directors should be answering emails at midnight. We’ve seen a rise in hyper-involved parents treating their child’s sport like a business venture—with all the pressure and none of the joy.

Professionalization only works if we all commit to standards of behavior, mutual respect, and clear boundaries.

Specialization Isn’t Always the Answer

Another trap of the professionalized world: early specialization.

Kids locked into one sport year-round before they’ve even hit middle school. The research is clear: this leads to overuse injuries, burnout, and less long-term athletic success.

The goal? Keep it fun. Keep it diverse. Especially in the early years.

So What’s the Right Path?

Here’s our take from inside the trenches:

Train and certify coaches. Raise the bar for quality and safety.
Enforce conduct standards—for coaches, parents, and administrators.
Cap hours. Mandate rest. Encourage multisport play.
Offer financial flexibility. Everyone deserves access.
Empower coaches to coach. Don’t bury them in admin work.

Let's create a new set of Classrooms

We don’t look back at the professionalization of education and say, “Well, that ruined childhood.”

We say, “That gave millions of kids a shot they never had before.”

Youth sports can do the same.

It’s not about saying no to structure. It’s about building the right structure, with the right priorities:

Kids first. Coaches supported. Parents aligned. Money managed. And the joy of the game intact.

Let’s stop asking if we should professionalize youth sports—

and start asking how we do it well.

Rodrigo Gomes (Youth Sports Management Academy, YSM) and Focus on the Field Announce Strategic Partnership to Transform Youth Sports Organizations

Mon, 12 May 2025 14:50:06 GMT

Rodrigo Gomes (Bossa Sports Group/Volleyball Brands) and Focus on the Field Announce Strategic Partnership to Transform Youth Sports Organizations

[NATIONWIDE] — [May 12, 2025] – Rodrigo Gomes, through his innovative STRIDE Program , has officially partnered with Focus on the Field to offer a co-branded, end-to-end consulting and operational support solution for youth sports organizations looking to scale, optimize, and lead.

This collaboration brings together Gomes’ high-level strategic expertise with Focus on the Field’s hands-on operational execution, forming a complete ecosystem that guides clubs from audit to action.

STRIDE Program Overview: A Three-Phase Approach

Phase 1: Assess + Strategize
Tailored for stable organizations with growth potential, this phase delivers a comprehensive strategic framework. Through a series of consulting calls—focusing on finances, marketing, HR, and operations—Rodrigo Gomes crafts a clear, actionable roadmap.

Phase 2: Implementation Support
Focus on the Field leads the execution, while Rodrigo provides ongoing guidance and strategic input to ensure goals are met efficiently.

Phase 3: Maintenance & Community
For ongoing success, clients can opt into a monthly advisory plan, including check-ins, priority access, and long-term support.

Looking Ahead: Building a STRIDE Community
The partnership plans to expand by launching a STRIDE community membership, offering exclusive access to educational content, expert Q&A sessions, and peer collaboration opportunities across clubs.

"This partnership is designed to eliminate the gap between strategy and execution," says Rodrigo Gomes. "By aligning high-level planning with operational excellence, we’re helping organizations not just grow—but thrive."

“Youth sports is a niche and unique landscape, and having pros like Gomes come in to offer that high level strategy while marrying it with our operational expertise made this the obvious solution,” said CEO and Founder of Focus on the Field, Tyler Kreitz.

For media inquiries or to learn more about the STRIDE x Focus on the Field partnership, please contact:

Annie Gavett
annie@focusonthefield.com

Spring cleaning in a Hurricane…

Mon, 07 Apr 2025 21:18:00 GMT

I started this last week, all chipper about spring cleaning and hitting reset before summer madness. Then the economic world got chucked into a blender.

I don't have the ability to comment on that current state of events in an enlightened or informative way. ( Check here for a solid take if you’re curious ) All I know is it’s a self-inflicted face-palm fest—markets convulsing, uncertainty thick as fog. Turn on the news, and you’ll get the polished version: everything’s under control, or we’re all toast. I’ll let you choose your preferred poison.

So what’s this got to do with youth sports? Everything, actually. Economic convulsions don’t spare us—club dues sting more, travel costs bite, and sponsors grip their wallets like lifelines. Parents are stretched thin; every rained-out game’s a gut punch when budgets are tight. It’s chaos you can’t wrangle, and it’ll drive you nuts if you let it.

Here’s the kicker: that’s all above your pay grade. The madness of running your club? That’s where you’ve got control. Spring cleaning’s your move—control what you can .

Start simple: audit your setup. Ask, “What’s working? What’s Not?” You know the insanity bit—doing the same thing over and over, expecting a change. Too many sports orgs get stuck there, slogging through processes that don’t have to be so hard. It’s a waste of energy when you could fix it.

Picture your week. Chasing field permits, untangling sign-ups, dodging parent texts about schedule flops. That’s 20+ hours of grind—80% stress—when you should be coaching kids, building something real. That’s not grit; it’s a setup screaming for a reboot.

Spring cleaning’s your shot. Ditch the clunky forms, streamline comms, lock in dates. Some folks hand off the admin mess and save hours without blinking—I’d rather plan tryouts than wrestle refs over email. Point is, these are your fixes. You don’t need to tame gas prices or market dips—just stop tripping over your own junk.

The economy might tank, sponsors might bolt. That’s out of your hands. Losing your mind over stuff you can fix? That’s on you. This spring, take out the trash—those busted systems, the “we’ve always done it” traps. Steal what works from orgs who’ve figured it out. The world’s a circus, but your club doesn’t have to be. Focus on the kids, the game, the wins you can grab. That’s the spring cleaning that keeps you sane when the blender’s still spinning.

Save yourself from the Admin Beast.

Thu, 13 Mar 2025 21:01:00 GMT

Somewhere in the shadowy margins of a suburban sports complex, a beleaguered youth sports director is drowning in spreadsheets, unanswered emails, and the ceaseless bickering of parents who want their kid to play attack but don’t know what offsides means. The games themselves—the real reason we’re here—have become secondary.

First, we must feed the administrative beast.

That, my friends, is the first step toward burnout. And not just for coaches and administrators, but for everyone. The players feel it in the sluggish disorganization, the scrambled schedules, the vacant stares of adults who should be leading but are buried under a mountain of menial nonsense. The parents feel it when they get last-minute practice changes or emails that sound vaguely like cries for help. It all drips down like a slow, torturous leak until the whole thing starts to rot.

If we’re going to salvage youth sports from the inevitable collapse of its own bureaucratic weight, we must declare war on the administrative nightmare that has infected the very core of the experience. Because let’s be honest—this is no way to live.

The Season is No Time for Paperwork

Here’s the ugly truth: By the time the season starts, the administrative work should be a well-oiled, self-sustaining machine. Not a bloated monstrosity devouring every waking moment. The problem is, we keep shoving it aside, thinking it can be dealt with later—until later arrives and suddenly you’re waist-deep in roster issues, missing waivers, and emergency texts about who’s bringing the orange slices.

There’s a seductive kind of chaos in sports. It makes you feel alive. But this is the wrong kind of chaos. This is the chaos of the DMV, the post office on tax day, the bureaucratic hellscape that crushes the spirit and poisons the soul.

When the season is underway, your focus should be on the game, on the kids, on the art and violence of competition—not on whether you remembered to submit a uniform order in time.

That’s why the best programs—those few bastions of sanity—run their entire off-field operation like a military campaign. Every document signed before the first whistle blows. Every schedule locked down. Every logistical hurdle obliterated before it can metastasize into a crisis. Because if you don’t handle it in advance, it will handle you.

Burnout is a Disease, and This is the Cure

People don’t burn out because the work is hard. They burn out because the work is stupid.

Coaching is hard, sure—but it’s meaningful. Watching a kid finally figure out how to dribble past a defender or make a perfect pass? That’s a high better than what you can find in a pharmacy.

But sitting up at midnight trying to find a missing birth certificate because a league official decided today was the day to care? That’s what makes good people quit.

Youth sports is losing good people at an alarming rate. Coaches, organizers, referees—people who should be the lifeblood of the whole enterprise—are walking away because the weight of the administrative mess is suffocating the joy out of the game.

If you want to keep people in, keep them sane, then the answer is obvious: streamline the madness. Simplify, automate, delegate—do whatever it takes to make sure that the burden is spread out, lightened, and, where possible, outright eliminated.

The Technology is Here—Use It

We are not cavemen. The tools exist to make this easier. Software handles registration, automates scheduling, sends reminders, and makes paperwork a thing of the past. But far too many leagues and programs are still running on the same outdated systems they were using in the early 2010s, or worse, on paper.

Why? Why do we insist on making it harder for ourselves? Nostalgia? A masochistic need to suffer? Whatever the reason, it’s killing the people who care the most about these sports. It’s time to embrace the future, offload the junk work, and reclaim the time that should be spent on the field, not in the administrative dungeon.

A Revolution is Necessary

Burnout isn’t an accident. It’s the inevitable result of a youth sports system that requires administrative busywork at the expense of work on the field. The solution is simple: obliterate the busywork. Clean up the process before the season starts, automate what you can, delegate what you can’t, and let people who raise their hand to help focus on what matters.

This isn’t just about making life easier. It’s about survival. If youth sports keeps hemorrhaging good people, there won’t be anything left to save. The choice is clear—get the administrative chaos under control, or watch the whole thing collapse under its own weight.

Which Software System Should I Use?

Tue, 07 Jan 2025 23:25:00 GMT

The number one question I get about 5 times a week - which software system should I use? And my answer is always….it depends. I know it's frustrating, but there are MANY factors that should be considered when choosing a software system.

And when thinking about the best way to describe those factors and how to prioritize them, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs came to mind. I promise this won’t be a psychology lesson, but the principle of ranking your NEEDS in order is important in choosing a software vendor. Remember YOU NEED a software system in order to operate your youth or amateur sports organization. If you are still using PDFs, spreadsheets or some other non software registration method then this article is JUST WHAT YOU NEED - we gotta get you online!

Also, remember you should focus on the NEEDS not the WANTS of the club - WANTS may cause you to adopt a system that is clunky (or in some cases too shiny) and unresponsive to the needs of your entire organization.

BASICS:

At the most basic level, every software system that you choose should be able to:

You should also create a list of non-negotiables that you have for your club. For example, if you had trouble collecting all of your payments last year, then a system with strong financial reporting and communications is KEY.

These “basics” should be your foundation and you should not evaluate anything that doesn’t cover off at least 80% of these along with your non-negotiables list.

STAFF & COACHES: Does It Help Others in the Club?

Once your club’s basics are taken care of, then you need to look after your second most important group of stakeholders behind the players and parents - your staff and coaches. Your admin staff will have a set of needs that is different from your coaches - ask them what they need and try to find a solution that can help with that.

Most of the admin staff needs will be taken care of at the basics level, but for the coaches they have needs that will likely need to wait til this phase. It is commonplace now to have operating systems with native or integrated coaching tools for example, so see if a software you are evaluating can help fill that gap.

LEAGUES: Does It Help You Integrate Your League?

After your club and coaches/staff are handled, then it’s time to start looking outside the club and to your league. If you use the same operating system as your league what operational efficiencies could you gain? What would be the detriment to integrating (if any)? - this is the level to assess that.

NGBs: Can You Integrate With Your NGB?

If all the stars aligned, would it be possible for my operating system to integrate with my National Governing Body (NGB)? For some sports (i.e. Lacrosse) a USA Lacrosse integration would be on the non-negotiable list, but for soccer there are often a lot more factors involved (due to the fractured nature of soccer governance) that do not necessarily allow for an integration between your club and the NGB. This is the level to dig into all of that.

INTEGRATIONS: Can It Handle Complex Integrations?

And then finally if all the stars and then the moons aligned together, what else could you integrate. Could you get your club almost entirely out of manual work? Are there automations you could use? If you’ve gotten to this level you are at the pinnacle and likely have the luxury of digging into these capabilities.

What You Want to Aim For

In general you want to at least get to the Leagues Level - rung three. If your basic needs and your staff and coaches are being taken care of you are in a good spot. And if you play a sport that doesn’t have a league (think travel lacrosse, volleyball) then you can hop over a step and go straight to the NGB, which may be a larger and more important step for you than other sports.

You may also find that your levels may be in a different order - say that you have the basics, staff and coaches and integrations, but you forgo Leagues and NGBs - that’s ok too. Again it all depends.

The Tournament Caveat

Many clubs these days also run tournaments - that’s awesome! Great additional source of revenue. Good brand recognition. And most importantly - more opportunities for play. When evaluating a tournament software there are fewer options available on the market, and the biggest caveat here is that what works for your club’s NEEDS may not work for your tournament’s NEEDs. That’s because the software was built for different stakeholders and different timeframes of play. I do find scenarios where an organization uses one software for everything, but it’s RARE, RARE. And that’s again ok - I’d just suggest doing two separate evaluations.

Things to Consider

Once you’ve outlined your overall needs as a club and prioritized them, you’ll next want to ask yourself:

The Focus on the Field Take

We are entirely software agnostic by design - we are trained in and support over a dozen platforms because IT DEPENDS. What works for one org may not work for another, so we feel it’s best to support our client with THEIR CHOSEN software, not what we choose.

If we are asked we of course provide advice, make introductions and even sit in on demos, but ultimately it is the client who decides. Once decided we help with a full platform transition (backend and front end).

Feeling overwhelmed by it all?

As the old saying goes - how do you eat an elephant? Bit by bit. Or you can just give Focus on the Field a jingle - we’ve got ya.

A note to sports….Is this really helping? Are we taking back the game?

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 01:13:00 GMT

Dear Sports Community,

This past November, right before Thanksgiving, I was fortunate to give a presentation on the state of youth sports with Take Back The Game author Linda Flanagan and Next Level Sports Co-Founder Patrick Walsh . We gave the presentation at my oldest son’s school, St. Charles School of San Carlos, California, on behalf of the St. Charles Men's Club. It was a bit of a passion project for all three of us as each of us have been looking at what’s been happening in youth sports and have been trying to provide solutions to a rapidly changing landscape.

For Patrick and I, it was also an opportunity to assess how and if our respective businesses are holding true to our ideals and making a positive impact in a field we both care deeply about.

As Linda diagnosed in her book, "Take Back The Game: How Money and Mania Are Ruining Kids' Sports—and Why It Matters” , the state of youth sports has evolved significantly over the past few years, with some positive developments but even greater challenges. The impact of commercialization and the obsession with competition on the youth sports industry has detracted from the core values of play, fun, and personal growth. After reading the book it’s easy to see how the influx of money and professionalization have further skewed youth sports values leading to burnout, exclusion and less kids playing.

When I started Focus On The Field, the mission was to alleviate one of the challenges Linda diagnosed; the increased off-field administrative burden and expectations of coaches, directors, and volunteers, caused by the increased professionalization of youth sports programs. Five years in, it’s fair to ask if we are making a meaningful impact on the state of youth sports? Or contributing to the mania?

From the feedback we've received from our clients, the answer appears to be a resounding yes in terms of making a positive impact. Coaches and directors consistently report that our services have significantly reduced their administrative workload, allowing them to spend more time on the field with their players. This increased focus on coaching and mentoring has led to more engaged and motivated athletes, which is a crucial factor in the overall health of youth sports programs.

Moreover, by taking on the administrative burden, we helped prevent burnout among volunteers and coaches. Burnout is a significant issue in youth sports, leading to high turnover rates and a lack of continuity that can negatively impact young athletes. Our clients have shared that by reducing the administrative load, we’ve helped lower the barriers to entry for new programs and initiatives and increased accessibility. Our combined efforts have led to the creation of 3 new, community based leagues and helped revive 3 additional leagues that were close to closing down.

This feedback is right in line with our goal of freeing up coaches, directors, and volunteers to focus on what truly matters: providing a positive and enriching experience for young athletes.

The story of Next Level Sports exemplifies the potential of keeping sports local and accessible while also being professionally run. Over the past decade, Next Level Sports has grown tremendously by focusing on community-based programs that prioritize accessibility and local engagement. Patrick Walsh and his co-founder Lance Smith have proven there is a desire and market for local, accessible sports programs, yet it also highlights the importance of balancing professional management with the core values of youth sports.

Next Level Sports has successfully created a business that thrives on community involvement and local impact, illustrating that profitability and positive community outcomes are not mutually exclusive.

Yet despite the positive feedback and tangible improvements Patrick and I have each respectively witnessed with our businesses, we still asked ourselves, and Linda: Are we contributing to the stress? Are we just spurring on the professionalization of youth activities? Are we part of the solution or just continuing the problem.

For anyone involved in youth sports it’s a question you must keep asking, especially as you reflect on the state of youth sports and your role within it. I can say with confidence that Focus On The Field and Next Level are proud of the impact we have made so far. The positive feedback from our respective clients and the tangible improvements in their programs and communities affirm that we are on the right track.

However, we and everyone else involved must remain committed to continually assessing and improving to better serve our ultimate goal: to ensure that every child has the opportunity to thrive on the field, supported by a dedicated and well-equipped team of coaches, directors, and volunteers.

Until then, keep taking back the game.

Best,

Tyler

Wait…I’m the President Now?

Mon, 16 Dec 2024 23:56:00 GMT

Year 1: My daughter joined a youth soccer team and they asked for volunteers, so I signed up to be the team parent. I mainly check for RSVPs and coordinate snacks.

Year 2: My daughter made the travel team, and since I had some experience they asked me to be the team manager. It’s a bit more work and I now have to make sure our paperwork is properly submitted for tournaments, I work with the club’s CFO to budget out travel and I liaise with the parents on all travel arrangements.

Year 3: The club needed board members, and since I’ve been with them for a few years I was nominated to be the Board Secretary. I’m now not just responsible for one team, but also the entire club and its overall administration.

Year 4: Tom is leaving as President and you’re the only one qualified to take over, so it was decided, you should be the President now.

Wait…..I’m the President Now?

Sound like a familiar story?
Most people don’t become the President of a youth sports organization by choice. It’s not because they don’t want to help out, but it’s often thrust upon them in a moment of need. With the decline of volunteerism in this country, the true volunteers are often being asked to do part-time if not full-time jobs, but for no pay and with very little resources.

So what do you do if you find yourself in this situation?

Step 1: Breathe

Take a deep breath and know you’re not alone. What you are doing is noble and without you most organizations could not function.

Step 2: Don’t Be Afraid

While you may have been “voluntold” to take this position, you also had to have been trusted enough among your peers to be given this position as well. You are capable.

Step 3: Know Who You’re Working With

Get to know those involved with your organization, be it:

Step 4: Know Your Numbers
If your organization is upside-down and hemorrhaging money you won’t be much use as its President. You should know penny by penny how your money (revenue) comes in (this includes sponsorships, grants and other subsidies) and how it goes out (expenses, salaries, insurance, NGB compliance fees) - you name it, you should know what is going to be reported on your 990 come year’s end.

Step 5: Know the Rules
Make sure you know the rules for your organization, your sport and your state. Key areas I always advise people learn:

This part will likely take a while, but as the President of the board (especially if you don’t have an Executive Director or General Manager to run day to day operations), you are ultimately responsible for knowing and enforcing these policies/rules.

Step 6: Go on a Fact Finding Tour
In doing steps 3 and 4 you’ll likely find gaps, efficiences, errors and areas for improvement. Write those down.

Step 7: Keep Things the Same
DON’T MAKE CHANGES RIGHT AWAY. That’s right, do not change anything unless you absolutely have to in the beginning. At Focus on the Field we almost always run a league or club the same way for at least one season to get a sense and feel for how an organization works. Then and only then do we suggest or make changes.

Step 8: Put a Smile on Your Face
And lastly and most importantly be positive and energetic. Energy feeds energy, so even though you may be overwhelmed at times, your positivity speaks volumes. You got this!

And if for some reason you don’t or just need another hand, that’s why Focus on the Field exists. ��

How to Combat the Tyranny of the Urgent - Embrace the 5 Ps

Wed, 27 Nov 2024 21:37:00 GMT

We often speak at Focus on the Field about a concept called the “ Tyranny of the Urgent ”, the imperative that what needs to happen first is often what is the most urgent and seemingly important. But when the tyranny of the urgent takes over, processes, systems and inevitably humans start to break down. So how does one combat this tyranny or put more simply “the chaos of now”. Is it possible to stop the tyranny before it starts?

I’m here to say YES it is possible.

The 5 Ps

We all know em, but now it’s time to embrace the 5 Ps - Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance , if you learn nothing else in this article remember that if you want to be more organized tomorrow you have to start the work today. The roadmap you lay out today will greatly impact your future performance.

How to Use the 5Ps

With the 5 Ps as an overarching mindset and the goal of eradicating the tyranny of the urgent, there are several steps that you can take next:

STEP 1: Set Yourself Up for Success - this may seem obvious, but I find it is one of the most overlooked things, especially in youth/amateur sports. Create a calendar (whether in google sheets, in a calendar program, what have you) and add in all of the upcoming activity, events, key milestones and then ALL of the tasks associated with that activity. Registration open, registration close, submit player data, you name it, it goes on the calendar.

At FOTF we call these ops calendars, and they are the guiding lights that help us plan out not just a season but an organization’s entire year.

STEP 2: Take a Look Back - married with Step 1 is Step 2, look back at what you did last year, and make sure that is factored into your ops calendar. If there was a particularly arduous or tedious task, try to break it down into smaller, more manageable chunks. And make sure to check with your colleagues, anyone involved in your operations should be contributing to this calendar.

STEP 3: Clean House - once you have everything laid out, you now need to spend time gathering all the documents that you’ll need to run a successful season(s). Make a new version of previous documents that worked well for you and brainstorm on new ones that will help future you.

Make a centralized folder that all operations personnel can access, and let them contribute as well. At FOTF every one of our clients has their own folder in our operations drive, filled with org specific documents that we use season to season.

STEP 4: WRITE IT DOWN - this one is in caps because it’s arguably the most important. Once you have laid out all the tasks, gotten your documents together and made a central repository for everyone you need to write it down. Don’t forget all the good work you’ve done to date, write down a simple document that details what you do to change over from season to season or year to year, write down any tasks step by step that are super tedious and leave a cheat sheet for any new/incoming staff.

STEP 5: Identify Any Gaps - in completing steps 1-4 gaps may become apparent - we don’t have anyone that does carding for us, we were late on submitting our rosters for several tournaments last year, we aren’t tracking our P&L to see how well we are doing year over year. It’s important to pull those gaps out.

STEP 6: Decide How to Fill Those Gaps - with the gaps now identified, what are you going to do about it? Again the goal here is to futureproof yourself. Do you need another employee? Do you need outsourced help like Focus on the Field? Do you need a new system? Whatever the gap may be, it's time to start solutioning.

After step 6 this is where you take stock and say “I think I’m ready”, let’s go host a great season.

And now if you all followed the above steps I have no doubt that the season will have been a success, and after the season comes:

STEP 7: Post Analysis - did you feel less tyranny of the urgent? Did you feel more organized? Are there still underlying issues you need to address? How do you keep getting better season over season?

Timing of the 5Ps

Many of you sports operators reading this may be thinking this is either too elementary or you don’t really have time for it, but I implore you that even just doing some of these steps will help you run a smoother season.

We all have those 4-6 weeks every year (maybe not consecutively) where things are a bit slower, and that’s when it’s best to start implementing the 5 Ps.

Conclusion

As you start to implement the 5 Ps remember your overall goal, let’s stop the Tyranny of the Urgent before it even begins.

A note to sports… Don’t Outkick your coverage: Reflecting on 5 years of bootstrapping

Fri, 04 Oct 2024 02:01:00 GMT

As Focus On The Field nears its fifth anniversary, it's an opportune moment to reflect on our journey so far—a journey characterized by perseverance, creativity, mistakes and the relentless pursuit of our vision without external funding. What began as an idea in the fall of 2019 has blossomed into a thriving service business dedicated to alleviating the off-field administrative burden of coaches, directors, and volunteers, ensuring that kids have the best possible on-field experience. Our commitment to maintaining full control over our company’s direction has allowed us to stay true to our mission and values. However, the siren song of seeking outside investors remains a constant presence, tempting us with the promise of rapid growth and expansion.

When we launched Focus On The Field, our vision was clear: to ensure that when we do our job right, kids are on the field at play with a caring coach by their side. This mission has resonated with our clients, allowing us to build a loyal community and achieve steady growth through organic means. Operating without external funding has afforded us several advantages. Most notably, it has given us the freedom to make decisions that align with our core values without the pressure to meet the expectations of investors who may be focused on quick returns. We've been able to develop our programs at a sustainable pace, ensuring that each initiative is thoughtfully crafted and implemented. Our independence has also fostered a strong sense of ownership and responsibility within our team, driving us to innovate and problem-solve creatively.

However, the path of self-funding is not without its challenges. Limited financial resources have sometimes constrained our ability to scale operations or invest in advanced technologies. We've had to be strategic and frugal, often prioritizing long-term goals over short-term gains. This approach, while prudent, can sometimes feel like we’re moving at a slower pace when we compare ourselves to other youth sports businesses who have access to significant capital.

The lure of outside investment is undeniable. It promises the potential for accelerated growth, enhanced technological capabilities, and broader market reach. With the right investors, we could and would rapidly expand our services, develop cutting-edge tools for athletic programs, and significantly increase our impact. The prospect of having the financial backing to bring our most ambitious ideas to life is indeed enticing.

However, the decision to seek outside investors is complex. It requires careful consideration of the trade-offs involved. Accepting external funding often comes with strings attached—loss of control, pressure to meet aggressive growth targets, and the potential dilution of our mission and values. Venture capital and private equity firms typically prioritize high returns and rapid scaling, as they should, which may not align with the long-term, value-driven approach we feel is needed in youth sports-focused organizations. The values that drive these investors often center around financial performance and market dominance, which can conflict with our goal of supporting the holistic development of young athletes and their support systems.

As we look to the future, our commitment to our mission remains unwavering. We continue to explore ways to grow and enhance our offerings while staying true to the values that define Focus On The Field. Whether we decide to pursue external funding or continue on our current path, our primary focus will always be on providing the best possible support for coaches, directors, and volunteers, ensuring that kids can thrive on the field.

Reflecting on these nearly five years, we take pride in what we've accomplished and remain optimistic about the road ahead. The journey of building a business without funding has been a testament to our resilience and dedication. We are deeply grateful to our clients who have partnered with us and supported our mission. While the siren song of outside investors may continue to call, we are confident in our ability to make decisions that best serve our mission and our community.

Here's to many more years of growth, innovation, and impact with Focus On The Field.

Thanks -

Tyler

Five Coaching Foundations

Tue, 27 Aug 2024 22:13:00 GMT

Coaching youth (and adult) athletes is one of the most rewarding opportunities. Working in youth sports, it is important to get back to these Five Foundations, passed on to us from some of the best coaches we know in our youth partner groups:

Five Of The Best Coaching Foundations

1. LISTEN.

The BEST coaches are even better listeners. Communication is key, and as a coach you don’t always need to have answers. Sometimes you just need to listen.

2. BUILD THEIR TRUST.

Get to know your players, and off, the field. It is integral to the “know-like-trust” factor. As you get to know each player, you develop a deeper layer of trust, on and off, the field.

3. KNOW THE TEAM (AND AGE) YOU ARE COACHING.

This goes hand and hand with “Trust.” Take time to know your team, dig into the age they are and navigate your coaching style to create a connection where they are at. Each club is not the same, each age group is not the same.

4. HAVE CLEAR EXPECTATIONS.

Some of the best coaches repeat their expectations at every practice. Repetition, as we know builds habits. Hearing the expectations integrates them into the foundation of your team, and HOW you coach.

5. FOCUS ON LITTLE GOALS- NOT JUST WINNING.

When eager to create the best athletes, focus on the little goals met each day. The foundation in getting to practice, practice performance, teamwork, communication, skillset improvement, mindset. The little goals celebrated lead to more consistent wins overall. Just like in Ted Lasso, “Believe.” Believe in them to get stronger and connect better each day.

In the header are some pictures from some of these incredible clubs we are partnered with.

A note to sports… An Unexpected Bloom - the Emergence and Acceptance of Mental Health in Sports

Thu, 22 Aug 2024 18:02:00 GMT

Dear Sports Community -

Growing up in youth sports in the 80’s and 90’s, physical performance, discipline, and teamwork were always the focal points. Grit and toughness were exalted and physical pain was a necessary feature, not necessarily in a bad way. That said, mental pain and anguish was a non factor, it just wasn’t discussed.

Rather, my coaches drilled in the importance of rigorous training, proper nutrition, and injury prevention, while my parents softly pushed for my athletic success. This was back in the 80’s and 90’s, when youth sports were still somewhat sane and the idea of a Youth Sports Industry was as prevalent as vegans at Sturgis .

The landscape has shifted since then, well documented by authors like Linda Flanagan in Take Back the Game (a must read for anybody involved in youth sports), and the pressures on young athletes has intensified. While this has created the expected consequences of burnout and fatigue, there has also been an unexpected and welcome bloom amongst these thorns. The open acceptance of and discussion about the importance of mental health.

I say this as a reformed tyrant coach.

When I first started coaching, I was not tuned into the mental health of the players I was charged with. As much as I cared for the players and wanted to do the right thing, their mental wellness was a non-factor. In my mind, the kids were either tough or they weren’t. At the time, I derided organizations like Positive Coaching Alliance as soft and disregarded their message.

What I failed to realize was that because the style of coaching I received worked for me didn’t mean it would work for everyone else. Had I taken more time to learn about PCA and the doctrine of positive coaching I could have provided a better experience for a greater group of kids.

The 2024 Paris Olympics served as a vivid example of how important mental health awareness is. Noah Lyles, the Olympic 100 Meter champion, openly discussed his struggles with depression, ADHD and other health issues. Simone Biles, who was begrudgingly forgiven by the world for pulling out of the 2021 Tokyo Olympics due to mental wellness, used the Parisian games as a literal springboard to redemption and acceptance of her own challenges.

In the recent past these revelations would have been taboo and it’s laudable how the world's premier athletes have pushed this conversation into the light. As the athletes have led, their coaches have followed suit. However, it's one thing for the Steve Kerr’s and Emma Hayes to embrace this tack with their elite teams, it’s a whole other lift for the collective adults in the youth sports world- from coaches to parents - to embrace the need to focus on mental development as much as physcial development.

The stigma surrounding mental health in sports remains a significant barrier. The traditional view that mental toughness equates to ignoring emotional struggles is outdated and harmful. More work is needed to combat this view, especially at the youth level. Coaches, parents, and sports organizations must foster an environment where mental health is openly discussed and supported, just as physical injuries are. When a sprained ankle demands immediate attention, so too should signs of anxiety or depression.

Coaches and parents are key players in this cultural shift. They need to be trained to recognize signs of mental distress and equipped to provide the necessary support. For instance, during the Paris Olympics, the organizing committee included mental health professionals as part of the athlete support teams, offering counseling and mental health resources throughout the Games. This model should be adapted for youth sports, where access to mental health support can make a profound difference in an athlete’s experience and well-being.

Moreover, governing bodies in youth sports must take a proactive role in promoting mental health awareness. Just as the International Olympic Committee did by integrating mental health resources into the Paris Games, youth sports organizations should establish similar guidelines and provide training for coaches on mental health. By normalizing mental health support and making resources readily available, we can create a safer, more supportive environment for young athletes.

The lessons from the 2024 Paris Olympics underscore the urgent need for mental health awareness in youth sports. By valuing mental health as much as physical fitness, we not only safeguard the well-being of young athletes but also set them up for long-term success, both on and off the field. It’s time to recognize that a truly successful athlete is healthy in both mind and body, and that prioritizing mental health is a crucial step toward achieving that balance.

Best-

Tyler

A note to sports… “Just Lose, Baby!” : The Neglected Value of Defeat in Youth Sports

Sat, 27 Apr 2024 00:29:00 GMT

Dear Sports Community,

“ Just Win, Baby !”

If you grew up in the East Bay this rallying cry was everywhere. Extolled by the Oakland Raiders legendary owner Al Davis, it is held as a peak of sports chutzpah. Glorified and celebrated, it sums up the idea that athletes and teams should be praised for their triumphs and achievements. Winning isn’t just the goal of sports. It is the entire point of playing.

For Al Davis, winning made business sense. His business was sports and winning brought more people to the games.

But what of the rest in the sports world? The vast majority of us who are amateurs or who serve kids and have ideals of developing youth? Should winning be the goal of sports, let alone the point? A cursory look at child and adolescent development studies would suggest not.

Rather, instead of winning, the goal should be losing. And losing a lot.

For those who just choked on their whistle, consider the following:

Youth sports on their own are vehicles for child development. Even for the narrowest minority of kids who become professionals, sports are a classroom to overcome challenges and learn valuable life skills, especially resilience and grit. Sports are fantastic at providing opportunities to develop resilience by putting kids in pressure filled situations where the outcome is dependent on their decisions and actions.

In those situations where kids' actions lead to success, or wins, the joy of victory is rewarded and it feels great for all. Failure is avoided and high fives are all around.

In the situations where kids' decisions and actions lead to loss, the pain of disappointment is felt and the challenge of overcoming that pain is presented. Losses are tough to feel, especially at a young age.

It’s these moments of seemingly intense pain that offer the most valuable lessons that sports can provide. When Angela Duckworth’s book Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance came out in 2016, it was an instant bestseller. Especially amongst anxious parents concerned about how their kids would get ahead. Grit seemingly unlocked the code to succeed and a key part of developing Grit was bouncing back from failure.

Taken together, you would think that the same parents who analyzed Grit would be begging for harder challenges and more opportunities for their kids to bounce back from defeat. Youth sports clubs would be marketing their tough losses and hard practices as much as their tournament championships and trophies.

Yet that is rare. Rather, as the youth sports world continues to be professionalized, the values of sports business overwhelm youth sports development. The joy of Winning confers immediate value upon the service that a parent bought for their child in the form of youth sports. The agony of defeat makes you question why you drove to the middle of nowhere and go to those practices in the rain, and pay to do it. The pressure and focus on winning overwhelms even the most chill of sports parents at some point and completely blinds the true value of losing.

But why?

If we were to think logically, that opportunity to taste defeat and failure and pain amidst a field 2 hours from our warm bed is ten times more valuable than any win could be. It provides the challenge to overcome, the opportunity to get up and move on, the opportunity to breathe and not be overwhelmed, to realize that “This too, Shall pass.”

It’s that ability to overcome that predicts success. That ability to face disappointment and bounce back. That ability to hear no and not melt. That ability to have difficult conversations with yourself and with others. And nothing develops that better, than losing.

Just Lose, Baby. You’ll end up winning a lot more if you do.

Best-

Tyler

Process Beats Posting: How to Successfully Navigate the Sea of Social Media

Tue, 05 Dec 2023 02:38:00 GMT

In the dynamic landscape of modern marketing, social media has emerged as a powerhouse for building brand identity and fostering connections. In today's world, it's just as vital to your club as having a newsletter, website or any traditional print advertising.

However, it’s easy to get caught in the here today, gone tomorrow currents of the medium and get lost chasing clicks via the latest fad. To get the most out of social media it’s more important to take the time to create a process, leverage the right tools and build your voice and brand thoughtfully. It’s a long game to play, not a sprint, so plan accordingly.

Follow this process and you will be on your way to engaging your audience and community.

Step 1. Understand the Know-Like-Trust Factor:

Social media is a game-changer for developing the Know-Like-Trust factor. At its simplest form, Know-Like-Trust marketing is a concept based on the idea that people are more likely to purchase from a brand that they have a relationship with. Because of this relationship, people are familiar with you. To create this relationship, consistency is the key, and it's crucial to understand that social media success is a marathon, not a sprint. Establishing trust takes time, so play the long game to make the most of this powerful tool for your club.

Step 2. Plan Ahead and Strategize Each Month:

Take a proactive approach by strategizing each month. Create a content calendar that outlines upcoming events, tryouts, tournaments, and coaches' engagements. Implement themed days, such as Monday Motivation or Friday Funnies, to keep your content engaging and diverse.

Step 3. Establish Yourself as the Expert:

Showcase your organization’s expertise and what sets it apart. Highlight achievements, statistics, and your vision for the future. This positions your organization as a leader in the field and builds credibility among your audience.

Step 4. Share, Don't Sell:

Avoid the hard sell. Instead, share your club's story authentically. Bring your followers into the narrative, sharing behind-the-scenes moments and creating a genuine connection that goes beyond a simple sales pitch. In real terms, don’t post ads all the time. Nothing turns you off of a relationship more than being asked for something each time you see that person. Same thing works for organizations and clubs.

Step 5. Mix it up! Video and Content:

Blend your content strategy with a mix of videos and curated content. Short, engaging videos can add a personal touch and help convey your message effectively. Highlight specific drills or practices, add music, and keep it simple yet impactful.

Step 6. Leverage Voices in Your Club:

Foster diversity in your content by having coaches take over social media for a week. Co-posts and different voices add authenticity and variety to your club's online presence. You likely have some interesting people in your organization that you don’t know about, find them by asking for help. You will be surprised who steps forward.

Step 7. Utilize Tools and Services:

Simplify content creation by using tools like Canva for batch creating visuals. If needed, consider outsourcing content creation through platforms like Fiverr or collaborate with social-savvy coaches and players.

Step 8. Pay Attention to Metrics:

You’re a sports organization, you probably like stats. Social Media has stats galore. Analyze your social metrics to understand what resonates with your audience. Pay attention to peak engagement times and use this data to refine your posting schedule for optimal reach.

Step 9. Embrace Stories and Tagging:

Utilize Instagram and Facebook Stories to tag players and coaches (with permission). Use stories to share surveys, memes, and cross-promote to enhance your club's visibility. Tap into your community, especially those people you found in Step 6, to help spread the word.

Step 10. Once you’re ready, embrace TikTok:

Explore the potential of TikTok by creating a club account. The Savannah Bananas (think Harlem GlobeTrotters of baseball) is amazing at this and it has grown their following immensely via the platform. Ask your athletes to make TikToks or Reels, (ie: have them do a TikTok of the week after practice.) Your club shares it and tags the key people in it. The players can even send the TikTok of the week to the coaches to vote on to share as a club each week. These can go viral pretty fast.

Step 11. Collaborate with Vendors and leverage their brands:

Collaborate with brands and vendors to run promotions and giveaways. This not only adds excitement to your feed but also expands your reach through cross-promotion. An easy one - work with your uniform or apparel rep and ask him/her to do a giveaway with you and you both share it in your feeds for two weeks marketing it.

Step 12. Leverage LinkedIn, appropriately:

Tap into the professional world of LinkedIn to showcase each coach, the club, and share content in a more professional setting. Establish your club as an industry expert. Tone is key, of course, so be sure to understand the tone of LinkedIn before posting. Simple tip, TikTok and LinkedIn rarely share the same posts.

By incorporating these strategies, you can navigate the ever-evolving landscape of social media and create a powerful and authentic online presence. Like any game or challenge, your process and preparation are paramount; so take it step by step.

A note to sports… The Tyranny of the Urgent - Administrative Overload and Its Impact on Strategic Planning in Youth Sports Leadership

Fri, 20 Oct 2023 23:43:00 GMT

Dear Sports Community,

The world of youth and amateur sports is a realm driven by passion, dedication, and a commitment to helping kids play sports. Naturally, many leaders of youth and amateur sports organizations are drawn to this industry because teamwork, character-building, and athletic development form the very foundation of these organizations.

Yet beneath this dedication lies a formidable challenge for any youth sports leader – the rising tide of administrative tasks and parent requests for time and attention. These tasks are constant and because they generally involve youth sports parents and their children, there is an underlying feeling of urgency and an expectation of immediate resolution.

This phenomena is nothing new. In his 1967 essay, Tyranny of the Urgent , and subsequent 1997 expansion , Freedom from Tyranny of the Urgent , religious academic Charles Hummel spoke of the tension between things that are urgent and things that are important. Hummel’s teachings have since become well known time management guidebooks in business.

When he wrote these essays Hummel surely didn’t have the contemporary youth sports leader in mind. However, given the dedication to the service that their youth sports organizations provide it is not surprising that many leaders and directors relate to Hummel’s analysis. Youth and amateur sports organizations are service businesses like any other so it’s understandable for leaders to try to respond to every potential family or athlete's need as quickly as possible. For many organizations immediate service is what is expected by their clientele as they spend their money on their child's athletic development.

Left unchecked, the combination of unmatched expectations and workflow will create the Tyranny of the Urgent and it will negatively impact any youth sports leader. It’s a common tale in the service industry, reinforced by insights drawn from numerous business studies .

So how can you as a sports leader get out of this "Tyranny of the Urgent" trap?

First , identify what this trap is. The Tyranny of the Urgent is a trap that ensnares leaders in a relentless cycle of immediate tasks such as budget management, communication with parents, and event or registration coordination. While these tasks are undoubtedly important, they often get in the way of the vital, strategic objectives of youth sports leadership.

Second , find what tasks you can streamline, offload or outsource to give back your time. This is not to be done right away. Depending on where you are in your youth sports organizations growth, you can and should be doing ALL of the work. Treat your organization, whether it’s a volunteer led non profit or private, for-profit, as a lean start up and adopt their methods. Yet once the admin and business work gets in the way, delegate, automate, and off load as many tasks that you can. However you can, claw back your time to focus on strategy.

Third , leverage all tools, technology and services that you can. From registration platforms to automation tools like Zapier and ChatGPT , there are tools out there that can simplify or do administrative processes. And where the tools end, services and other people begin. Find people or services to use the applications that can manage scheduling, communication, and budgeting more efficiently, reducing the time spent on these activities.

Fourth , prioritize and set Boundaries and expectations: As much as tools and process come into place, the importance of prioritizing core responsibilities and setting boundaries to protect strategic planning time is key for any leader. Making clear what the process is and expectations are for communications to parents and families is key. Disappointment lies in the difference between expectations and reality. Where there is an expectation void, it will be filled with negativity. So give yourself a chance to exceed expectations by providing yourself a realistic, if not ample, timeframe to respond to requests for your attention.

In the challenging world of youth and amateur sports leadership, it's crucial to recognize that administrative tasks serve as a means to an end, not the end itself. Streamlining these tasks and focusing on strategy can help leaders stay true to their mission of nurturing young athletes and planning for their organizations future.

Let's ensure that this mission remains undeterred by conquering the "Tyranny of the Urgent" and by placing strategic planning at the forefront. You will exceed all expectations if you do.

Best-

Tyler

The Balancing Act: Why Timely Email Responses are the Lifeblood of a Coach or Sports Club Director

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 23:47:00 GMT

Coaches and sports club directors are the backbone of any successful athletic program. They dedicate countless hours to training athletes, organizing competitions, and ensuring the smooth operation of their clubs. Yet, one often-overlooked aspect of their roles is the constant barrage of emails from parents and other community members. While timely email responses are essential for maintaining positive relationships, this exercise is a daunting challenge for those who juggle coaching and administrative responsibilities.

This challenge is exacerbated by the increasing expectations of on demand responses and the perception of professionalization across the youth sports world. Whether for-profit or non-profit, large or small, the stream of communication is always flowing.

The Deluge of Emails: In the world of sports, communication with parents is paramount. Whether it's about scheduling, logistics, concerns about player development or team performance, parents rely on email as a primary means of reaching out to coaches and directors. The result? A never-ending stream of emails that can flood in at any time of day or night.

The Juggling Act: Coaches and sports club directors are true multitaskers. They're not just mentors and strategists; they're also administrators and communicators. Balancing email responses with coaching duties, administrative tasks, and personal commitments is a formidable challenge. Picture this: a coach is on the field, guiding a team through a critical practice session when the inbox pings with new messages, all clamoring for attention.

The Importance of Prompt Responses: This scenario is all too familiar to anyone who spends time on a field, court, pool deck or ice. Messages pile up while your focus is on the players. However, timely email responses are the lifeblood of effective communication between coaches, parents, and athletes. They build trust and ensure that concerns are addressed promptly. Delayed responses can lead to frustration among parents and negatively impact the overall experience for athletes.

To build this trust, and keep your sanity, it is equally important to have a communications plan.

Strategies for Managing Emails: Managing this digital flood requires a strategic approach:

Maintaining Professionalism: Even in the face of challenging or emotional email exchanges, maintaining professionalism is non-negotiable. Thoughtful, courteous responses are essential to preserving positive relationships. If the email induces anger, use the 24-hour rule.

Technology as an Ally: Technology offers solutions. Email management tools, templates, and automated responses can streamline communication processes. Apps and software can help organize and prioritize the inbox, making it a more manageable task.

Balancing Act and Self-Care: Coaches and directors should never forget the importance of self-care. The constant demand of emails can lead to burnout. Finding a healthy balance between professional and personal life is essential for long-term success.

In the world of coaching and sports club management, timely email responses are a delicate tightrope walk. They are vital for maintaining trust and positive relationships with parents, but they can also be a source of stress and overwhelm. By implementing effective strategies, setting clear expectations, and practicing self-care, coaches and directors can excel in their roles while managing the constant influx of digital communication.

To my fellow coaches and sports club directors, know that you're not alone in this balancing act. Feel free to share your own email management strategies or experiences with others in the field in the comments below.

If you need help with this, reach out to us as we can offer further advice or do the work for you . Together, we can navigate the challenges of communication in the digital age while continuing to do what we do best: shaping the future of our athletes.

Series: ‘A Note to Parents’ - The Arc of Sports can save us from 2020

Tue, 11 Jan 2022 14:30:00 GMT

In this series of posts, published by our CEO Tyler Kreitz when he was the COO of ADVNC Lacrosse, Tyler sheds light on pressing issues facing families in youth sports. Not only does Tyler provide valuable insight on these issues from top researchers in the space, but also tangible solutions to instill positive change in the youth sports ecosystem coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic.

9/24/20

Dear Parents,

Four months ago I wrote to you about the silver linings we were finding amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. How refocusing on our mission helped us navigate through the uncertainty of the moment. The purity of sports had made a resurgence and the reduced pace of life had encouraged more kids to find fun playing in their backyard. Backyards had become our training grounds, and as Steve Rushin put it in his recent column for Sports Illustrated, they had become our escape . Our concerns then were how we might lose this moment of purity afforded by silver linings of the pandemic.

Oh, how quaint that all was.

Since then, 2020 veered into the times of Noah. From historical fires creating a Martian landscape, the killings of George Floyd, Ahmad Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and Jacob Blake that tore at our social fabric, and an election cycle where functioning adults are being shouted down by zealots. All this, plus a pandemic that hasn’t gone away.

In lieu of the 2020 floods we face, sports may seem like an undeserving diversion. Something to take our minds away from the reality at hand. In this context, Washington Nationals reliever Sean Doolittle gave perhaps the best commentary back in June when baseball was getting back to work:

“ … We haven’t done any of the things that other countries have done to bring sports back. Sports are like the reward of a functional society, and we’re trying to just bring it back, even though we’ve taken none of the steps to flatten the curve, whatever you want to say. … We just opened back up for Memorial Day. We decided we’re done with it.”

Though Doolittle was focusing on what was necessary to safely resume sports, his sentiment of avoiding the hard work and uncomfortable situations that these times call for rang true. What he missed is that sports offer the most compelling classroom to teach the necessary lessons to get through times like these, something we touched on when the pandemic was first starting .

This is because sports demand more than hashtags and hope, or hate. Whether on the field, the court, or the pool, sports demand grit, fortitude, and an ability to deal with nuance and disappointment that is real. They provide real-life training grounds athletes can use to hone the skills we all need to return to a sense of normal.

There are two idioms in particular that I learned from sports that I find relevant today:

These lessons have been honed on fields, in locker rooms, and in huddles at all levels, and as an organization whose mission is to help young people grow through sports it is important ADVNC does our part to teach in this moment.

When the crowd leaves, the real work begins

There was a period in my teens through my early 20’s when many family friends and relatives died suddenly or tragically. Sports offered me an escape during this time, and through the highs and lows I had on the field I learned the valuable lesson of being there for teammates when the crowd isn’t. I took from this that is important to check in with the grieving at least two months after the funeral. It’s usually around then, when the swell of support from friends and family has subsided, that the grieving need to hear from you and the recovery begins.

I offer this anecdote in light of the protests, activism, and social unrest that erupted after the killing of George Floyd and has continued through to today. Right when the protests started, prominent New York Times columnist Charles Blow pleaded with those emboldened to stand up for justice to not let the movement devolve into a “social justice Coachella for the young and cooped up”. An activist-chic street fair for the hip and woke. Aisha Harris, a young black writer in the Times offered then that the moment has engendered the same skepticism as previous ‘Pivotal Moments’ while maintaining a sliver of hope that this time it is different.

Mr. Blow and Ms. Harris columns were fruitful for piercing the balloon of the fashionably aware. As we all have seen, however, this moment has not faded away and the recent boycott of the NBA, MLS, and WNBA after Jacob Blake’s shooting has shown that sports can provide a very loud megaphone to make a point.

However, amidst the loud calls for reform and justice, a virulent strain of opportunistic rage has overtaken the initial narrative of social awareness. The protests and unrest have garnered headlines and attention from media and celebrities, allowing a comfortable seat for opposing crowds to settle into and hurl insults or worse at the other.

So what happens when the yelling stops? What about the real work of recovery and rebuilding for a society that needs it?

Over conversations and texts, Kevin Kelley, a longtime ADVNC Coach and the Founder and Executive Director of the Oakland Lacrosse Club, has reminded me that the actual hard work is still happening and is still ahead. His comment has echoed that of prominent civil rights veterans and legislators. When the crowds leave is when the real work begins, and when dealing with the legacies of racism in America, the work will not be easy.

So where do we begin? For starters, we can be there when the crowd leaves and step outside of our own bubble and away from the fray. Brian Silcott, a legendary coach and head of the San Carlos Firehawks Lacrosse Club, recently sent an email that outlined 9 concrete ways to make a change in your life and your community. Paul Rabil, to his credit, shared this message via Twitter to his huge following. The outline is challenging for some, but also straightforward and can be printed out to be put on your refrigerator ( here’s the link ).

The 9 recommendations, from not shying away from the topic to getting out of your own bubble and supporting businesses outside of your community is something you can put into practice every day. These things won’t garner crowds, nor should they. It's only when the crowd leaves that the real work will begin.

The field don’t lie, so find a way to figure it out

As anyone who has stepped outside of their comfort zone can attest, it is important to go into uncomfortable situations with a toolkit that allows you to stay open-minded and keep your point of view from a third party objective. This toolkit helps you have difficult conversations and helps overcome the situations you’re facing.

The eponymous book Difficult Conversations: How To Discuss What Matters Most , identify the scenarios in everyday life that we ignore or avoid due to the discomfort they cause. Written by Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, and Sheila Heen, all from Harvard Law School and the Harvard Negotiation Project, the book should be a required read for any athlete and any parent of an athlete. Anyone who has had the (mis)fortune of talking to me on the sidelines for more than a minute will likely hear me bring this book up and practically force it into your Amazon cart.

That said, life is not as simple as sports and the difficult conversations of our day have been replaced by a whipsaw cancel culture that has no time or room for thorough analysis. At a time when we need nuance, we have gotten absolutism. Ironically, we need the simplicity of sports more than ever to help us have the real difficult conversations of the day.

We need sports because they act as a training ground for developing a toolbox to problem solve, speak directly and take in viewpoints different from your own.

Sports, by design, put you in uncomfortable situations all the time, where the chance of failure and disappointment are real. In doing so, sports can and should force you into having direct and honest conversations with yourself and your teammates. Successful teams, coaches, and players are able to do this.

These successful organizations, athletes, and coaches overcome tense situations through clear communication and identifying problems on the field that can be fixed while acknowledging both successes and failures of the participants at hand. Teammates and coaches are required to hear differing points of view on what caused the situation in the first place, for not doing so would jeopardize their success. Perhaps most importantly, sports require you to listen and hear what your teammates and coaches are saying, even in the most heated and intense moments.

On successful teams, there are no conversations but honest conversations because what happens on the field doesn’t lie.

This simple truth is a lesson that needs to be brought from the field and into the real world, especially as the flood of 2020 continues.

Until next time -

Tyler

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Series: ‘A Note to Parents’ - The Silver Linings Pandemic

Thu, 06 Jan 2022 18:56:00 GMT

4/29/20

Dear Parents,

This afternoon we had our 9th shelter in place workout, which we Zoom’d live to all of our players in the ADVNC community. Our SF and South Bay Director, Matt Bond, teamed up with me and South Bay Manager Saskia Choudry to put kids through the paces of burpees, sprints, squats and leg lifts - the common 4 horsemen of bodyweight exercises.

Down at Red Morton Park in Redwood City, a few ADVNC kids and families joined me for this group workout. They lived nearby and it was easy for them to get there. Aside from our 6+ foot bubbles of exclusion and zealous use of hand sanitizer it had the feeling of normalcy. Matt Bond was working out from his home in Santa Clara and we joined over 100 others from Northern California and the west coast on Zoom. The workout allowed Matt Bond and I to coach a skill - in this case how to torture yourself for 35 minutes or so - to kids from all over the place in an efficient and collaborative set up. No one was restricted by traffic or distance from joining and we recorded the session so players could access it later if they weren’t able to make this particular time.

Though far from perfect, our continued experiment in distance learning and coaching has allowed us to remain connected. In addition, through the uncertainty, pain and fear of this pandemic, moments like these have provided a semblance of routine.

These learnings and practices have been an unexpected bright side to our current situation. Other silver linings like this exist amongst what this pandemic has wrought, especially for what it has done for the youth sports industry as a whole. Prior to March, 2020, issues of rising costs, misplaced priorities, over-scheduled kids and pressure cooker environments were well known and chronicled in the youth sports industry. Those issues, and subsequent solutions we would try and implement, were the basis of this column .

Yet as much as we discussed and tried to reform from within, industry wide solutions kept being one quarter away, when ‘the time was right’. And why not? Youth sports was a rapidly growing industry, spawning industry towns built around megacomplexes . The good times were rolling and there was no need to mess with success. When covid-19 out-leaped the late Kobe Bryant into our national conscience, however, things changed.

An industry built around large gatherings, long travel and physical contact was upended and issues that had been pushed off were allowed to come to the front and center . Over the past month, as I’ve read articles, spoken on and listened to numerous panels and podcasts discussing what comes next in youth sports, the consistent refrain I hear is about the opportunity for youth sports to ‘reset’ themselves and return to a less structured, more local and less specialized environment. From John O’Sullivan at Changing the Game to Tom Farrey of the Aspen Institute’s Sports in Society program, national leaders from across the spectrum have brought this issue forward with a push for youth sports to reform for the better.

At ADVNC, we found ourselves having these same conversations as our world and lives have been upended. Like many small organizations we have been thinking and planning how to not only survive this pandemic but to emerge for the better. Our daily team meetings have been crisp and focused as we’ve moved from plan A to B to C, while making sure plans D through F are ready.

What’s guided us through this time has been our mission and our goals. A few weeks back, after another night of news highlighting the extension of social distancing, the elimination of much of our season loomed as a possibility. At the beginning of our meeting that morning Chris Rotelli sent us an email with the mission and goals of ADVNC pasted in the body. It not only reminded us of what our intent at ADVNC was - to grow kids' love of lacrosse, for them to become better people, and push them to reach their potential on the field and off - but reminded us of how we can reform ourselves to the new reality. Like the calls from national youth sports leaders to use this opportunity to address underlying issues, we would also examine how we could deliver on our mission and goals.

First among these goals was to make our programs more accessible and provide that outlet for activity that players and parents were craving. Greg Weigel and our Director of Marketing Mike Saks immediately got to work, enlisting the help or our great coaches to create content that players could do on their own. Those initial videos and emails were the seeds of what would become our Remote Training program.

As we sent these out we found another unexpected but welcome development. Asking for kids to send their videos to us seemingly spawned a surge in free play. While we didn’t receive videos from everyone we estimated from our feedback and anecdotal evidence that folks were adopting the endurance and self discipline of our Work While No One Is Watching ethos. It was a welcome bit of encouragement, and a first green shoot for us that we could still fulfill our mission and goals in this new reality.

From there we continued to develop, and expanded our focus to players holistic and physical well being through our first group workouts. Though far from perfect, the workouts allowed us to create an active routine and place where our community could connect no matter their location. It also allowed us to see what the limits and benefits are from online platforms .

Looking ahead to a summer that will keep us physically distant to start, we are developing and adjusting our programs to keep us connected while we stay at home. Perhaps most promising from this is that when the orders to stay home lift and we return to the fields our lessons learned will stay with us and be incorporated into our program. Whether it is a renewed focus on the holistic development of the athlete or reducing a families time in a car, the silver linings from this tragic time have the opportunity to endure.

Like everyone, we are not certain what the future will portend - for us, for ADVNC or for the Youth Sports Industry as a whole. If we can collectively stick to our guiding mission and goals, however, I’m certain that it will curve towards the good.

Until next time-

Tyler

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Series: ‘A Note to Parents’ - Listen to the Lessons from Sports

Tue, 04 Jan 2022 18:55:00 GMT

3/29/20

Dear Parents,

In our last ‘Note…’ we highlighted the work of Dylan Ochs, the Seattle Starz and ADVNC NDP player who had started the Points 4 Prevention (P4P) program. P4P focuses on raising mental health awareness amongst young athletes while removing the stigma of mental health issues in the locker room and on the field. When Dylan and I last spoke, we shared experiences of how sports helped us manage our anxiety and helped keep our minds at bay.

Dylan’s is a pretty remarkable story, and not just because he had the wherewithal to start an organization like P4P at a young age. He also had to overcome the hurdle of seeking help for his own mental health. Then he turned his experience into something that could help his fellow teammates. Given our current state of affairs, the experience that Dylan has had is more valuable now than ever.

For obvious reasons, anxiety and mental health issues are currently affecting many people. Common release valves of socialization and human interaction are on hold. Sports are on hold too. However, the lessons and mechanisms sports offer in maintaining a proper balance remain.

Perhaps the most difficult thing to do — a challenge that any athlete will recognize — is to accept that you may need help. It’s not easy to not be feeling great mentally, even as you cognitively can tell yourself that you are ‘fine’. For many, the idea of having a mental health issue doesn’t fit the image we have of being resilient and tough-minded, especially those of us who identify as athletes.

Rather, we take the view about anxiety that comedian Gary Gulman, a former NCAA athlete, described in his fantastic HBO special “The Great Depresh” as having two common solutions - “Snap out of it!” and “What do you have to be upset about?”.

Mental health is not something you can easily see and treat, like a broken bone or flu. Mental health issues linger until they manifest in depression or self-debilitating behaviors. Much like fighting a virus, acknowledging the situation and seeking help early can prevent more serious outcomes.

If anything, today’s news cycle gives us an opportunity: life is objectively scary right now, and it’s ok to acknowledge that. Having acknowledged it, we can move on to deciding how to react. A strong work ethic and self-discipline are key tools in our coping arsenal. They also are key components in being a successful athlete. Whether it is the discipline to stop checking the news on your phone or keeping to the strict handwashing guidelines that the CDC advises, self-discipline will help with your mental and physical health. Keeping a strong work ethic during this unsettled time, both for your physical well being as well as for your school or professional work will provide structure to get through while also leading to better personal outcomes.

High-profile athletes are rising to the occasion, demonstrating to the rest of us that world-class self-discipline and the courage to talk about fear and anxiety are not mutually exclusive.

In a great article for the Kansas City Star , Pete Grathoff chronicled how some professional athletes and celebrities have taken to social media to provide advice for people dealing with this situation. Dan Haren, a 13 year veteran in Major League Baseball, has been tweeting out advice and comfort to those who are feeling the effects of our current times. A three-time all-star, Haren was at the pinnacle of the sports world yet he still tweeted “I have more anxiety today than I did facing the Yankees with an 86 mph Fastball”. He is dealing with this spike of fear by reaching out to friends, talking to professionals, and understanding that he doesn’t have to handle this alone.

The aforementioned Gary Gulman has also had an increased presence on CNN and other news outlets advising folks how to cope with the stress and strain. His twitter feed has been a go-to for advice, humor, and levity. His key tips for coping with this situation may seem simple but they are incredibly effective.

Each one of these tips helps today and will help in the future when ‘normal’ returns

It’s not just the lessons from sports that can help us, however, but rather the lessons from incredible, world-class, athletes who have become more comfortable in addressing the mental challenges they faced.

Caroline Silby, a former US national figure skater and clinical psychologist, witnessed this trend and commented on it in a recent article about how Athletes Get Real About Mental Health . Silby was encouraged by prominent athletes coming forward even while acknowledging that “depression and mental health concerns are still a bit of a ‘dirty secret’ in sports.

Elite athletes can have difficulty accepting emotional struggles and seeking assistance. However, the hopeful part is that once they do seek assistance, they often apply their sports work ethic to their emotional recovery, making progress more likely.”

As a parent to young kids and a coach to old kids, dealing with the reality of COVID-19 has been intense. Managing life during a pandemic is like trying to put a paper bag on a gorilla’s head. The uncertainty of what lies ahead and all that comes with it is something we all will confront on a daily basis.

Thinking back to my conversations with Dylan Ochs , there are messages and lessons I learned during our discussions that now seem more relevant to our community than ever: finding the ability to come forward when you are angst-ridden, and ways that all of us can cope with this numbing feeling of uncertainty.

Sports have taken a back seat for the time being, but the lessons we’ve learned from sports, especially as it pertains to mental health, can help us.

I look forward to when normal returns and can’t wait to see you all on the sidelines.

Until next time-

Tyler

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LeagueApps Blog ‘6 Ways to Make Money for Your Youth Sports Organization’

Mon, 13 Sep 2021 18:33:00 GMT

The truth of the matter is, a youth sports organization won’t function if it’s doesn’t make money. There are so many costs—from uniforms to referees to staff to technology to equipment and beyond. And you, of course, would like to be able to put some money in your own pocket.

LeagueApps spoke with Tyler Kreitz, Founder of Focus on the Field to get his insight on ways to make money for your youth sports organization.

You can find the article here: https://blog.leagueapps.com/make-money-for-your-youth-sports-organization/

Series: ‘A Note to Parents’ - Make it Intentionally Good

Wed, 08 Sep 2021 17:30:00 GMT

1/30/20

Dear Parents,

For as much as we all love sports and believe in their intrinsic value, it is not difficult to find evidence that youth sports are on a perilous path of having their values lost. As discussed before, this is not revelatory nor news. Simply start a Google query with “Youth Sports are”... and the automatically filled searches that pop up begin with “out of control” and “too intense”. It doesn’t get much better from there. There has been so much discussion about the dark side of sports and the youth sports industrial complex that it’s logical to question whether sports can still be a force for good.

With intention, they can. John O’Sullivan, the founder and CEO of Changing the Game , and one of the biggest champions of sports potential, recently argued against the fundamental goodness of sports. Instead, he wrote that sports “are neutral, and only when (you) are intentional about making it positive does it have the opportunity to bring about good experiences”.

This makes sense to anyone who has been a player or a coach or been around sports in some capacity. Sports can be a force for good, but only if you intentionally design them to be that way. Whether you are using sports as a vehicle to guide players in the college search process or encouraging sports sampling and player development , the intentional design will improve outcomes. Even at the highest levels of NCAA D1 athletics, the Army football team is a testament to the power of what sports can do for individuals when they are built around a bigger purpose than wins or losses.

Intentionally designing around a higher purpose is key. Studies have proven that having a higher purpose in life will lead to better health outcomes thus it’s an easy bridge to build to see that building around a bigger purpose will cultivate a positive experience through sports. Never had this been more evident than during our recent experience at the Sandstorm Lacrosse Tournament in Indio, CA.

For those who haven’t been, Sandstorm is a massive event. Spread across 60+ fields at the Empire Polo grounds in Indio, CA, it is the ‘Youth Sports Industry’ come to life and has become a destination weekend for lacrosse clubs across the country. It is also a wonderful place to see the good and bad that comes from youth sports. Like most things, the bad were easier to spot; Parents screaming and berating officials as well as their kids, coaches erupting on young players, players complaining about calls and playing dirty.

While it was easy to condemn this behavior it was not hard to see why it occurred. For many, the only objective of playing at Sandstorm was to win. Though I doubt that many players, parents, or coaches would admit to it, the evaluation of the entire weekend was likely predicated on how many wins you had. Not winning meant the weekend was a failure and that inherent pressure would overwhelm the most measured amongst us; parent, player or coach. Coincidentally, at the same tournament, there were a few teams that were there explicitly tied to a higher purpose. Not surprisingly all of them made the finals of their divisions.

Our ADVNC 2022 NDP team was one of them. They not only won the 2022 division by outscoring their opponents by an average of 10 goals per game, but they also raised over $7,000 for the JED Foundation via the Points 4 Prevention (P4P) program. P4P was started by current ADVNC NDP and Seattle Starz 2022 player Dylan Ochs, to help combat mental health issues in young people. Having experienced the tragic loss of a friend and former teammate to suicide, Dylan started P4P as a way to channel his inherent competitive desire to track wins, points and other statistics into a fundraising endeavor focused on a greater cause. Dylan approached us about piloting the P4P program with his ADVNC NDP team and there was no hesitation about pushing this forward. However, we were surprised by the incredible effect that playing for a bigger cause had on the team. A team of players from all over the west coast became unified and supportive, their collective talent magnified each other’s individual skills, there was a collaborative joy on the sidelines.

Not surprisingly, the team that the 2022 NDP beat in the finals was similarly united by a higher cause. The Whales Lacrosse Club started initially as a fun outlet for its founder Jimmy Ryan, as well as an escape from what had become a regimented and overly serious lacrosse club experience. When Jimmy formed the team, one player’s mom was so overwhelmed with happiness that she burst into tears. According to Whales director Anne Ryan (and Jimmy’s mom), this mom was fed up with club lacrosse and was thrilled her son would have a fun outlet to play. She was also a stage 4 breast cancer survivor and Jimmy dedicated that initial tournament to her and raising funds towards breast cancer research. Since that first tournament, the Whales have raised over $120,000 to various charities in just over 3.5 years and have won or been to the finals in almost every tournament they’ve been to. All while the club explicitly state’s its’ focus is to have fun and give back.

Watching the two teams play in the finals you would never think the players didn’t want to win or that they weren’t there to compete. The game was intense, hard-fought and played at a very high level. The beautiful and harsh nature of the athletic competition wasn’t softened in the least by these two teams’ altruistic goals. If anything, it made the competition that much more meaningful because both teams were playing for something bigger than the game.

When sports are attached to a higher purpose it can dissipate the negative aspects of what we see in the youth sports industry. Perhaps the referee’s perceived missed call isn’t the end of the world, the parents' cheers are grounded in an overarching philanthropic endeavor, players urge to compete remains between the whistles. While that certainly won’t be the case at all times, designing a program around a higher cause will invariably lead to better, healthier outcomes .

Until next time-

Tyler

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Series: ‘A Note to Parents’ - The Structure Should Match the Kids

Wed, 08 Sep 2021 17:28:00 GMT

12/19/19

Dear Parents,

At the beginning of last month, in early November, I went back to New York City to be on a panel titled ‘Designing for Impact’ at the Next Up Sports Conference . The conference was put on by LeagueApps and sought to bring folks in the burgeoning youth sports industry together to address the challenges and issues youth sports face, while also coming up with creative solutions. My session had three of us. Tom Farrey, the Director of the Aspen Institute’s Sports and Society Program ; Shannon Shneeman, the Executive Director of America SCORES, New York , and me. Needless to say, I was nervous to share the dais with these two and their broad swath of experience and knowledge.

In spite of the nerves and a bit of jet lag, our panel went over well as we engaged and challenged our attendees to come up with tangible solutions to the issues facing youth sports. A lot of talk centered around attrition and kids leaving sports too early- an issue that the Aspen Institute and ESPN recently brought attention to with the Don’t Retire Kid campaign. The reasons for kids leaving sports vary, though much of it centers around early specialization and kids getting burned out through an overly structured and intense experience.

These conversations lasted beyond the panel and well into the conference happy hour, where the conversations grew in proportion with the bar tab. It was there that a few executives from Major League Soccer and I compared notes on the soccer and lacrosse worlds, specifically around the US Soccer Development Academies . During the conversation they shared with me the process of Deselection in competitive youth soccer and how it is causing kids to walk away from the sport at a young age.

Deselection is exactly what it sounds like, where kids as young as 10 who had previously been selected as elite are subsequently ferried out of elite soccer training pathways based on the evaluations and judgements of trusted adults. These evaluations are not willy-nilly nor are they without thought, they are rigorously structured to eliminate as much politicking as possible so that the adults can determine which kids get to continue their intense elite development and which do not. Not surprisingly, many kids who are ‘deselected’ from elite soccer end up retiring altogether instead of continuing to play the sport.

As the folks from MLS and I discussed this process I couldn’t help but step on the soap box. This whole process seemed nuts and it sure wasn’t producing the results US Soccer wanted, especially given how spectacularly US Soccer failed leading to the last men’s World Cup. Plus we were talking about evaluating 10 year olds. 10 year olds whose athletic development was being predicted as if it were fact. Regardless of how structured the process was or how many checkboxes the coaches had, it’s awfully difficult to predict what happens when growth spurts happen, or don’t.

In addition to the deselection process throwing out a lot of babies with the bathwater, the whole US soccer structure forced young kids to specialize at a really, really young age. This specialization not only puts more wear and tear on kids bodies and minds, it leads to physical and emotional burnout - a side effect recently studied by the National Association of Athletic Trainers and brought to light by Lebron James and Kobe Bryant . Not to mention, it hinders the natural athletic development acquired by playing different sports.

While sharing these critique’s with my new soccer friends there was a bit of schadenfreude in pointing out the cracks in the US Soccer system. Surely lacrosse could and would do better and we at ADVNC were proof! We encourage kids to play multiple sports, we focus on continual player development and we make Fun one of our top goals.

I then remembered that the following weekend I would be heading to our ADVNC National Development Program (NDP) training camp. The camp where we at ADVNC selected kids as young as 11 years old from our already select organization for even more intense training and specialization. My soap box crumbled a bit as it seemed like we again found ourselves in the position of contributing to a problem we are trying to fix.

When I returned back to the office later that week I brought up this conversation with Chris Rotelli and the NDP Director Greg Weigel and posed the questions - Were we demotivating kids with the NDP process? Were we forcing kids to specialize? Were we burning kids out emotionally and physically? Were we excluding kids who were late bloomers? These questions were easy for us to answer in terms of of our intention (No, no, no, no) but forced us to focus on the unintended repercussions of having an NDP.

In doing so we found models of successful youth sports programs that were adopting a more holistic, developmental approach to elite training programs. Ironically, one of the most successful models was from the Swedish soccer club AIK Stockholm . Led by Irishman Mark O’Sullivan, he described the clubs focus to Irish Examiner reporter Kieran Shannon as being “one where the structure now matches the needs of the kids, rather than the kids having to match the needs of the structure”.

As we grow as an organization that structure seems like the best one to build off of.

Until next time-

Tyler

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Series: ‘A Note to Parents’ - Focus on the Fit

Wed, 08 Sep 2021 17:26:00 GMT

10/24/19

Dear Parents,

Over the past few weeks, six ADVNC and Seattle Starz players (and counting) have announced their commitments to top tier NCAA Division I lacrosse programs. Aside from these kids achieving their goal of reaching the pinnacle of the sport, the universities themselves (Cornell, Princeton, Brown, Notre Dame, North Carolina, and Michigan) read like a dream for any parent who wants to put their kid’s college sticker on the back of their car. These college commitments are incredible achievements for these players and as a program, we could not be prouder. Each of these kids earned this reward after years of hard work both on the field and off.

Around the same time these commit announcements came out, I noticed that US News and World Report announced their 2020 list of top Global Universities , which has taken the oft-derided ranking of colleges to a global scale. The validity of these rankings is subjective and their methodology, the values, and what they actually measure have been dissected and laid to bare by some very smart people (Gladwell, always Gladwell). All that said, and all hand wringing aside, these lists do matter as they graft onto our aspirations for our kids and our pride in where we went to school. It’s easy to deride them for what they are, but it’s hard to say that they don’t have an effect.

These lists contribute to the increased pressure that kids and parents are feeling around college and the college search process by consistently ranking the same 40 to 50 at the top. They also ignore the value of personal fit for each student, let alone the notion that where you go to school does not make you who you are .

We also unintentionally contribute to this pressure cooker. At ADVNC, we work with many kids who’s desire to play high-level DI lacrosse means aiming for the schools on the top of these rankings. A part of helping kids get the exposure they need to play NCAA DI lacrosse in college is celebrating those who have achieved this in our program. It draws more attention to our teams, which in turn helps other kids gain opportunities. Yet it also turns up the pressure cooker by consistently emphasizing this small group of schools. We’re torn with this duality, as are many organizations like ours. How do we deflate this pressure cooker while we’re inherently contributing to it?

As a lacrosse focused company, we feel there are easy steps we can take. The first is to reemphasize the focus on colleges that fit the ‘40 year plan’ of a player as opposed to the ‘4-year plan’. By the ‘40-year plan,’ we mean putting the emphasis on colleges that fit with the student on a holistic level and not only on an athletic one. This is easier in lacrosse than in other sports as lacrosse is not as soaked with money and ripe for corruption. For instance, the shoe companies and the industries that so heavily influence (and corrupt) AAU basketball don’t exist in lacrosse. Nor do huge professional leagues, with their incredible financial rewards. This allows the focus to remain on colleges that fit the players’ educational and life goals and lets lacrosse play its role in helping open doors into education opportunities.

By establishing the ‘40-year plan’ as the focus, college fit becomes the natural goal. Our partners at Athens Advisors put this at the center of their advising process as studies of student outcomes, both anecdotal and rigorous, show that school ‘fit’ matters much more than rank. A focus on college fit alone would deflate much of the pressure that families and students feel. Even by the stricter standards of eligibility into the U.S. News rankings, there are around 1,400 regionally accredited colleges and universities offering four-year undergraduate degree programs. For families who are part of ADVNC, however, the number of colleges offering a good ‘fit’ and lacrosse is still considerable.

At first glance, this may seem counter-intuitive. There are still only 71 NCAA Division I lacrosse programs. Adding in Division II and there are 61 more. Division III adds 236, for a total of 405 schools offering NCAA men’s lacrosse. Most of these schools are on the Eastern seaboard and for lacrosse-playing student-athletes who want a larger, more raucous collegiate experience the NCAA options are limited. And forget it if you want to stay in California or the west coast.

However, with the onset and growth of the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA), the options to play lacrosse in college, and find a college that fits, grow considerably. 299 schools across the country have teams that participate in the MCLA. These schools range in size and type and cover a broad geographic range that NCAA lacrosse doesn’t cover. Debating the merits of MCLA vs. NCAA lacrosse is ridiculous in our opinion, they are different, but the end result of what they contribute - an opportunity to play competitive lacrosse at a college that fits your 40-year plan- remains.

In partnering with ConnectLax and utilizing their easy to use college search tool , we’re able to help kids and families find the schools that provide an initial fit. This takes a step in the right direction to where families and players should focus. The next step is to break down the process of getting to those colleges that fit and framing the process as the goal.

In speaking with Dr. Peggy Hock, a 25 year veteran of the college admissions process and former president of the Western Association for College Admissions Counseling (WACAC), about these ideas she advised there still is no ‘Golden Ticket’ process that will guarantee admission to any university. It just doesn’t work that way. Libraries could be filled and college courses taught on dissecting the admissions process at universities. It is a world filled with variables that a student and family simply cannot control.

What can be controlled is how one navigates and approaches the process and the variables they can control. When I have worked with kids and families on this, I frame the process as a climb up a mountain. As with any climb the reward at the top of the mountain is the view. In this case, the higher you go the greater the view of the schools that fit the profile of the student and their 40-year plan. To get to this view it takes skill, dedication, and if you're an aspiring athlete - a bit of genetic luck. Yet there is a path to follow, much like there are trails to follow to the summit of a peak. As you follow the path and focus on controlling what you can, i.e. academic effort, working hard in practice, being a good teammate, each successive step reveals a greater view from where you were before. The goal becomes the process, and following the path to being a good student-athlete ends up opening more education opportunities.

This is not in any way perfect advice, nor the prescription for getting into your dream school. It is, however, an approach that addresses the real issue we’re trying to confront - the pressure cooker environment of college admissions in youth sports. We will continue to advocate for all of our families and celebrate their college commitments when they occur, just as much as we celebrate and encourage each player to pursue their ‘40 year’ goal. While we’re doing this, we hope to see the pendulum on college choice and admissions swing back, away from the rankings and towards the student.

It seems like the best path to take.

Until next time-

Tyler

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