Quick Reminder: Trophies Are For Winners

I sucked at sports growing up.

My dad was an All-Star Athlete kinda kid. So… he tried. I have a vivid memory of my dad gently pitching me a softball and trying to get me to catch it. I panicked and kicked it with my shin. I had a pretty major bruise for a while…. that was probably the closest I ever got to catching a ball.

I tried every sport… and I sucked at all of them. But you know what? No one ever pretended I was good at it. My parents were pretty honest about my “skills” or lack thereof…

So they helped me find things I excelled at… and they encouraged me to get REALLY good at them.

That’s not to say I wasn’t competitive. I was. I was viciously competitive with grades. It was what I was good at, and I took pride in that. NOTHING pissed me off more than teachers excitedly announcing everyone got an A. I EARNED that A. The little f*** I noticed cheating off of the guy in front of him didn’t.

A’s were MY trophies… and I earned them.

Kids shouldn’t get “Participation A’s” and they shouldn’t get participation trophies either.

Why? It cuts kids short. Kids these days are basically TOLD they’ve done their best… so why expect any better of themselves?

Yes. Really.

My mom’s a Spanish teacher. She teaches kids between kindergarten and fifth grade. You know what she’s been hearing a lot of lately from kids who put minimal effort in to their work?

“I tried my best, and that’s what counts.”

Only no… they didn’t. They hardly tried at all. They are capable of SO much more. But that’s ok… they’re used to adults having absolutely no expectations of them. Their parents tell them that all that matters is that they TRY and GIVE IT THEIR BEST…. and take any sloppy attempt as “the best they could do.”

How depressing.

Who’s to say what a kid’s “best” is unless that kid constantly works towards improvement? You can ALWAYS get better. That should be the goal.

But either way, they get a trophy, right?

Watch this. It’s really good.