Coaching Parenting Parallels

I try to talk to my adult children as often as possible. My daughter works in San Francisco and my son is in graduate school at Princeton. Both are in their thirties and by every measure quite successful, but I cant help but think every time I get off the phone there is always some advice a little reminder of lessons from their childhood that was reinforced. They learned principles, concepts of what was needed to grow up, to go to school and to be independent. We gave them space to grow, to spread their wing and learn to fly on their own. They made mistakes but we were always there to help to them and draw lessons from the good and bad. Isn’t coaching the same? We give our athletes the foundation by teaching good principles and practicing good habits. As they grow literally and figuratively they earn the right to be more independent and to have a voice in their training. They stumble and fall and we help them to fall forward. We give them the tools to thrive in competition and life. Above all we remember they are people and we love them for their faults and their virtues.