 |
| Flickr, Creative Commons |
Forbes contributor Bob Cook picked up on an interesting story of sports intensity. Rivals, owned by Yahoo for several years now, is known for it's college football coverage. In this article, Why Rivals.com Started Rating Tween College Football Prospects, Bob explains how the world of scouting, and it's worthiness as media fodder, is spreading to younger kids. He points out that "this arrangement is a very beneficial move for both sides. Rivals gets the jump on scouting talent for its audience of desperate college football fans and desperate college football coaches, while NextGen gets to sell its Rivals deal as part of its promise to give players exposure."
It just seems crazy and disappointing to me. For one thing, it's further pressure on families at an unnecessary time. For another, it's unlikely to be very effective.
Parents already need to be coached in pre-season meetings that their local softball, baseball, football etc leagues are about the children, not their own visions for their pro-careers that did not quite pan out. I believe there is so much time for kids to mature and change in their tweens, teens and after. Do not push their mental and physical limits too early or too often - let them adapt into themselves, with the appropriate encouragement and discipline when shorter term goals are clear.
But more than the concern for the families, I just think that the spotting of talent earlier makes no sense, and is a media fabrication to gain more eyeballs. Tom Brady's pick in the draft was not predictive of the position he will take in the halls of football fame. Frank 'the tank' Kaminsky has got better every year of his school and college career, with little perhaps to indicate his current succes, and still no promises of how that pans out in the NBA.
Outside of sports, Fortune loves their various lists of 40, 100 and 500. In all media, the story of the modern day hero or heroine is appealing, and so the search is always on for the next one. But I believe that predicting that performance in business and society is even harder than in sports, where there is at least a physical filter.
Opening doors to opportunities is always a good thing. Talent scouts and coaches can help open those doors. But there are so many ways an individual can mature physically and mentally, that I am concerned by a 'system' being applied to young talent. I have no concerns about young talent being left alone and rising to the top through a common competitive urge. The journey may just be unpredictable, but that is often the key to their eventual success.
Comments