How to Set Your Kids up for Success

We all want our kids to thrive and be successful in everything they do.

No parent, teacher, or coach wants to see their kids fail.

So, how do you know if you’re setting up your kids for success?

After 18 years of parenting, I’ve realized there are three things we can do to position our kids for success — in sports and in life.

1. Fuel Their Passion

The best way to help our kids grow in every aspect of their lives is to fuel their passion in one aspect of their lives.

To fuel my passion for basketball, my mom drove me to countless gyms for practices and games. She also paid for me to attend camps like PGC, which skyrocketed my passion for the game.

And here’s where things got interesting…

My pursuit of excellence in basketball created an unintentional ripple effect.

I pulled up my marks so I could play college basketball, I avoided the party scene because I was too busy training, and I became a leader in my school because I was taught at PGC that I needed to be a leader on and off the court.

Key Learning: Find out what your child’s passion is and get behind it any way you can.

2. Invest in Their Future

It’s easy to focus on the immediate needs of our kids. Does Johnny need new shoes already? What team is Emma going to play on this summer?

The challenging part is to ask questions that will position our kids for success 5-10 years from now.

What experiences will contribute to their development as a person and as a leader?

What environments will stretch them and broaden them in new ways? What investments do I need to make as a parent now to ensure the desired results years from now?

Kate and I have done our best to constantly expose our kids to new ideas and experiences. We think of these expenses as investments, not costs.

Key Learning: Invest in experiences that will help your kids stretch and grow.

3. Foster Their ‘Circle of Influence’

We all have a ‘circle of influence’ — a small group of people who influence our beliefs, attitudes, and actions.

For better or worse, the circle of influence for your kids is likely their friends. As parents, it’s easy to feel helpless about who’s in their circle of influence.

The good news is, you’re not helpless.

We can’t control their choice of friends, but we can put our kids in environments where they develop friendships and mentors with people we want our kids to be like.

As parents, Kate and I have been intention to surround our kids with special adults
they look up to, including aunts, uncles, family friends, and pastors.

We have also found inspiring models closer to their ages…

As our two boys love basketball, we send them to two PGC camps every single summer so they develop friendships with like-minded players and even greater-minded PGC directors.

This isn’t being sneaky. It’s just being smart.

As much as we love all they learn at PGC, we’re ultimately more concerned about who they become than what they learn.

Key Learning: Put your kids in environments that foster your desired circle of influence.

If you have a kid who loves the game and you want to fuel their passion, invest in their kids’ future, and foster an incredible circle of influence, I highly recommend sending them to a PGC camp this summer.

Joe Osborn from Fort Wayne, Indiana said:

“My son has been a different kid since PGC. Now he thinks talks and acts like a leader. He’s playing with passion, fire, and energy. Honestly, I can’t believe it is my son.”

And Coach Sean O’Neil said:

“I wanted to drop you a note and tell you how impressed I was with every aspect of the program. There are not many times that I think I got more than I paid for, but as far as I am concerned you couldn’t charge enough for the experience we both had. I believe this will change my son’s life as well as my own.”

While there are many camps close to selling out, there is still time to reserve your spot.

You can find your PGC camp here.

Here’s to setting our kids up for success!

All the best,

Mano