Your child’s extracurricular activities are something that almost every child participates in as they grow up. From theater to music lessons to sports practice, after school activities are just something every parent knows to anticipate.
These activities are ways to keep your children active, busy, and social outside of school, as well as teach your children life lessons outside of you. However, lifestyle author Erika Katz has found another use for them–a way for you to improve your parenting skills. More specially, she found ways for you to learn from one of the main influencers in a teenager’s life–their coach. According to Katz, “coaches are teachers,” and she applies the skills and teachings of football coaches to her life as a parent in “Coach Parenting: Raising Teenagers with Advice from Pro Football’s Greatest Head Coaches.”
Katz calls upon the National Football League’s top coaches, hall of famers, and players for tips on building and maintaining a championship winning team and a happy family. She chose to focus primarily on NFL coaches because football is an all-around team sport.
“[Football] is the one sport you can’t play alone…for family is it very similar,” Katz says. Football requires each player to work together effectively to win the game, which is exactly what a family requires, too. Each family member needs to work together to ensure each member’s success in life. Katz’s book gives step-by-step instruction to help parents accomplish that.
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Katz encourages communication and trust above all in a relationship between a parent and their children. “One of the hardest things that parents face is communicating with teenagers,” she says. The best coaches are the best communicators, and Katz advises even when teenagers begin to pull away and become independent to keep that open line of communication with them.
Her book touches on a wide range of topics for parents raising teenagers including parents being role models. Katz emphasizes that being a role model in the age of social media is important. Parents should present themselves on social media the same way they would want their children to present themselves. She advises not to post things you wouldn’t want your children posting.
She also emphasizes parents should also be a good role model in community service. Setting a good example for their kids. Players follow their coaches. Kids do the same with their parents. Kids will be as involved in the community as they see their parents are. Katz stresses parents have to “walk the walk.”
However, don’t just hear about Katz’s new book, read it for yourself. Her book is on sale on Amazon now. You can also catch Katz on one of the many shows she makes regular appearances on including “The Today Show,” “Access Hollywood,” “Fox News,” “Inside Edition,” “The Doctors,” and many local news networks.
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