The concept of sports has existed in the world since centuries. Over the years, it has kept evolving and today is a major part of our lives. As defined, sports entails engaging physical and mental abilities for competitive or casual endeavor. Sporting activities help in improving emotional, physical and mental quotient. Any sporting activity performed either alone or in front of the crowd, offers entertainment.
It has also been found to be a wonderful way to make friendships. In fact, it has been proven that participating in high school athletics gives long-lasting, definitive benefits, especially when athletic leaders create an environment that challenges and rewards the growth mindset.
There are various forms of sports – from individual, groups or those requiring two participants. Classic examples include cricket, hockey, football, basketball, polo and so many more. Going beyond just the physical aspect, several competitive, but non-physical, activities claim recognition as mind sports such as chess and bridge.
At Orphicy our focus is on a 360-degree learning template wherein equivalent weightage is given to extra-curricular activities, personality development and sports. Engaging in any sport helps in building a strong and focused mindset; two qualities needed to develop competitive spirit.
By playing sports you are exposed to team building activities that give a better understanding of player strengths and the overall team dynamic. You end up developing trust, learn to respect one another, challenge each other to the highest standards, commit to doing your best, hold each other accountable, focus on the bigger picture and share the same vision or goals with the whole team. Sports builds robust personality that aid in performing all the tasks with perfection, ease and confidence.
Successful teams in sports add a layer of rivalry not seen in other kinds of teams. This kind of competition pushes a person to test their limits and make the most of their potential that sets them up for success in other areas of life as well.
It is very popularly said that, “play is the highest form of research” and when a child in its formative years starts playing sports, it positively impacts personality and brain development.
A lot of studies have been conducted for centuries on how sports help in building resilience and strength. Like studies on athletics conducted in early years focusing on how they ushered in community pride by winning laurels. Collective or individual wins have fostered a sense of pride for the participant and his community at large.
These studies progressed to explain how participation ushered in improvements in physical health, academic benchmarks and stress management. Today, there are numerous studies that focus on all types of participation benefits, when participants are supported in this way, they develop lifelong habits that transcend high school.
Of course, positive outcomes do not happen accidentally, and coaches play a huge role in athletes realizing the benefits of high school athletics. In many ways, coaches play the most significant role in setting the tone and standard of any sporting program.
In our dynamic, ever-changing, instant gratification environment, high school athletic contests are metaphorical classrooms that deliver eloquent learning for the students and athletes enrolling for them. Team building activities help build a critical foundation for students and the impact to the participants can be long-lasting and beneficial.
It is very rightly said that “talent may win games, but teamwork gets you the championship.” Teamwork and interacting with each other helps one learn that you have to benefit each other because you’d never be able to achieve anything individually.
By being in a team or playing against one, you also get exposed to the advantages of being in a competition not just with others but with yourself as well. It is hard to find progress in a place where there is no competition. Sports gives you the ideal platform to compete and become the best version of yourself.
Athletics transform and improve after each game. They learn about their limitations, decisions and physical strength. These choices have an impact on the game, the team and themselves. This journey of self-discovery helps them to gauge their strength, weakness, and opportunities.
These athletes also understand the kind of sacrifices they needed to make to accomplish a common goal, the kind of support they can give to teammates, and individually they need to modify their game and hold themselves responsible. The situations that athletes experience allows them to have an accurate understanding of goal setting and what they can attain as they move into the collegiate world and to professional sport.
Being in an athletic team also enables students to develop their empathetic skills, aiding them to understand themselves, the team, and others. At the start students may not have a clear understanding of how their participation will affect themselves or their team members. However, later they learn about themselves and even experiment in visualizing what they can attain. After which athletes have the potential to experience their perceived limitations and push past what they think they can accomplish.
In conclusion, by providing an atmosphere that encourages your children to engage in sports, you will set them to maintain great lifelong habits that will carry them closer to achieving success in all walks of life. Sports imbibes just the qualities required to create a perfect balance and break away from the chaos that surrounds us each day.
By Vipul Tyagi
CEO and Co-founder
EdTech Startup Orphicy
About the Author
Vipul Tyagi, CEO, and Co-founder of EdTech Startup Orphicy. An electronics and telecom engineer, Vipul co-founded Orphicy along with 3 academicians in 2020. The startup offers live online coaching for the school curriculum (Classes 5-10) and also helps students prepare for NTSE/ Olympiads and other competitive exams and has started enrollment for new sessions. The learning modules are designed with a holistic approach focusing on extracurricular activities along with academics. Orphicy is Vipul’s second entrepreneurial venture. His first business venture already rakes in revenues to the tune of 100 million INR.
