Team Sports And Personal Development: How Are They Connected?

Team sports have an influence on personal development. Sport is an endless source of both physical and mental health. It not only helps us to release energy in a targeted and controlled way but can also be an incentive for our personal development.

Sport is an extraordinary tool during all stages of life. This is even more relevant when we are still young and developing our personalities.

The stages of childhood and adolescence are crucial. These are the periods in life when we are most vulnerable. Therefore, what happens during these phases will have a positive or negative influence on the development of us as individuals. In addition, it will affect our personal growth.

In many cases, the sports arena is the place where a person first starts working towards a common goal. Consequently, an individual sacrifices his own personal interests for the common interest in a team sport.

For example, a child may want to play the position of forward in a football team. But for the team, it would be better if the child plays as a fullback. It is time to negotiate, give in and appreciate the effects of generosity and sacrifice.

In this article, we want to talk about all the benefits that a team sport can offer. We start by discussing personal development.

What is personal development in team sports?

Personal development is a process where people try to discover or perfect all their potential strengths. The idea is to achieve our goals, desires and ambitions, motivated by our interest in achieving our goals and the need to give meaning to our lives (Dongil E. and Cano A., 2014).

This development depends on many factors, from the environment we grow up in, to our individual characteristics or the society we are in. In fact, we would say that biological processes and individual and social processes shape a personal development.

Erikson’s epigenetic principle states that all human beings have a basic developmental plan. Apart from this plan, which consists of all the parts, each of them has its most appropriate time for maturity and activity until they all work together (as quoted in Bordignon, 2005).

Team sports

With regard to the definition of personal development and how it is described in the introduction, it is easy to see the connection to sports.

In team sports, different teammates work together to achieve the goals of the game. The common goal should be achieved through a consensus strategy and approved by the members of the team.

In the same way, we could conclude that what motivates the group is to achieve the goals set in advance. It is important to understand that there are explicit rules that participants must follow to participate in a sport. As expected, these rules have to do with respect for the game, its teams and the people who participate.

Consequently, if the rules are not respected, sanctions from the judge will be implemented. It will also have consequences from the opposing team and the player’s own team. This idea of ​​standards is what enables athletes to stay in line and protect the sport from certain individuals and from other groups.

Given that sport can lead to personal development, the practice of a team sport comes with many benefits. In addition, sports promote skills and values ​​that can be developed through training:

• feelings of belonging
• teamwork
• respect
• decision making
• loyalty
• problem solving
• discipline
• responsibility
• empathy
• gender equality work
• active listening
• learning how to use your free time in a good way.

Conclusion

There are different ways to practice team sports. The most popular tend to be football and basketball. There are also many others, such as rugby, handball, water polo, synchronized swimming, volleyball, rafting, etc. All of these can lead to you as an individual being able to develop useful values ​​and learn pragmatic skills.

In summary, it is important to participate in activities that enable us to grow and develop in all aspects of life. As a result, they can help us remain independent and empowered people.