College Scholarships and Pro Potential

To set the record straight, I have no delusions that my kids will be professional athletes. You need rare, unbelievable talent and an amazing amount of luck to get to that level. And making it to the pros gets tougher every year as the world gets smaller and talent comes from far away lands.

Based on my kids current talent level vis-a-vis other kids their age, I do however think that my kids will be good enough to play in HS one day. And I think that they have an outside chance at playing a sport at the collegiate level. Their mom played softball in college. Rest assured, I'm saving money in a 529 every month.

It should also be noted, all kids develop differently. I have seen kids who were amazingly uncoordinated at a young age become HS stars. These were the kids who worked the hardest and wanted it the most. I have seen kids who were studs early in life fail later. From what I can tell, success came much too easily to the young studs in the beginning of their athletic careers and then they could not cope when the competition challenged them. They were probably coddled by coaches and never learned how to work hard. I have seen stud athletes burn out and walk away from the game they loved so much as a kid. And finally, injuries are a great unknown.

My job as a dad is to guide them not push them. I will get them the best training and work with them in the backyard whenever they want. And I will always celebrate hustle and hard work over scoring.