Reply to Are all teams so hard for teens to get volunteer hours?

Forum Index » Swimming and Diving

Reply to "Are all teams so hard for teens to get volunteer hours?"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Unfortunately there is so much drama, politics, and unfairness in summer teams from leadership. The swim team leaders (board or team reps) are volunteers. Many times they do a subpar job with the actual management of the team, volunteers, money, and coaches. Many of these leaders are parts of cliques of people who want influence. They often choose their friends and friends kids. They often don’t properly communicate to those who are not part of their clique. Some of the most disheartening adult behavior I’ve seen has been through summer swim team leaders and volunteers.

Your child may be better off and more protected from toxicity in another role.[/quote]

I don't necessarily see toxicity going on in OP's situation, just a tendency for involvement to feed on itself.  People looking for help, particularly specialized help, are going to start by asking themselves who they know who might be willing and able to do the job.  And if someone is available who is already trusted, the match is often more likely.  In my reading, OP's DCs do have opportunities to become better appreciated and more plugged into their pool community, but they will probably have to start in ways and places that were not on their first-preference list in order to build the relationships they need.  That's not necessarily toxic or even cliquish.

I can look at our team's tweens and guess which ones are going to be pre-team coaches in a few years.  They're not necessarily fast club swimmers, either: they are the ones who are always happy to lend a hand, whose attitude is friendly and supportive, and whose time commitment is visible.  And if I want my DCs to be considered in that group, I know that they need to show some altruism ahead of time, and I also know that I can ask our reps how they can help demonstrate their interest.[/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics