Developing Young Leaders: Stress-We Need it To Grow
November 4, 2024
Developing Young Leaders: Stress-We Need it To Grow
How we view stress can be the difference in it HELPING us grow or HURTING us grow.
Over the past few weeks in our Long-Term Athletic Development (LTAD) program, we’ve been focusing on labeling your level of stress and understanding the different zones we all go through which we’ve defined as:
The Comfort Zone
The Growth Zone
The Fear Zone
As the world has changed, it’s easy to put a label on stress as something bad—something to avoid at all costs. While it’s true that stress can accumulate and lead to us feeling overwhelmed, make us want to avoid doing certain things, and can be down right debilitating… but we must also consider stress as a key ingredient for growth.
Last week, we used one of our Prototype Performance and Recovery tools with the LTAD team to replicate how this shows up in everyday life. The group experienced their first cold plunge, which can be quite a stressful exercise. The buildup before entering the cold water and the initial shock is synonymous with how we overthink or project something may be worse than it actually is.
However, as you sit in the cold, you battle not just the physical discomfort but also the mental challenges that arise. I was impressed to see all the kids participate, with some reaching the five-minute mark with a full dunk—shoutout to Aiden, Carter, and George!
This experience was analogous to how we can pull ourselves out of the Fear Zone and into the Growth Zone. We’ve been discussing how quickly we can transition from fear to growth as a significant factor in building resilience.
The kids shared some real-life examples of being in the “Fear Zone”:
Making a mistake in a soccer game: “Once I make one mistake, I just think about not wanting to make another, and I end up not wanting the ball again.”
Taking a big test: “I study, but once I get started, I start second-guessing myself. I get in my head and can't focus.”
These examples highlight the importance of identifying where we stand on our stress meter. If we are merely flipping between fear and comfort, we miss opportunities for growth from the stress we encounter. One thing we are working on is recognizing when we face stress and seeing it as an opportunity for development. This understanding was reinforced during the cold plunge, as it provided a fun way for the kids to see this concept in real time.
In the past couple of weeks, we’ve hosted two high school girls’ soccer teams, Westborough and Hopkinton, for performance and recovery sessions as they head into the state cup playoffs. This was a great opportunity for team bonding, but we also emphasized that recovery is much more than just resting when muscles are sore—it’s a trainable skill. Proactive recovery involves baking in habits that help you bounce back as quickly as possible.
Waiting until you’re sore to add recovery to your training can be detrimental; the same applies to the mental side of life. If you wait until you’re overwhelmed or overly stressed to focus on recovery, it may be too late. You might not have built the resilience necessary to bounce back swiftly. I believe true resilience isn’t about preventing hard things from happening; it’s about how quickly you can process challenges and recover from them. Stress serves as the stimulus for growth, and recovery is where that growth occurs. Those who can recover faster will experience growth more quickly and won’t get knocked out of the game.
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Yesterday was a great reminder of what a little friendly competition can do. We set up a simple 1-v-1 game: kids had to sprint, tap two cones, and race back to knock over a foam roller. Nothing fancy, just movement, focus, and a clear goal. But something cool happened. The second it became head-to-head, the energy shifted. Kids were locked in. They ran harder. They pushed themselves—not because they were told to, but because someone else was giving it their all too. Even the kids watching got invested—shouting encouragement, clapping for effort, reacting to every close finish. That sense of shared experience, of community rooted in challenge, is exactly what youth development should be about. It was a perfect example of how competition, even in its simplest form, can bring out motivation and effort . Not for a prize, but just for the challenge of it. More Than a Game: The Real Value of Friendly Competition In today’s world of participation medals and well-meaning “everyone wins” culture, it’s easy to misunderstand the role of competition. But when designed thoughtfully and guided with intention, competition doesn’t diminish self-worth—it enhances it. According to a 2019 study published in Frontiers in Psychology, structured competition can lead to higher intrinsic motivation, improved self-esteem, and a greater sense of personal accomplishment in youth participants (Bonfiglio et al., 2019). When kids compete, they learn that effort yields results. They learn how to win graciously—and perhaps more importantly—how to lose with resilience. They discover the value of hard work, discipline, and focus. They get to ask: “How fast can I be?” “How far can I push myself?” And, “What happens if I try just a little harder?” The Pride in Performance There’s a moment—right after a child finishes a race, or a round of a competitive game—where they catch their breath, stand a little taller, and smile. Whether they won or not is almost secondary. What matters is that they showed up and gave their best effort. That sense of pride? That’s not vanity. It’s the birth of confidence. And when that confidence is built through movement, through play, through sweating and trying and doing—it sticks. Not just in sport, but in school, at home, in friendships, and beyond. Final Thoughts Competition, when framed the right way, helps kids build confidence, stay motivated, and take pride in their effort. It’s not about winning — it’s about showing up, trying hard, and learning what they’re capable of. At its best, competition doesn’t separate kids — it brings them together, showing them how to push themselves while supporting each other along the way.
It’s no secret — we’re living in a world that feels increasingly volatile. Financial markets are unpredictable. The news cycle is overwhelming, social media noise is constant and it's harder and harder to sort through what's real and what's not. And when uncertainty rises, it's human nature for people to start making emotional decisions. Being in the fitness industry for close to 20 years and operating Prototype Training Systems since 2012, I've seen this happen time and time again — not just in the stock market — but in our gym community. When we feel stressed financially (and trust me, i've been there as an entrepreneur), one of the first things they often cut is their investment in their health. Cancelling the gym. Skipping workouts. Pressing pause on coaching or training. We can go into a frenzy of what needs to be prioritized and what doesn't, and often it's rooted in anxiety and fear. On the surface, it makes sense: "Let me tighten up my budget until things feel safer." But here’s the truth — it’s completely backwards . Emotional Decisions Rarely Lead to Positive Outcomes In a recent conversation I had with Brendan Sheehan, founder of Waymark Wealth Management (and one of our community business sponsors), we talked about this exact thing. As we are facing that uncertainty now in the market. Click the link to listen to the full podcast! Brendan was sharing when the market drops — whether it’s 5%, 10%, or more — people panic. But the data shows this happens all the time. He shared that "the m arket dips of 5-10% happens three times a year on average." Dips of 10-20%? Happens at least once a year. It’s not unusual — but when emotions take over, we make decisions that can hurt long-term. And this same pattern can show up in health and fitness. Your Health is Not a Luxury — It’s Essential Let’s be real — when life feels hard, stressful, or uncertain, you need your health more than ever. Exercise isn't just about aesthetics or performance — it's your anchor. Working out helps you regulate stress, sleep better, stay clear-headed, and avoid the emotional roller coaster that uncertainty brings. Cutting your health investments when things get tough is like saying: "The storm is coming... so I'm going to throw away my umbrella." It doesn’t make sense, but this what happens when emotions are high, it's REALLY hard to make logical decisions. We can get into a binary mode of thinking... then we take action which often isn't fully thought out. The Vicious Cycle: Stress → Cut Health → Decline → Regret Here's the common pattern we’ve seen over the years... and I would argue is common in every gym across the country... Things get tough financially or emotionally. We go into "panic" mode... start to take action. People cut their gym membership or stop exercising. Maybe you over narrate it's not worth it... maybe you over narrate I'll just do it on my own and change my entire routine... or maybe you think it will only be very short term. Then, stress increases. Energy drops. Sleep gets worse. Health declines — physically and mentally. Time passes... regret kicks in. "I wish I hadn't stopped. Now it’s even harder to get back ." Sound familiar? It's a vicious cycle and REALLY hard to break. We’ve seen it over and over — and we’ve helped people climb back out of it. But we’d rather help you avoid that spiral in the first place. What Should You Do Instead? Have faith in your routine and take a second to pause before making a major life change. Double down on habits that ground you — like fitness, community, and nutrition. Talk to a coach. Share what’s stressing you out — we’re here to help. Be curious — ask questions before making big decisions. Remember: health is not the problem — it’s the solution. Final Thought: Uncertainty will always be part of life. Markets go up and down. Challenges will come and go. But the best investment you can make — in any economy — is in your physical and mental well-being. At Prototype Training Systems, we’re more than a gym. We’re a community that helps people stay grounded, consistent, and healthy — no matter what’s happening outside our walls. If you’re feeling the pull to cut your health in hard times — let’s talk. Book a Free Goal Review Session with a coach... seriously, we're here to help. We’ll help you navigate uncertainty the right way — by staying strong, staying consistent, and investing in yourself.
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