3 Tips on how to better juggle your hectic schedule

You have your big semester project due in 3 of your classes, 2 major exams and 1 essay due in your others. You're in season for school basketball, so you have 2-hour practices directly after school and you're playing club volleyball so twice a week you go straight from basketball practice to a 2-hour volleyball practice. You'd think the weekends would be a nice, relaxing time for you to get caught up on everything you left undone during the week, but after Friday night's game you're packing up in the car, headed to your out-of-town club volleyball tournament. You trade off between catching up on homework and catching up on sleep in the car. When Sunday rolls around you're barreling in late that night from the tournament and have to go crash hard to squeeze in your 5 hours of sleep before it all starts again Monday morning.
And managing your social life... oh wait, what's a social life? Who has time for that, anyway?

Borrowed from
searchingtheinnerme.blogspot.com.

Being an athlete saddles right up along with being so busy it can make many people's heads spin. It just comes with the territory.
So how in the world can you juggle it all?

Here are our top 3 tips on how to better juggle your schedule to keep you from LOSING YOUR MIND!...

1. Whose turn is it? Make sure you have your priorities straight.
Sit down and really think thoroughly about what "to do" on your list needs attention first. Remember, maintaining good grades is JUST AS IMPORTANT as maintaining your speed, vertical and agility in your sport(s). If your goal is to play collegiate ball of any kind, grades have to have the utmost priority. Make sure you know what needs to be done first on your list!
Practical step: Write down your entire "to do" list, categorizing it by schoolwork, class, sport, and chore. Now, take a highlighter of your choice and highlight the top one or two things that must be done first in each category. Decide that you will finish those today instead of tomorrow, and get crackin' until they are crossed off your list! Tomorrow, repeat.

2. But there's just no time! ...Make time.
It's really easy to get so overwhelmed that we start speaking in absolutes... "I'll NEVER be able to get this done in time!" or, "There's just NO WAY I can do this." Even though it feels like there's no time, it can be found.
Practical step: This is where the "power hour" comes in to play. During this hour of your choosing you set literally everything else aside but what you have to absolutely get done. Yes, that means no cell phone, no Facebook, no Twitter, NO INTERRUPTIONS for 60 minutes straight! Plug away, doing as much as you can as fast you can.. You'd be amazed at how much can get done when we refuse to be distracted!

3. Get enough sleep.
Hey, we heard that! Yeah, you, mumbling under your breath, "Who has time to sleep?" Well, it's important, so buckle down and make it a priority. A sleep-deprived student is an unhealthy student. Trust us, we really do know how you're feeling because we've been there! But when you don't get enough sleep your focus is lacking, your motor skills are slower, and your brain retention lessens. That said, going to bed an extra hour early is well worth rearranging your schedule a little bit.
Practical step: Pick 2 or 3 nights a week that you will absolutely, positively go to bed at a decent hour and get enough sleep. Try really hard to stick to these "sleep days." It will start to become a routine, and you'll be amazed at how much better you perform with just those few extra hours of sleep a week!

Remember, high school and college athletes are simply the best students out there. They are focused, determined, and goal-oriented. Athletes usually have high success rates in their grades and eventual careers because managing a hectic schedule has become second nature to them. If you are feeling buried, you're not alone! Many before you have gone forth and conquered... and you can too!

Happy juggling!
- Amarillo Juniors

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The "A's" of getting an Athletic Scholarship

We are so excited to share this week's blog with you! Read on as guest blogger Johnny Quinn, founder and president of The Athlete Watch, explains the three "A's" you need to get an athletic scholarship. And remember - it's never too early to start planning for your collegiate career!  

- Amarillo Juniors
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Johnny Quinn, founder and
president of
The Athlete Watch.com

You need all A's for an Athletic Scholarship.

The road to playing collegiate sports is not black and white. The Athlete Watch is designed to help guide student-athletes and parents down the right path to play at the next level. You need all A’s for an athletic scholarship and the first one is pretty obvious – “Academics.” Student-athletes must have the grades to get into college and the desire to earn a degree. Academic standards for higher learning institutions are getting stricter every year, and with an ample amount of student-athletes out there for coaches to recruit, if you fall behind on your grades, you fall off a coach’s radar. 

“Athletic ability” is a vital part in the college recruiting process. Student-athletes must have the necessary skills coupled with the ability to outwork the competition. Today, student-athletes are bigger, stronger and faster and will continue to push the physical boundaries in high school athletics. In the realm of athletic competition and scholarship searching, it is a dog-eat-dog world... so you better be hungry.   

Rounding out the all A’s is the “Ability to market yourself.” Do not be fooled with the numerous companies and services charging thousands of dollars to join their network of coaches. As a former student-athlete who lived through the college recruiting process, my family could not afford those astronomical prices. Looking back, even if we could have afforded those services, we would not have fallen victim to their marketing tricks. The NCAA has an abundance of FREE and valuable tools to help families search for scholarships. Combine those tools with a student-athlete profile and skills tape from The Athlete Watch, and you now have an affordable and effective game plan.

- Johnny Quinn, Founder and President of The Athlete Watch and a Non-Recruited Student-Athlete

Johnny Quinn is a former NFL pro and has been a member of the US Olympic bobsled team since 2010. A McKinney, Texas native, Johnny grew up playing sports, and was a 5-A First-Team All-State wide receiver at McKinney High School, leading the state of Texas in receptions and finishing second in receiving touchdowns his senior year. After his successful high school career, Johnny went to the University of North Texas and became the University’s All-Time Leading Receiver. He was also a track walk-on who anchored the relay team to its third fastest time in school history. In 2011 Johnny was inducted into the University of North Texas Hall of Fame for his athletic success. After graduating with his Bachelors of Science in Pre Law, Johnny became a professional football player, spending time with the NFL’s Green Bay Packers and Buffalo Bills. In 2010 he sent film showcasing his speed and acceleration to Olympic bobsled athlete Chuck Berkeley, who passed it along to driver Cory Butner. Johnny showed up the night before 4-man team trials and his very first push was the next day on ice in Lake Placid, NY during the 2010-2011 season, where the team finished third. Johnny spends his off-season in McKinney, training at the Michael Johnson Performance Center. He is the Founder and President of TheAthleteWatch.com, a digital platform for student-athletes to market themselves to colleges and universities around the nation.

To learn more about The Athlete Watch click here, here, or here!

To hear Johnny Quinn's interview with Amarillo Juniors coach Madelyn Vieth on her radio show, "Get Real with The getREAL Coach," click here!

What's my role as the parent of an athlete?

Sometimes, knowing your role as a parent when it comes to your child's sports team is tricky. Do I push her, or am I pushing too hard? Am I teaching her discipline, or am I forcing her to do something she just isn't that interested in? There are a lot of questions.
At Monday night's parent meeting we had Licensed Professional Counselor (and mom of a 12-year-old in our club) LeAnn Sorrels speak to the parent's in attendance about their role. LeAnn, who has 23 years of experience in her field, now has a few years under her belt as the mom of a club volleyball athlete. Between that and her job, she's learned a few things that she shared with the group.
Her acronym: SUPPORT.


S- self-confidence
U- understanding
P- positive visualization
P- parental role
O- optimism
R- respect
T- team

Licensed Family Counselor and mom of an Amarillo Juniors
athlete LeAnn Sorrels talks at Monday's 12s parent meeting.
LeAnn shared what she has learned in her experience as
a parent of an athlete combined with her 23 years of
counseling practice.

Self-confidence is something that every person, at some point in time, has struggled with. On and off the court, learning how to have and maintain confidence is essential to success on all levels. As a parent (trust us, we've all been there!) we know how easy it is to get absolutely absorbed in the game. You feel what your child feels. You yearn to see your child succeed. Overall, though, according to LeAnn, your best bet as a parent is to be your child's biggest cheerleader. Which leads to the "U" - understanding. Be encouraging and help instill self-confidence in them by providing encouraging words before AND after their games, at home, away from home, at school... positive reinforcement, LeAnn says, really is key. After all, most players are hard enough on themselves already!

Positive visualization is something you will hear most life-coach professionals talk about. It's important to see yourself succeeding at whatever you're doing, and that stands true on the volleyball court. Always encourage your child to focus on how they want to perform a task, not on how they didn't perform it well the first time. Help them to imagine where it is they want to be and then guide them in taking steps toward those goals. Coaches call this "next ball mentality" - which is essentially a player's ability to move on from the last play and focus on the play at hand. "Not commenting on what your child is doing well is creating a cognitive path to focus on mistakes not accomplishments," LeAnn said, "instead of a cognitive path to 'I will get this; it will come as I practice and visualize!'"

And next comes parental role. Ahhh parental role. What a fine line walked, eh? According to LeAnn, some of the biggest mistakes a parent can make are:
1. Pushing too hard.
"This stifles the fun of learning and creates a path for them to start beating themselves up if they make mistakes," LeAnn said. "Be sure this is your child's dream, not just yours."
2. Yelling/coaching during the game or between games.
Essentially there are too many chiefs! Your child's eagerness to please both you and her coach can take its toll. Also, she may be getting conflicting messages between you and her coaches, LeAnn said.

How about this one (the glass is half-full!)... optimism! What an important life-tool. Again, this goes back to positive reinforcement. Teach your child to always be optimistic about what she can achieve, and she will likely get there! (Insert parental lesson here: We can all benefit from this! If we talk positively and optimistically to ourselves instead of negatively we are far more likely to succeed.)

Also, be sure that you are respecting the leadership of your child's coach. For any parent out there who has ever coached a sport, you can attest to the fact that it's not easy! LeAnn has learned that you have to trust and respect your coaches' decisions, she said. It's not always easy to understand why your daughter may have a certain role on her team, but it's important to remember that a coach has a reason for everything. Respect the coaches' knowledge of the game and, if necessary, schedule a time to talk more extensively (and calmy) about why certain decisions have been made.

And lastly, team. Every team-sport athlete has to have a "WE is greater than ME" mentality. The bottom line is, all decisions that are made have to best benefit the team, not just the individual. In club sports, parents, too, are members of the team. Obviously, you parents out there play an essential role in helping the coach guide your athlete to success. If you all work toward the same goal together and "play" for one another, not against one another, the season will be successful AND it will be FUN!

Thanks, LeAnn, for sharing your insights with us!

- Amarillo Juniors

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A chat with Misty May-Treanor



Misty May-Treanor digging a ball.
Photo courtesy of zimbio.com via Google images



Today we chatted live with Misty May-Treanor on Twitter ! It was very cool. We got to pick her brain a little (in under 140 characters - yes, it was impressive). In case you missed it, here's a quick re-cap...

@AmarilloJuniors: @MistyMayTreanor How important is #club #volleyball to getting a college scholarship? #livechat

We were curious about Misty's opinion on the importance of club volleyball in getting a collegiate scholarship. Obviously, we think it's very important. Her answer was right in line with what we think!

@MistyMayTreanor: @AmarilloJuniors I think that playing club is important, that is where most of the college coaches search out players, also training is key.

We couldn't agree more! To add to that, since high school volleyball seasons and collegiate volleyball seasons coincide, most college coaches only have the opportunity to scout athletes during off season, which so happens to be club volleyball season. Additionally, when college coaches go to large club tournaments they have the opportunity to see many athletes in one location, as opposed to a visit to one particular high school to watch one athlete.

We were also curious about what age Misty thought is a good starting point for girls to play club volleyball. This is definitely a hot topic, not just locally, but nationally as well. In the Panhandle it's typical for girls to start playing club volleyball around ages 9 and 10.

@AmarilloJuniors: @MistyMayTreanor Thanks! We agree! What would you say is a good age to start playing #club #volleyball? #livechat

@MistyMayTreanor: @AmarilloJuniors I started when I was 10 but I like kids playing all the sports that they can along with club volleyball

We thought this was interesting, so we asked...

@AmarilloJuniors: @MistyMayTreanor Gotcha. What's your no. 1 reason for preferring kids play multiple sports in addition to #club #volleyball?

@MistyMayTreanor: @AmarilloJuniors I think it prevents overuse injuries, burn out, and helps them develop into better all around athletes

Very good points! Burn out is especially an issue for athletes who play a single sport year 'round starting at a young age. As athletes get older, however, it becomes harder and harder to be a multi-sport athlete. (Not to mention more expensive and time consuming for you parents out there.) Misty herself grew up playing tennis and soccer in addition to volleyball. She was also in dance. Aaaaand now she is the winningest female volleyball player with 107 career wins and a two-time gold medalist at the summer Olympics in both 2004 and 2008, according to her website, http://www.mistymay.com/. We can see her point, here, for sure.

To wrap up our Q&A we inquired about the important role a parent plays in their child's success or failure in a sport.

@AmarilloJuniors: @MistyMayTreanor Good point! Last question from us: Any words of wisdom to the PARENTS of athletes out there? #livechat

@MistyMayTreanor: @AmarilloJuniors be supportive and be a fan.

Well Misty, we couldn't agree more!

- Amarillo Juniors Volleyball Club

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Welcome!

Welcome to the Amarillo Juniors Volleyball Club blog! We're excited to share insight, tips, and information with you guys about all things volleyball!
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Check back soon for our first post, "Top 3 ways to get NOTICED at tryouts."

- Amarillo Juniors Volleyball Club

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