Taking on a new training assignment can be daunting regardless of how much experience you have. This is especially true if you're working with youth sports programs, where your role is equal parts development of new talent and role model responsible for fostering strength of character within young minds. These tips will help you cope with a new position and tackle the job for positive results.

Always Be Patient

This is one of the oldest coaching tips in the book, but it exists for a good reason. If an athlete doesn't seem to understand something you're saying, or can't quite get the hang of a new technique, don't become angry with them. Instead, try approaching the problem from a new angle. The goal should be to find solutions by changing the angle, not to become angry with someone because they don't grasp what you're trying to do. In addition, when you become angry with someone - especially a youngster - it has a much bigger impact on them because you are an authority figure. Always deal with this kind of situation calmly and patiently.

Utilize Positive Reinforcement

Youth sports participants are often struggling with a negative image of themselves. If you never complement them, you're just going to reinforce that image. Instead, try using positive reinforcement and encouragement. As the saying goes, you'll get more bees with honey than with vinegar. If you teach your players that positive behavior yields positive rewards, you'll see a lot more progress than if you teach them that negative behavior yields negativity.

Encourage Team Building

Coaching tips aren't just restricted to what you can do in the process of helping a team achieve victory. Sometimes, the team is your job: if they aren't able to bond, they won't be getting everything possible out of the experience, and they're also likely to play less well. Encourage the members of your squad to do things together outside of normal meeting times. Get them to rely on each other and encourage each other. When a team bonds like this, they become much more powerful.

Emphasize The Experience

Winning isn't everything, especially in youth sports. The experience is far more important, and it's up to you to communicate that message to your squad. If you put them under constant pressure to win and are visibly upset during any loss, you'll dishearten your team and teach them to focus purely on the results of an endeavor. Instead, you and your players should both focus on the experience, not the outcome. If you played the best game you've ever had, it doesn't matter whether at the end of the day you win or lose. What's important is that you did a great job. Even if you didn't play well, focus on the mistakes with an eye toward fixing them, not with an eye toward punishing or emphasizing a loss.