Butterflies....we've all experienced that nervous tingling in your stomach that we call butterflies. I know I did when I played, in fact, it was something that I had to come to grips as a real young child. I felt that nervousness and didn't know what it was and I didn't like it. In fact, it probably kept me from competing in some things until I realized what it was that I was feeling.Butterflies are that nervous feeling before you do anything that you aren't used to or that you feel when you are about to compete. I kinda feel that you aren't a true competitor if you don't have those feelings of getting ready to compete. If you don't have them it is usually for a bad reason (like you know you are going to get it handed to you, but I still got them even then because there was always that hope that we wouldn't).
When I played, I would have them in pre game warmups. All the way through when the first pitch or the jump ball went up....gone. I think it's great if you have them because you are ready to go out and compete and hopefully win. You might have them for another reason and it is because you don't think you are ready, but that hasn't been the case for me personally. I know we aren't always completely ready for games because of turn around or because we coach kids and they aren't getting our game plan the way we want them to, but we do prepare. Our kids should at least feel comfortable in knowing that the coaching staff has worked hard to do that...prepare them and allow them to use those butterflies in a competitive way.
For me, the butterflies start around June basketball, dissipates some until conditioning and stay until March and the tournament ends. It's because I want us ready to compete every single game. That's why when March comes around you will see a huge smile on my face and on spring break, I want to go have some fun. Because not only are there butterflies with me, but I put so much pressure on myself to prepare our kids...to take pride in what we do....to prepare that when the season ends the butterflies go away.
At least until June basketball starts.
