Strive for Brave

Experts say that girls do better physically, mentally, emotionally and socially when they get the chance to play. But today, girls are dropping out of sports at twice the rate of boys. As part of Nike’s work with community partners and experts to reverse this drop-out trend, we created The Coaching Girls Guide: a resource to help mentor, empower and support young athletes.

Playing sports often requires taking chances. It takes vulnerability to learn a new skill, to run through an unfamiliar drill or to bet on yourself when charging that last defender. And while girls are often celebrated and rewarded for doing something correctly, they don’t get the same positive feedback when they try a new technique and fall short.

In a sport context, that means a girl might hesitate to try something if she isn’t sure she’ll succeed. But if she never tries that risky pass, avoids diving for a ball or only competes in the track event she’s best at, she’s going to miss out on a lot of incredible experiences.

Imagine a girl who takes a shot even when she isn’t sure she’s going to score. Or the one who tries the butterfly when freestyle is her strongest event. Another might give up eight goals when she fills in as keeper, but the shot she stopped is the one that gets remembered. These girls have learned to be brave and it will make all the difference for them—in sport and in life.

Check out this TED Talk to find out more about raising girls to be brave.