In the article, “Should Everyone Get A Trophy?” I learned that people have mixed feelings about giving participation trophies to the youth. Many sport programs have been rewarding trophies to athletes despite their performance. The positive of giving trophies to young athletes, is that it can help them celebrate for learning a new skill, having fun with their teammates, and as well as belonging to something bigger than themselves. Trophies can also reward those athletes that aren’t as talented as others. The negative of these participation trophies can be because it can build arrogance amongst the youth. They will tend to expect something now everytime they do something. Fun fact, Americans tend to spend $3 billion on trophies each year.
Personally, I believe that not everybody should get a trophy. Trophies should just be given to the best because it can build character and motivation for the rest. Many athletes can thank losing for their motivation to do better the next time they play. Overall, without getting a trophy for everything you do, it can make you value the time and hard work you put in when achieving that trophy.
Should Everyone Get a Trophy?
Juan,
I am intrigued by your post about the value of trophies and the lack of substance behind participation trophies because it explains the importance of failure. One thing you said that stands out for me is “[Trophies] can build character and motivation for the rest.” I find this very true as when I was younger, the prospect of winning a trophy excited me and inspired me to practice harder. As I grew older, I realized that the physical aspect of the trophy was not what I was so proud of. Rather, it was the fact that my dedication and hard work had manifested. The most important part of competition is that one learns and grows. Failure is inevitable and should not be shied away from since it too provides an amazing opportunity for growth. The existence of participation trophies, perhaps adequate for toddlers, should not be widely promoted among kids in order to teach them the lesson of failure. Thank you for your post! I look forward to seeing what you write next since your commentary was very enlightening and insightful. Great job!
Liann
Dear Juan :
I am surprised by your post, “Trophies”, because not everyone deserves them all the time. Being the best is different from succeeding. For example, a team can be undefeated, the best in their league, while another successful team only has one loss. The trophy should only go to one of these teams and that is the best.
One sentence you wrote that stands out for me is: “The negative of these participation trophies can be because it can build arrogance amongst the youth.” I think this is important because kids will get the mentality that second place is okay. They will still earn a trophy no matter what, right? I think in some cases participation trophies are fine, but at some point we all learn to fail. At some point we all learn that settling for lower is not a way to succeed in this world.
Thanks for your writing. I look forward to seeing what you write next, because we had similar outputs on this topic. It’s interesting to learn how others think about the importance of failing. I think we can learn a lot from each other.
Ricardo Sanchez
Wassup Juan, I read your article about trophies and all that. I’m an athlete so when I receive a participation trophy I look at it like a “Nice Try”. I think people who get 1st place should get trophies. When I don’t get a trophy I just accept the fact I didn’t do good and I have to push myself to become way better for the next time I compete. I do agree on the part of giving trophies for no reason is going to give people/youth a mindset of expecting something when they don’t get it. When getting a trophy for winning 1st place is a very happy moment but it pushed you more to go after another 1st place. But remember the person behind you wants 1st place as well.
Your essay on trophies is very interesting and something I never really thought on before. I agree that not everyone should get trophies, it seems like a lot of money is wasted on it and it can also make others feel as if they weren’t good enough for a bigger trophy.
Dear Juan,
I am very intrigued by your post-¨Trophies¨ because it shows that not everyone should get a trophy because the ones who actually got them to put a bot of time and effort into winning those trophies. And I also agree when someone else sees someone get a trophy it inspires them to give it their all the next time around. One sentence you wrote that stands out for me is ¨ The positive of giving trophies to young athletes, is that it can help them celebrate for learning a new skill, having fun with their teammates, and as well as belonging to something bigger than themselves.¨ I think this quote is interesting because it shows that if you work hard you are going to get rewarded in the long run. Also seeing someone else get a trophy inspires you to do better and achieve that trophy you desire. Anyways, thanks for you writing Juan I am going to be looking forward to your future writings.
Gerardo