Some of the struggles I see today include: ● Entitlement: Expecting success without putting in the work. ● Accountability: Blaming coaches, parents, teammates, or circumstances instead of taking ownership. ● Resilience: Struggling to handle failure, rejection, and adversity. ● Integrity: Doing what’s right even when nobody is watching. ● Identity: Measuring self-worth through performance, popularity, or money. ● Relationships: Losing the ability to communicate, show respect, and build meaningful connections. But I don’t believe this generation is lost. I believe they’re growing up in a world that makes character development more challenging than ever. So how do we help? ✅ Lead by example. Young people watch what we do more than listen to what we say. ✅ Allow them to struggle. Growth often comes through adversity, not comfort. ✅ Teach responsibility. Actions have consequences, both good and bad. ✅ Celebrate character as much as performance. Recognize honesty, humility, work ethic, and leadership. ✅ Surround them with mentors who care about WHO they become, not just WHAT they accomplish. ✅ Help them develop an identity beyond sports, money, and recognition. This is a major reason why Beyond the Game exists. We want to help young athletes develop through our four pillars: Identity, Community, Health, and Money.