I had heard that writing a book is only part of the bigger picture when a book comes out-- and people were right! "Properly" promoting a book is a full-time job, and often you are asked to write even more.
While I haven't been writing original content for my blog so much these days, that's because I've been writing a lot at other places. Here's a quick round-up of pieces you might want to check out.
[Researching PLAYING TO WIN inspired me to study youth sports injuries as a post-doctoral fellow at Harvard, in conjunction with researchers at Boston Children's Hospital and Princeton, as this was an issue on competitive dance and soccer. Our first paper out of the project was released last month in The American Journal of Sports Medicine, and more will hopefully be out soon. But this is such an important issue for parents with kids involved in any type of physical activity!]
I'm also gratified that the book has been getting a nice reception from readers and fellow social scientists. Please check out my review in Publishers Weekly! My favorite lines here include, "This impressive study... Friedman provides great insight... This study is vital reading for parents and educators interesting in how the American idea of winners and losers is trickling down to the next generation." The book also got some nice coverage on orgtheory, and I am extremely excited to reach a great group of parent readers through The Brilliant Book Club: Illuminating Reads for Parents over the next several weeks! You can also check out how PLAYING TO WIN fared doing The Page 99 Book test!
Hope you can come meet me in person at one of the book signings I have scheduled!
I'll even read for you:
Check out more pics from recent events, like this one, here.
And, if you can't, please send me photos of where you are reading PLAYING TO WIN!
I was recently quoted in a Chicago Tribune article about parents who brag too much (I promise I will try not to fall into this category myself!). Here's what I had to say: "The quality of the honor your kid is receiving should also enter into your calculations, according to sociologist Hilary Levey Friedman, author of the upcoming book Playing to Win: Raising Children in a Competitive Culture. 'One of the things that's occurred is what I call "the carving up of honor." We have all these awards that are given to kids these days so we (can) say, "My child won! My child's the champion!" But in reality what they won is some very small broken-down category like, they won for roller skating for 4-year-olds who have only been roller skating for three weeks.' Broadcasting these smaller awards can make the parent look silly and put undue pressure on children, Levey Friedman says. 'If it's a real, meaningful accomplishment it's not a bad thing to share that news with other people and for the child to celebrate that with their family members, perhaps with their friends,' she says."
When I write this monthly post I try to focus on kids who have achieved in meaningful ways beyond the carving up of honor. Of course, many of them do extraordinary things that get overlooked because they don't play football or basketball, or there is something different about them. In that spirit I present to you this month's honor roll of exceptional kids!
1) Kamron Doyle- Kamron is only in eighth grade, but he can roll with the best of them (pun intended). This 14-year-old phenom is a champion bowler. A few weeks ago he became the youngest bowler to ever reach the prize-money level in a Professional Bowlers Association tour event. What's amazing is that neither of his parents bowls, but they are supportive of him as he pursues this activity at such a high level. Best of all? All his winnings go straight into his college fund. It's not NBA-levels of cash, but it's a pretty good nest egg for a talented kid!
2) Lola Walters- This 13-year-old gymnast won't be in the running for the 2016 Olympics. But that doesn't make her any less incredible. Lola suffers for nystagmus, which leaves her legally blind. But that doesn't stop her from competing in gymnastics meets, tackling the beam and vault with aplomb. Watch her incredible story below.
3) Braedon Benedict-It's not just athletes who make the list, but also kids who use their brains when it comes to athletics. Case in point? Fifteen-year-old Braedon Benedict who invented a helmet to help warn players and coaches about concussions. The helmet is brilliant in its simplicity: it releases a dye when hit with enough force, visually showing that a player needs to be evaluated. Braedon is working on patenting his invention and he's already won a young scientist event. Let's hope he keeps using his head to come up with more inventions...
4) Lori Anne Madison- Lori Anne knows how to use her head as well. This six-year-old (yes, six!) is believed to be the youngest ever participant in the National Spelling Bee's 87 year history. Lori Anne is homeschooled, which allows her extra time to study her words. I wonder how long they will let her compete (the cut-off is eighth grade or age 15)? There are actually many, many rules associated with the Bee, which you can check out here; my favorite is, "The speller must not have repeated fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, or eighth grade for the purpose of extending spelling bee eligibility. If the speller has repeated fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, or eighth grade, the speller must notify the Scripps National Spelling Bee of the circumstances of grade repetition by March 23, 2011; and the Scripps National Spelling Bee will, in its sole discretion, determine the spellers eligibility status on or before April 30, 2011."
5) Willow Tufano- Also fascinating? Fourteen-year-old Willow Tufano, a Florida resident who is being hailed as a "mini-mogul." Willow bought a house in her neighborhood for $12,000 (she lives in an area hard but by the real estate bubble) and she now rents it out for $700 per month. How did she become a landlord? With the help of her real estate mom and some entrepreneurial spirit. She saved up the funds by collecting discarded furniture from foreclosed properties and selling it online.
Who knows, someday Kamron, Lola, Braedon, and Lori Anne could be buying mansions from Willow!
Check out more pics from recent events, like this one, here.
