Kids are not Pros Essays - Youth Athletics, Sport, Fun, Play, Kids

Kids Are Not Pros An important issue is the difference between youth and professional participants of sport. The major goals of professional sports are directly linked to their status in the entertainment industry. The goals of professional sports, simply stated, are to entertain and ultimately to make money. Financial success is of primary importance and depends heavily on a product orientation, namely winning. In the professional sport world, players are commodities to be bought, sold and traded. Their value is based on how much they contribute to winning and profit making. Professional athletes are often glorified by the media to create an image intended to generate interest in the team and to draw paying customers. The professional coach?s job is to win. A win at all costs philosophy is required for advancement. Youth sports are played to develop a child and not to exploit the child for the sake of money. The most important product is not how many wins or dollars, but rather, the quality of the experience for the child. In this sense, sport participation is an educational process whereby children can learn to cope with realities they will face later in life. Although winning is sought after, it is by no means the primary goal. The profit is measured not in the terms of dollars and cents, but in terms of the skills and personal characteristics that are acquired. Fun, a term we use quite often. Certainly it?s easy to tell when people are having fun. They show it in their expression of happiness, satisfaction, and enthusiasm. Being with others, meeting challenges, feeling the drama of uncertain outcomes, becomes more skilled-all of these add to the fun of sports. ?The importance of having fun is also shown in other scientific studies. A sport psychologist, Dr. Daniel Gould, summarized the results of two surveys conducted in the United States and Canada. The studies indicated that young athletes most often say they participate in organized sports for the following reasons: 1.To have fun. 2. To improve their skills and learn new skills. 3. To be with their friends or make new friends. 4. For thrills and excitement. 5. To succeed or win 6. To become physically fit.? (Smith, 2002) A career in professional sports or even participation at the college level is an unrealistic goal for the majority of young athletes. It is therefore important to impress on youngsters that sport is but one part of life for a well-rounded person. It is all too easy for young athletes to harbor fantasies of turning pro and to sacrifice other areas of their development in pursuit of that fabled status and its rewards of fame, money and glory. As valuable as athletics can be for development children, social and academic development, spiritual enrichment, and quality of family life should not suffer. Sport can offer both fun and fulfillment, but there is more to life than sports. Perhaps the best advice we can give is to encourage children to participate in sports if they wish. But at the same time coaches should help athletes to understand that sport participation is not an end in itself, but a means of achieving various goals. You can teach them to enjoy the process of competition for itself, rather than to focus on such end products as victories and trophies. Neither victory nor defeat should be blown out of proportion, and no coach should permit a child to define his or her self-worth purely on the basis of sport performance. By keeping sports in perspective, you can make them a source of personal growth and enrichment. Youth sports are also an important social activity in which children can make new friends and acquaintances and become part of an ever-expanding social network. Furthermore, sports an serve to bring families closer together. Finally of course, youth sports are or should be just plain fun.

The Importance of Accountability Essays

The Importance of Accountability Essays The Importance of Accountability Essay The Importance of Accountability Essay The Importance of Accountability is one of the basic principles that the U. S. Army engrains into its soldiers. From the moment they step out of the bus in basic training, a simple rule is told to soldiers so that they can be successful in their military careers. This rule is, â€Å"Be at the right place, at the right time, in the right uniform. † This is all for the purpose of accountability, which is extremely important because no mission can start without it. Any mission with which the unit is tasked from the very small to the gigantic starts with accountability. From preventive maintenance checks and services on Monday mornings, to cleaning the battery, to mowing the lawn, they all begin with taking accountability of the soldiers who are participating in the tasks. Accountability is defined as, â€Å"Obligation of an individual, firm, or institution to account for its activities, accept responsibility for them, and to disclose the results in a transparent manner. † The Army is an institution that is very much like a human body, and the soldiers are the veins in that body. In order for the body to operate at maximum efficiency it needs all its veins to be pumping at full capacity. Accountability is also important for other reasons. Every soldier in the unit, after they complete their day’s work goes to do their personal activities. Some live off- post, some in the barracks, others elsewhere on post. Regardless of where the soldier lives, they are always at risk. These risks could be anything: they could be robbed at a gas station, beat up at a club, their house could catch fire, or they could get into a car accident. The dangers are endless, but that does not change the fact that each soldier is the responsibility of the First Sargent and Commander in the unit and they are representatives of the Army. This is the reason behind accountability formations in the morning. Every soldier must report that they are safe and ready to continue working without any issues. It is so important that Personnel Data System reports are sent up daily reporting the whereabouts of every soldier, and every unit does the same procedures daily. It is a soldier’s responsibility to be present at and punctual to these formations for the above reasons. The importance and imperativeness of Accountability extends not only to showing up on time for formations, but also in our actions throughout the day. We are held responsible and accountable for every action or inaction we take in our jobs. For example, doing a bad job on a task affects not only one soldier, but everyone else involved. This basic rule teaches soldiers to take responsibility for their actions so that when they are down range and their actions can mean life or death in any given situation, they will be adequately prepared and know what is expected of them. In addition to being responsible for what we do in the tasks that we’re given, we are also responsible for doing the right thing even when nobody is around to correct our mistakes. We must always do the right thing, whether or not anyone is going to reprimand us. For instance, a soldier might think there is no harm in Facebooking while they are supposed to be working, but a disciplined individual would recognize that this is inappropriate behavior, even if it is not corrected by anyone else. Another solider might think it’s acceptable to slip out and take a nap in the bathroom because nobody is watching. Again, this soldier should know what is expected of them and that part of accountability is doing the right thing even when it interferes with what we want to do. Finally, to be unsuccessful in attending accountability formation shows that the soldier is irresponsible and/or has let his standards drop. These habits must be curbed to prevent the soldier from continuing on and making further mistakes and putting others, as well as himself, at risk in the future. Everybody slips up now and then, but it is important that those around us correct the bad habits we exhibit. We are soldiers, and we are professionals. If we can’t achieve perfect Accountability and responsibility for our actions when we are not at war, then what happens when we are? This reality is often forgotten by soldiers, because it is inconvenient. We are not, however, supposed to do what is convenient, we are supposed to do what is right.

Marketing Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Marketing Management - Assignment Example Coca-Cola offers more than 500 brands in 200 countries serving 1.7 billion each day. The target market of Coca-Cola is not restricted to any area, gender or age. In fact, it is globally present and serves homes, offices, bars and restaurants; it identifies with youngsters, while is also targets the older age groups. The selling concept was exemplified in the thinking of Coca-Cola former vice president Sergio Zyman who said â€Å"the main objective of marketing was to sell more stuff to more people more often for more money to gain more profits.† (Yoffie and Wang, 2002) Coca Cola uses two varieties - one with sugar and another for all users. The product packaging incorporates the contour bottle design and the dynamic ribbon, shape and form. The bottle sometimes includes the native language of the region and it is designed in the same size as the beverage bottles or cans. Pepsi is the main rival of Coca Cola and many local brands compete with Coke in various regions as well. Coca-Cola produces more than 35,000 beverages. The company uses multi-brand marketing strategy, offering a wide range of beverage products to ensure customers a wide choice. The major brands launched are Coca-Cola, Fanta, Sprite and Diet Coke. Diet beverage was launched in 2001. Moreover, fruit drinks, coffees, teas and other forms of drinks were also introduced. Mineral water Kinley was launched soon afterwards (Dawar and Dai, 2003). Additionally, syrups and concentrates are also part of the product line up. For health conscious customers, energy drinks such as Powerade have been launched too. Coca Cola are packaged into 2 litres, 1.25 litres, 600 ml and 300 ml packages and these are also available in 375 ml aluminium cans. Coca-Cola favoured differentiated pricing model. Meet-the-competition pricing and psychological pricing models are used, which is suitable for varying customer segments and there are many products in a

Reflection Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 8

Reflection Paper - Essay Example Similar to workers, we, the students, also need to acquire at least minimal self-management skills in our academic activity as it helps a lot to adjust the process of knowledge acquisition for ourselves in a way that would show the most fruitful results. Setting right goals, developing a strategy of their achievement and reasonable and considered time management are inseparable parts of being successful academically, i.e. successful learner. However, successful learners are not those who simply know more that others, they are also students who have more efficient and effective learning strategies that help them access and use acquired knowledge, possess steady motivation and self-monitoring skills (Dembo & Seli). To my thinking, the most successful learners are those who organize and manage their academic activity and time so smoothly that they avoid stress and are never overwhelmed with exhausting homework, they take learning easy and at the same time manage ti achieve favorable res ults. What is also important, academic self-management should enable students to maintain balance between serious learning process and fun campus activity. Gaining control over the factors that might influence learning and academic performance – and there are plenty of them – the student will be able to eliminate unfavorable factors or at least reduce their impact to the very minimum. It is fully understandable that we all are so different and various factors may produce different impact on us and each of two students studying the same major may feel their effect to certain extent. What is extremely stressful for me, might be harmless for someone else. Thus, the primary task is to explore our psyche, inclinations and personal peculiarities in order to learn to regulate, monitor, evaluate and reinforce our life and academic performance in the most efficient way. Willing to

14-year old girl was found unconscious near Expo Center Essay Example for Free

14-year old girl was found unconscious near Expo Center Essay KARACHI: An earthquake of magnitude 4.6 on the Richter scale rocked the coastal city of Karachi and adjacent areas late on Monday night. According to the seismic center, the epicenter of the quake was 10 kilometers deep in Hub, Balochistan he police on Monday night identified those six deceased people whose bodies were found dumped . Khan was strangled to death by unknown people along with his wife Nadia Amer and three sons Roman Khan, Adam Khan and Haider Khan and his 24-year-old servant. According to sources, Ameerullah Khan, a millionaire, was the the owner of real estate worth millions of rupees in Peshawar. Reportedly, he was not only engaged in a dispute with his brother and brother-in-law over the ownership of the property but was also receiving threats from land mafia. KARACHI: Eid-ul-Azha today (Tuesday) is being celebrated in Saudi Arabia besides Gulf, European, Far Eastern countries, US and Europe, Eid-ul-Azha will be celebrated in Pakistan tomorrow Wednesday, while the Pakistani expatriates in US and Europe like our northern areas would also be celebrating two eids, as some of them slaughtering sacrificial animals on Tuesday, while others would be doing so on Wednesday. See more: Sleep Deprivation Problem Solution Speech Essay ISLAMABAD: Pakistani troops early Tuesday morning responded to the unprovoked firing by Indian forces across the Line of Control (LoC) and reduced them to silence, The sources further said that Pakistans tit-for-tat retaliation forced the enemy to retreat to its bunkers. LONDON — Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani schoolgirl who wasshot in the head by the Taliban for her advocacy of girls’ education, was awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought on Thursday by the European Parliament. Ms. Yousafzai was chosen as the winner of the $65,000 Sakharov Prize by the heads of the political groupings in the 766-member European Parliament. LONDON — The Pakistani police arrested Pervez Musharraf, the nation’s former military ruler, on Thursday, opening a new criminal prosecution against him that frustrated plans by his supporters to fly him out of Pakistan. Muhammad Rizwan, a senior Islamabad police official, told reporters that Mr. Musharraf would remain under house arrest at his villa outside Islamabad, where he has been confined since April. It is not clear, however, whether the court order represents a major obstacle to Mr. Musharraf’s plans to leave Pakistan, or a temporary one. deadlysiege of the Red Mosque in Islamabad in 2007. A Pakistani court granted bail on Wednesday to Pervez Musharraf, the country’s former military ruler, clearing the way for him to leave the country as early as Thursday, his lawyers said. Mr. Musharraf, 70, has been under house arrest at his villa outside Islamabad since April, facing criminal charges in three cases related to his nine years in power, from 1999 to 2008. Mr. Musharraf had already been granted bail in two of the three cases, and the decision on Wednesday to grant bail in the third — related to the death of Akbar Khan Bugti, a Baluch nationalist leader killed in a military operation — opens the door for him to avoid prosecution entirely. Mr. Musharraf’s lawyers said that his bail payment of $20,000 could be processed as early as Thursday morning; he could then leave Pakistan immediately.

The Accumulation of Slack :: Slacking Slack Slacker papers

The Accumulation of Slack I want to begin with an apology. This paper may be little more than a tissue of puns punctuated by obscure cultural texts. It was composed quickly: after a late cancellation from this panel, I volunteered to pick up the slack. (Yes, that was the first pun.) Now, in proper Freudian fashion, I will follow that apology with an accusation: in 2003, the topic of "slacker culture" sounds dangerously close to out of date, or at least out of fashion. We critics must have become slackers ourselves, content to re-analyze stale fads when we ought to be braving untrammeled new ground with the gender politics of Eminem, or the fetish scene of "American Idol." But fortunately things are not so simple. There is an advantage to a certain historical distance taken from one's subject, as it is especially easy for cultural criticism to get caught up in fad-chasing. Rather than striving for a tauter, tighter connection to the current moment, then, let's enjoy the historical slack that has already accumulated between "slacker culture" and ourselves. If we wish to create "more a description of men than manners" (35), then for us as newly outdated slacker scholars the same doctrine applies that Sir Walter Scott famously gave about the setting of his Waverley: "Considering the disadvantages inseparable from this part of my subject, I must be understood to have resolved to avoid them as much as possible" (35). Unlike Scott we may not do this "by throwing the force of my narrative upon the characters and passions of the actors" (35) as Scott did. Instead, let's fix for a moment on a question. What is "slack"? What is this substance that those devilishly ironic slackers so earnestly want to accumulate? What are the structural characteristics of slack, considered as a substance circulated in a metaphorical or real economy? Should we seek slack, or avoid it? It seems to me that this set of questions is the best way to approach a political and economic evaluation of the slacker phenomenon. I want to suggest a few answers by reading different representations of the economy of slack, along with some familiar Marxist cultural criticism. The question of the political economy of slack is an excellent example of a broader dynamic in cultural studies, in that the initially tempting, apparently orthodox cultural-studies reading of slack (which I am about to construct) will turn out to be precisely wrong in its zeal to construe slack as a form of liberation.

Starbucks Financial Analysis

Starbucks is a strong competitor in the service sector and a leader in the gourmet coffee industry. With a continued growth rate in store openings and maintaining successful profitability of its operations, Starbucks has demonstrated its ability to sustain a reliable and steady growth. Starbucks’ ability to contend with the vulnerability to current financial threats such as economic recession, higher interest rates, and global competition, is constantly proven by its incomparable brand image, its continual product innovations, and its exceptional customer service. This also proves to be its strongest investment strategy.One strategic way to evaluate the vulnerability of Starbucks to current financial threats is to execute a SWOT Analysis. A SWOT analysis is a situation analysis in which the strengths and weaknesses of an organization, and external opportunities and threats it faces are examined to chart a strategy (Business Dictionary, 2012).SWOT is the acronym for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The purpose of the SWOT analysis is to assess what an organization can and cannot do in addition to evaluating the potential opportunities and any financial and economical threats it may face.Over the years, Starbucks have developed much successful strengths. Here are a few of the most recognizable strengths: The quality of their coffee is considered the highest in the world. They engage with customers and the communities to provide better business.Starbucks has over 17,000 stores globally in convenient locations to attract more customers. Starbucks have expanded their product line to sandwiches, pastries, and natural tea-blend drinks. Starbucks have loyal employees who are valued, motivated, and hard-working and are provided a pleasant working environment.They have exceptional relationships with all suppliers which helps them exceed as industry market leaders. Over the past several years, Starbucks has received several award and recognitions such as â€Å"No. 1 Best Coffee† and â€Å"No. 1 Most Popular Quick Refreshment Chain† by Zagat’s Survey of National Chain Restaurants, one of â€Å"The Best 100 Companies to Work For† by Fortune Magazine, one of the â€Å"World’s Most Ethical Compamies† by Ethisphere, and one of the â€Å"World’s 50 most Innovative Companies† by Fast Company. With all companies, where there are strengths there are weaknesses.Starbucks have noted and viable strengths, but they have weaknesses that could overshadow the success of these strengths placing them a step or two behind their competitors. Here are some of their weaknesses: The size of the company is larger than most of their competitors, lack of internal focus because much focus is on expansion and not on the diversification of other sectors, product pricing is overstated because of their premium brand coffee, which demands premium pricing, and excessive dependency on coffee-alone produ cts.Starbucks have willed many opportunities to become the most valuable gourmet coffee leader in the world. They have already succeeded in expanding their product line by introducing the world to cold coffee beverages, flavored herbal drinks, and hot sandwiches and salads for lunch.So, now they have the opportunity to continue to expand in their development overseas, continue their innovation and commitment to product development, and possibly co-brand with other manufacturers of food and drinks to help expand their product line.The competition in gourmet coffee in general has proved to be more advanced than one would imagine. So, it’s no surprise that the competition would be one the most highly doable threats. With coffee sellers ranging from coffee houses to restaurants and fast-food carry-outs such as McDonald’s, Starbucks has to contend with ensuring that they maintain their perfection in coffee and customer service to avoid such threats. Another major threat is the economy. The state of the economy today, particularly in the future depends especially on consumer spending.This would play a key role in Starbucks’ sales growth and profits. Factors such as increased debt service levels resulting from interest rate changes, downturn in the housing market, and the increase in oil and gas prices would affect optional spending.Now that the assessment of the SWOT analysis has been completed, it’s time to determine the financial performance of Starbucks over the past three years and predict how it will perform in the future by using financial ratio analysis. This will be determined by examining the Income Statement and Balance Sheet as of FY 2011.Consolidated Statements Of Earnings (USD $)12 Months EndedIn Millions, except Per Share data Oct. 02, 2011 Oct. 03, 2010 Sep. 27, 2009 Net revenues: Company-operated stores $ 9,632.4 $ 8,963.5 $ 8,180.1 Licensed stores 1,007.50875.2795 CPG, foodservice and other 1,060.50868.7799.5 Total net re venues 11,700.4010,707.409,774.60 Cost of sales including occupancy costs 4,949.304,458.604,324.90 Store operating expenses 3,665.103,551.403,425.10 Other operating expenses 402293.2264.4 Depreciation and amortization expenses 523.3510.4534.7 General and administrative expenses 636.1569.5453 Restructuring charges 053332.4 Total operating expenses 10,175.809,436.109,334.50 Gain on sale of properties 30.200 Income from equity investees 173.7148.1121.9 Operating income 1,728.501,419.40562 Interest income and other, net 115.950.337 Interest expense 33.3-32.7-39.1 Earnings before income taxes 1,811.101,437559.9 Income taxes 563.1488.7168.4 Net earnings including noncontrolling interests 1,248948.3391.5 Net earnings (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests 2.32.70.7 Net earnings attributable to Starbucks $ 1,245.7 $ 945.6 $ 390.8 Earnings per share – basic $ 1.66 $ 1.27 $ 0.53 Earnings per share – diluted $ 1.62 $ 1.24 $ 0.52 Weighted average shares outstanding: Basic 748.3744.4738.7 Diluted 769.7764.2745.9 Cash dividends declared per share $ 0.56 $ 0.36 $ 0In reviewing the Income Statement for Starbucks from 2009 to 2011, it is evident that the company has successfully increased its profitability through performance each year by almost 10%. Its income from operation has almost tripled from 2009. Based on Starbucks’ continued plan of expansion, this financial progression depicts a continuous trend.As noted in the financial statement above and pictured in the chart below, Starbucks obtains the majority of its revenue from its company-operated stores. This proves that if Starbucks continues its expansion of retail stores, the revenue from these sales will continue to rise as it has in the past 10 years. The company’s share earnings have also spiked in the last three years by almost doubling between 2009 and 2010 and up 31% in 2011.The financial ratio analysis will provide an assessment of the stability and profitability of Starbucks and allow investors and shareholders to determine the probability of a profitable future. Below is a chart of different financial ratios used to describe the different criteria for Starbucks and to evaluate the past three years. Profitability – Revenue201120102009Gross Profit 57.7%   58.4%   55.8% EBIT Ratio 15.5%   13.4%   5.7%The first set of ratios measures the profitability of Starbucks. These ratios measure the effectiveness of Starbucks capital. A high profitability could be attributed to effective competency. This chart shows that Starbucks have maintained an elevated profit margin, which indicates its ability to manage its largest assets costs.The other ratio, EBIT measures the overall operating efficiency. The next chart shows the liquidity ratios of the firm which indicates how efficient Starbucks handles its short-term obligations. Short-term liquidity includes items that are to be received or paid in cash within a year.A ratio of 2 is the ideal rate for a good standing company using the current ratio. This indicates that the company can pay its creditors and that it has more current assets than current liabilities. A current ratio below 1 signifies trouble for the company and that they may have problems meeting their creditor obligations. The difference between the current ratio and quick ratio is the use of inventory.Financial Condition 2011-2010Debt/Equity Ratio 20%   25% Current Ratio 1.831.55 Quick Ratio 0.190.17The below chart illustrates what kind of return Starbucks receives on its investments. These ratios give investors a clear mind of how well the investments are performing. The ROE ratio illustrates the returns that stockholders are earning on their investments in Starbucks. In prior years, Starbucks have consistently increased this ratio percentage and continues to rise. The ROA ratio tells investors how much profit Starbucks generated for every dollar in assets.Investment Returns % 2011-2010Return on Equity 28.4% 25.7% Return on Assets 18.1% 13.8%Based on the ratios above, it appears that Starbucks is continuing to progress successfully in profits and its ability to increase leverage and maintain a reasonably stable trend in the future. Starbucks can increase leverage by repurchasing outstanding stock and increasing debt financing. Based on the recent benchmarks over a 12 month period, Starbucks is still in line with the industry. â€Å">