When Is It Time...

[CheerBank]

The grass isn't always greener, remember that. That being said, if you and cp are frustrated by lack of overall progress from the gym, it may just be the right time to make the move if there are other good options. As said above, cheer is expensive and it's hard to continue justify paying for loyalty when the return is mediocrity.

 

[oncecoolcoachnowmom]

They will find out who their real family is if they leave.


**Welcome to Fierce Board, where we all enjoy ADHD just a....LOOK SQUIRREL***

Yes!

If people are really and truly interested in you as friends, and you aren't relocating yourself (as in, you're still going to be living near these people and aren't moving 3 hours away) they WILL continue to see you and hang out with your child.

 

[CarolinaBlonde]

This may sound snarky and I REALLY don't mean it to be:

Think of it in terms of your family's sacrifice in time and in terms of your bank account. I have been where you are in trying to make this decision. Mine wasn't level 5 but still I was completely torn. It was extremely hard to leave. I still love our first gym, always will. The loyalty is there but in the end I realized that expressing my loyalty should not come at the expense of the rest of my family (time) and bank account. If I continued with our first gym out of loyalty then that was some very expensive loyalty.

Not snarky at all....I appreciate your honesty. I guess our family has some big decisions to make and pretty quick. Because let's face it, it will affect my entire family, not just my CL and me (the taxi driver). Grrrr.....I hate feeling like this!

 

[CarolinaBlonde]

Thanks again for all of your advice. I have thought about all of these things: the expense, the grass not being greener, the loyalty, the friends/family loyalty thing, wanting my CL to continue growing....

 

[Twinklestars]

At this point, my CL wants to leave. She loves her teammates, but is tired of working "so hard to get nowhere". She is 15 and has been on level 5 since she was 12. First it was restricted, then made the jump to a worlds level. They didn't even get a bid to Worlds, much less have a shot at making it to finals. Not everybody can win, we get that...but we'd like to be able to get a bid to the show when the routine is performed with zero deductions. Why is it so hard to move on? 10 years is a long time to be at one gym with the same coaches. Loyalty is pretty much non-existent where we live and I've been trying to teach my CL this character trait. This is why we (I) am so torn. My heart vs my head...

It sounds more like you are asking "permission" to leave. Loyalty is great, but there are other important character traits.

 

[FlexyTumblerMom]

Yes!

If people are really and truly interested in you as friends, and you aren't relocating yourself (as in, you're still going to be living near these people and aren't moving 3 hours away) they WILL continue to see you and hang out with your child.

The best way to judge how a gym/studio "family" will treat you after you leave is by looking at how they have treated other "family members" who have left in the past. My CP has experienced this at multiple places, and I must say the way others were treated was always directly in line w/ how I/she was treated after we left.

I personally feel like coaches and owners who throw around words like "family" and "love" all the time are the ones that can be the nastiest when someone is unhappy/thinking of leaving. The attitude also seems to permeate down to the remaining parents and kids to the point that they are almost affraid to talk w/ those who have left for fear of retaliation.

I personally prefer a situation where a gym is run like a business and coaches and owners maintain a professional distance from their athletes and customers. Those are the places that may get my business again in the future, the ones who act like you're betraying the blood oath of a cult when you go (even though their product is inadequate for your child), ummm...no way.

 

[FTSP]

They will find out who their real family is if they leave.


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So very true!