The skill of being a leader is partly innate, but is mostly trainable, according to leadership coach Jonathan Cave, author of The Tree and the Mountain: Dare to Become.

To hone their leadership skills, sports kids should identify their unique talents and build leadership skills based on them, he said.

"You don't have to become another person to be a leader. It's about amplifying who you are and becoming more of that. People will gravitate toward you," he said.

About Jonathan Cave:

Cave is an executive coach and founder and CEO of MyPhyLedership. Visit him at JonathanCave.com

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Many recruiting services, profile websites and showcase camps profit by keeping families engaged and spending money rather than helping athletes achieve meaningful recruiting outcomes, said Reid Meyer, co-founder of A2A Academy and a former college baseball player.

To be successfully recruited, athletes need to be proactive, directly contacting coaches and focusing on finding colleges that fit their academic, athletic, financial and personal goals, he said.

To create a championship mindset, players, coaches and parents must all embrace a positive mindset, said Bill Hoopes, a national championship coach and director of Florida Premier Girls Fastpitch.

"You have to have accountability on all ends," he said. "If the coach is not doing their job and they're struggling to relay positive information, positive skill development and positive coaching, then the kid's going to have a deficiency." If the player isn't committed to being a champion, there will be a deficiency. If parents are pressuring their kids, all this can create a "non-positive" mindset, he said.

Subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts.

Send episode ideas to LisaEllenCohn1@gmail.com

Visit host Lisa Cohn at LisaECohn.com