1.  In Chapter Ten, Quinn discusses Emotions: Coping with Winning and Losing.  In Chapter Ten how did Quinn meet with Triumph and Disaster? Can you explain why humility goes a long way? Have you ever had a public success or failure? How did you cope? Why does Kipling capitalize the words, Triumph and Disaster?

2.  "Parents shouldn't let themselves get more upset with a loss than the kids who actually played the game." (Page 101) Recall an anecdote from Playing Time where parents needed to learn some sportsmanship.  Recall one from your own experience and share. (Hint: The incident may not be limited to the world of sports.)

3.  Consider Quinn's quote: "If you're not practicing, somewhere, someone is, and when you meet, he'll win."  In Chapter Six, Quinn discusses the relationship between effort and excellence.  What strategy does he offer when he says, "Smile, You're on ESPN!"? (Page 66)  What tips do you use to make practice fun?

4.  "If you're riding the bench, you're on the wrong team." (Page 52) Quinn sees this as mostly an issue of respect for the player's desire to learn and play the game and the time and money dedicated to that purpose.  Quinn extends the "respect issue" to parents as well. Take the opposite position and explain: Riding the bench is not an issue of respect, but of reality.

5.  "To be honest with you, whenever I rode the bench, I would secretly hope for the kid playing my position to mess up big time. I'm not proud or ashamed that I felt this way, I just did." (Page 53) How do the themes of Playing Time, excellence, humility, sportsmanship and respect, crash, head-on, in this quote? Have you ever experienced conflicting feelings?

6.  Coping with failure, Quinn says, "I love feeling like there is a next chapter to my athletic career." (Page 41) If 73% of kids drop out of sports by the time they're 13, they may not have the same level of resilience as kids who continue past that point do.  How do the values of excellence, humility, sportsmanship and respect promote resilience?  Pick one value and explain.

7.  Quinn has respect for parent's conflicts too.  "My father and I were looking at baseball bats, and I liked one that cost $225.  The salesman showed us another bat for $300.  He said that the $300 bats were "flying out of here," He kind of implied that if my dad didn't get me that bat, he wasn't a good dad."  (Page 77)  Identify some issues that parents have to cope with on the sidelines.

8.  In order to "play longer" kids will have to reach for new levels of excellence to be competitive with a maturing peer group of athletes.  On Page 67, Quinn recalls hitting a batter.  He discusses the difficulty of having to take the risk and throw a tough, inside pitch next. How can adults support kids to do the difficult stuff.

9.  The funny story on Page 165 reminds us how things can get out of hand.  Ask for a few volunteers to read the passage aloud with emotion and humor.

10. On Page 61 Quinn creates a shift in the paradigm; the kid tries to influence the parent's boss (instead of the parent trying to influence the kid's coach.) Ask for volunteers to create a skit around the passage, which begins with, "Just for fun, let's turn things around..."

11. Review "Performance Enhancing Parents" scenarios on Pages 158-161. One of those scenarios affected the excellence of a player directly (Page 161).  Explain, in your own words, the dynamics of how an embarrassing parent can affect a young athlete's performance.

12. Why did Quinn write Playing Time?

13. In your opinion, why do 73& of kids drop out of kid's sports by the time they are thirteen?

14. Writing note cards and storing them in a private shoe box was a way for Quinn to "get things off his chest."  What are some ways you relieve stress?

15. How has Quinn matured from the time he wrote the first full draft (age 15) to the time he wrote the Afterword (age 17)? Give a specific example or comment.

16. Would you use any of Quinn's school/time management tips (Pages 90-92)?  If so, which one and why?  Can you add one of your own?

17. Quinn says that a parent's job is to organize but not control kids' sports.  Can you give an example of "organizing" and an example of "controlling?" What's the difference?

18. Think of a sports figure you really admire.  In what ways does he or she portray: respect, humility, excellence and sportsmanship?

19. Is there a decision a coach or authority figure made where you felt you were entitled to an explanation but did not get one?  Did you feel disrespected?

20. Give an example of sportsmanship or the lack of it from Playing Time. What is the worst example of the lack of sportsmanship you have experienced?

21. What advice does Quinn give for dealing with times when a kid is unsuccessful on the playing field?

22. Is there any advice Quinn gives regarding sports try-outs that can be applied to other areas of life when you are trying new things?

23. Quinn discusses pride in wearing his baseball uniform. Is there a uniform or outfit you wear that makes you particularly proud and reminds you to be your best? Explain.

24. What does "burn-out" mean to you? How do you avoid it? Is there a difference between being tired and being burned-out?