How to Cheer for Your Favorite Team

Is there a right way or a wrong way to be passionate for your favorite sports team? Yes and I am going to give you a few tips on what not to do when rapped up in sports. Through many years of heartache (you will see what I mean when I tell you my favorite teams...LOL) I have learned some valuable lessons on how far to take my passion. I hope my ideas will keep you from more heartache.

First you need to have a team to be passionate about. When I first met my wife she wasn't into NFL football at all but I soon changed that. Now she watches every weekend with me. I don't dictate what teams my family can choose although I wish they would pick the same ones as I have.

Here is the list of the favorite teams in my family. In hockey it is a runaway for all of us, we are all Toronto Maple Leaf fans (can you feel the heartache already?). Baseball it is the same, Toronto Blue Jays (at least they gave us the championship twice). Basketball once again, the Toronto Raptors (still young and I can accept their struggles). Now the biggie, the NFL; this is where the whole family is different. My youngest son is a Green Bay Packers fan (he started watching football when Brett Farve was in his glory days, so I can't blame him). My oldest son loves the Oakland Raiders (He grew up with NWA so the gear was cool).

When I introduced football to my wife she took me to a real game for my birthday and was hooked. I told her to pick a team, but unlike most people just starting out she didn't go for the top team at the time. She actually watched and she fell in love the jaw jutting coach of the Pittsburg Steelers, Bill Cower (who would of known she would have her glory just last year!). Now for the heartache of my life, yes people I am a hurting Buffalo Bills fan. I have been a fan of the team since I was an infant.

Second, if you have the money it is okay to buy and dress up in the gear of your favorite teams. Collecting all the collectables is fine as long as it doesn't cut into your bills and food. Who cares if you dress like a geek, if it makes you happy to put on your striped pants and your teams jersey, I say go for it! Hell paint your face on game day if you think it is going to help!

Third, don't get so wrapped up that the rest of your life suffers. There was I time in my life that I lived and died depending on the way my team played that week. If the Bills lost I found myself depressed and not wanting to do anything so you can imagine how the four Super Bowl loses in a row crushed me. I was angry, depressed and I had no control of the situation which made it that much more pathetic. I have grown up since then and I accept it for what it is a game!

Fourth, I know how much you can be consumed by the game but don't overreact. It was a yearly event for the cops to come to my house because I got so warped and taken in by the game that a bad call by the refs or a bad play would have me literally screaming at the television and bouncing off the walls. When they would show up they sometimes thought that it was a domestic dispute but would just look at me, their eyes telling me how pathetic I was for getting into the game so deeply. I still sometimes lose my cool during games but nowhere near the level I used to.

Lastly, remember it is just a game. It isn't going to change your life one lick if your team wins or loses. It only changes the lives of the people actually involved on the teams. You can't change the outcome no matter how much you cheer at your house. It doesn't matter what rituals you might follow before games, you are not playing so you can't do anything about it. I know it's hard to accept that all your passion means nothing to the outcome of the game but once you realize this you will be able to cheer for the fun of it.

I hope these little tips allow you to have a better grip on the reality of what sports are and even though you feel you can make a difference you really can't.