Sporty Eleanor: Panic, Perseverance & Podiums (Comprehensive Recap + Transcript)

Shooting Struggles: Surviving Setbacks in Archery

Have you ever felt so overwhelmed by pressure or anxiety that something you once loved suddenly seemed impossible? In this episode of the Archery Parent Podcast, Episode 8, Eleanor Rodriguez (known as Sporty Eleanor) shares her deeply personal journey with target panic - a form of performance anxiety that can paralyze even the most seasoned Archers.

Eleanor, an accomplished Archer, a Level 4 USA Archery coach, a Master's candidate, and social media specialist, opened up about how target panic manifested in her life, from overthinking on the shooting line to being unable to shoot even when alone. 

Whether you’re an Archer, parent, or coach, this episode offers hope and practical insights for anyone facing their own battles or supporting someone who is.

Target Panic: Symptoms, Triggers, and the Road to Recovery

Eleanor's struggle with target panic peaked during an Olympic Training Center tryout, where the pressure to perform led to a complete breakdown in her ability to shoot.

Recognizing this was more than typical nerves, Eleanor took decisive action. She stepped back from major tournaments, sought a new coaching perspectives, and began working with Olympic gold medalist Juan Carlos Holgado in Switzerland. Their work together focused not just on technical tweaks but, more importantly, on reframing her mental approach and self-talk during competition.

The Importance of Stepping Back 

Eleanor’s healing process has been gradual - one that has endured over two years. She emphasized the importance of giving her mind the same rest and care as a physical injury, resisting the urge to push through at all costs. This break allowed her to focus on other passions and relationships, ultimately returning to competition with renewed resilience. Her recent successes includes becoming 2025 Indoor State Champion and a strong showing at the Vegas Shoot. Eleanor demonstrates that while target panic may never fully disappear, it can be managed.

The Impact of Parental Expectations on an Archers’ Mental Health

The conversation also delved into the role of parental expectations and pressure. Eleanor reflected on her own upbringing as a high achiever and how the expectation of constant success can create anxiety when progress is slower in a sport like Archery. She and Manisha discussed the unique challenges of Archery, where countless variables make consistency difficult, and the importance of parents' supporting their Archer's journey without adding undue stress. 

NOTE: Did you know that Eleanor started college at the age of 13 and graduated at 17?

Resilience as the Cornerstone of Long-Term Success

Resilience emerged as a central theme. Eleanor underscored that every elite archer she knows has faced significant setbacks or target panic. Success in archery, she argued, is less about avoiding these struggles and more about enduring them, learning, and returning stronger. Her story stands as a beacon for anyone facing similar battles—proof that with time, support, and the right mindset, it’s possible to find light at the end of the tunnel.

Struggling with Setbacks and How to Find Hope

No matter where you are on your archery journey, setbacks are not the end, but rather stepping stones to growth and resilience. As difficult as the process is, it eventually is experienced by every Archer at some point. 

As Eleanor’s story shows, even the toughest moments can lead to newfound strength, a deeper understanding of self, and renewed passion for what you love.

Leaning onto your support system (or creating a new one), celebrating every small victory, and trusting that with patience and perseverance, even the greatest obstacles can be overcome. Every champion has faced adversity; it’s the courage within to keep moving forward that truly defines success. 

TRANSCRIPT:

Manisha: Hello, Archery Family. It's Manisha of the Archery Parent Podcast. Today our guest is Eleanor Rodriguez, also known as Sporty Eleanor. Eleanor, how are you today?

Eleanor: I'm doing great. How are you?

Manisha: Great, thanks. Let's just introduce you very quickly. You are an Archer, a coach, a Master's candidate, and you're also a social media specialist.

Eleanor: Yes.

Manisha: So we're going to talk all about that, but we're going to start with your life as an Archer. You have been very open about experiencing target panic. For someone who's not familiar, can you please share what target panic is?

Eleanor: Yeah. So, target panic in general is tied to anxiety while shooting. and it can manifest itself in a variety of different ways.

For some people, it's just like a really bad tournament and it's just boom, they have target panic. after that other people, it's, it gradually grows on them. And how it will kind of present itself most of the time is this feeling of not trusting your shot. it can be shown as being on the shooting line and constantly letting down on your shot.

Overthinking really being in your head, being worried of what the outcome of that arrow is going to be instead of just sitting there and focusing on the process. You're just so panicked about. You know, where's the arrow gonna land? and sometimes if it gets really bad, like it did for me, it will get to the point where you either can't shoot at all.

The thought of even picking up the bow is just like your brain just immediately wants to shut down anxiety right away. for me, I got to a point where I could barely even shoot blank bail by myself in a room like nobody's watching me. But for some reason, even the thought of shooting blank bail, it was just this immense anxiety overthinking, I'm not doing this right.

All that. So that's pretty much target panic, summed up.

Manisha: So how did you know that that's what it was? Did someone identify it or was it something that you had heard of and you summarized it and self-diagnosed? How, how did you know that's what it was?

Eleanor: Yeah, so, I've always been a bit of a perfectionist, so I've always had a little bit of that anxiety when I'm shooting, but not target panic level, where it's coming to the point that I can't even shoot the arrow.

And so the way that I kind of found out, or I'm like, this is not just anxiety at a tournament, this is past that. I was - kind of came to a peak. I was selected to do a tryout at our Olympic Training Center. And first day great shot a solid score. And then it was the - my own pressure that I put on myself and the perceived pressure of like, I'm being watched for this try out.

And I just fell apart, to be honest. I could not shoot the arrows like I kept letting down, letting down, letting down, 'cause every single time, oh, the setup didn't feel right, or something's not right, or I don't know if I'm gonna miss, or, you know, even though I hardly would ever do that in the past, it was just my brain came unraveled.

And it was very clear at that point that I had had target panic as well as just hearing about it in the past and seeing other Archers at tournaments struggle, you know, when they're on the shooting line. I've seen people go through it and it was very clear to me that I, I was going through the same thing.

Manisha: And can you share, how long of time was that, that you noticed it and now your most recent post, I believe, was a few weeks ago.

Eleanor: Mm-hmm.

Manisha: You are just coming out of it. Can you talk about the length of time that it's possible to have target panic and then what are you doing to help with the target panic?

Eleanor: Yeah, so, that tryout was around November of, just a hair over two years ago, so about two and a half years ago at this point. And, yeah, I mean, what I did in the past year, I pretty much pulled out of a lot of the USAT tournaments. I needed to give my brain just some mental break from that because although I was experiencing it at that point also in practice.

I mean, the tournaments just made it tenfold. and I started working with Juan Carlos in Switzerland, and he's Olympic gold medalist. So, he gone through similar things and he said, I'm just straight up not ready for a tournament. He suggested to me, just pull out of the tournaments, we'll work together.

He brought a fresh perspective to my thought process when I'm shooting. and so I think some of the things that helped me was getting a fresh perspective. I love my coach to death, but every once in a while, you know, when you've been working with someone for 12, 14 years, sometimes you need just a different way of phrasing the same thing.

You know, so that fresh perspective, giving my brain time to heal, I mean, it's like if you had a physical injury, let's say you broke your foot, you're not gonna keep walking on the injury and expect it to heal. So, part of it was pulling out of tournaments as well. As I would say the last few months, I started back my tournaments.

I did the last indoor season, and I did fairly well. I'm still struggling with that target panic, but it's manageable. But when I was, you know, doing my tournaments and stuff, in between tournaments, I really was not training at the same arrow volume as I was in the past. But when I did practice, I really, you know, focused on my form and establish good form that I was confident with.

But, you know, giving myself a break to focus on work, focus on other things I'm passionate about, my relationship, friendship, that sort of thing. And just, yeah, overall giving my brain some time to heal has helped a lot for me rather than I'm gonna keep pushing and pushing and pushing. And then for me, I think it was doing more harm than good 'cause that's kind of how I approached it. At first, I was like, I have to get through this. I have to keep shooting arrows. Like, I'll see the other side if I keep shooting arrows. And for me personally, I think it was counterintuitive, pulling back, getting a fresh perspective is what's been helping me work past it slowly.

So yeah, those are some things I would suggest.

Manisha: So I did mention earlier my neighbour is actually continuing to cut down a tree. I thought it was over. So if, listeners, if you hear a chainsaw. That's my neighbour. And, sorry, sorry Eleanor.

So can you just explain who is Juan Carlos and then what is the capacity that he was working with you? Was it as a coach for form and things or was it something else?

Eleanor: Yeah, so, I was shooting at the shooting range in Switzerland. My boyfriend lives there and so I ran into him and after meeting him briefly, I was like. Wait a minute, that was the Olympic gold medalist. I put two and two together. I was like, oh my god.

Like he was just so kind and everything when he first met me. And you know, I saw him at the range again after that. And you know, he kind of was peeking at my form and stuff and I opened up to him about kinda what I was struggling with and he had related to it. He had worked with people like that.

He'd also experienced target panic. Many Olympians that I have talked to have had at some point target panic. And so to see that he saw the other side of it, won an Olympic gold medal and is still involved in the Archery community to this day. I mean. What better person to take advice from than him. And so I knew I was gonna be there for a couple more weeks, about four weeks.

And so he said, I'm actually at a point in my career I had, just retired from this other job. I'm about to transition into a new job. And I actually have kind of four weeks that I'm just floating around not doing too much. And so it was just a perfect, you know, collide where he was able to give me a little bit of time and worked with me a bit.

And we met, you know, a couple times a week. Part of it was working on form and it was just very simple things. You know, my overall structure was fine. Just minor things. But really it was mainly my thought process on the shooting line.

How I interpret the results that I'm seeing, how I interpret, you know, just my feedback that I'm giving myself and kind of a deeper meaning behind it. And a lot of it, I would say a good 80% of it was just my mental game and what I should be thinking when I'm on the shooting line and even when I'm walking back and forth, the self-talk that I'm giving myself.

Manisha: And just recently, that definitely paid off.

Eleanor: Yeah.

Manisha: You had a recent post that you, if you can share.

Eleanor: Yeah. So I won State Championship. I also at Vegas, shot one of my personal best scores. I decided to shoot the Flights again 'cause. I'm still on that healing journey, so I wasn't quite ready to push myself into Championship division. I was like, we're just going to do Flights.

I made first Flight, still amazing Archers in the Flights and I placed 25th with the mixed division of men and women, out of 414 Archers. So I was super proud of that, and really starting to shoot scores that I would shoot at a practice, you know, so, uh, it was just such a, a relief to be able to see that and I know I still have an element of target panic when I'm shooting, but it's now getting a point that it's manageable and I can actually think straight on the shooting line and not be in this fight or flight panic whenever I know that I'm scoring and I'm in a, a tournament setting. So it was such a relief and so refreshing and I can't wait for the outdoor season to, keep growing on that.

Manisha: Thank you for sharing that because for someone who might be in their own target panic struggle, I appreciate that you have opened up about it and you are showing that there is light at the end of this tunnel. And...

Eleanor: Yes.

Manisha: ...I appreciate your vulnerability and your willingness to talk about it.

Can you talk about what you have seen or experienced, or heard of parents putting pressure and expectations on their Archers. Can you share how possibly that could contribute to target panic or anxiety in shooting?

Eleanor: Yeah, absolutely. So, drawing a little bit on my own experience, you know, I've always been a very high achiever. I graduated college in my first degree at 17, Honours student, got another degree, you know, just recently got a full ride for a Master's. what else? I did competitive figure skating, ballet, did major competitions in both of those. And Archery has been probably out of all them, the slowest, you know, growth to success for me.

And so, my parents, you know, I think got a little accustomed to me being the best of the best at pretty much everything I do. And, had a little bit of that expectation going into Archery. And for me, it just wasn't the case right off the bat. You know, and then I struggle with the target panic and we're slowly coming out of that.

So I think, you know, parents can sometimes get comfortable with their child always being successful at everything they do. And so sometimes if they're slow to come to that success, it throws off the normal rhythm of what they're used to. And I think that can manifest in the child starting to feel anxiety of just even within themselves, of, you know, I'm always successful at everything that I do.

Like, why am I not reaching this level of success as fast as I did with school or with, previous sports and stuff? And, you know, for parents, I think, realizing that you know your child, I don't think any child is intentionally not trying to do their best. You know, and realizing your child is trying to do their best.

And if that success comes at a later time, being with them along that journey and, realizing that it might just take a little bit longer than it did for, previous things that their child may have been successful at.

Manisha: One of the things I find that parents forget, or maybe they don't realize, but Archery is hard.

It's not like the rote memorization of say, times tables or...

Eleanor: Yeah.

Manisha: ...drills of some sort. Archery has so many variables, whether it be new equipment, your own body during a growth spurt, wind, rain, weather of some sort, the sun even. There is always something different. And yes, Archers have to work towards sort of standardizing and acclimating to different conditions, but...

Eleanor: Mm-hmm.

Manisha: ...parents can be so hard on their Archer when really all you have to do is acknowledge that what they're doing is so hard and it can lead to so many different things mentally and physically and the beginning of potentially injury as well. On Instagram, Crispin Dueñas said, if parents could just leave their Archers alone, things would just be so much better. And kudos to Crispin for saying that.

What does resilience have to do with dealing with anxiety and some of the negative emotions attributed to Archery based on performance? How does that play a part?

Eleanor: I mean, it's huge. I would say that's like the cornerstone of Archery. Every single Olympian that I've spoken to, which is several, have all either gone through some sort of target panic or a really low point in their career where they're ready to just pack it up and go.

But this sport, it's a long haul sport. This isn't like, you know, gymnastics where you are in your early twenties and now you are getting to retirement age. I mean, this is a sport that you're in it for sometimes all the way through fifties and older. And you can still be at a very high level at that age too.

And you know, we're not out there just doing like a, a two minute routine. It's- you have to be mentally in the game for hours on end. You know, I've done figure skating, I've done ballet, where you're out there doing a routine and you just can run off of the, kind of adrenaline. You know, in this sport we're out there for hours.

It's not adrenaline for hours on end. You know, it's having that mental clarity and resilience to keep pushing, you know, seeing a bad arrow and then being able to work past that and keep your mind clear and in the game still. So, yeah, I mean, resilience is the most important thing in this sport. If you wanna see success, because there will be low points, you may experience target panic and it's quite normal for it to take years to work past.

But when you start to see the other side, it's so worth it. And I mean, I'm not gonna lie, I think probably two years ago when I was at Arizona Cup, I was at a point where I was ready to throw the bow across the range and literally never look back at anything Archery. I didn't even care if I was gonna make an embarrassment of myself, like I was so done.

And I'm not someone that like cries in front of people or anything like that, so I like kept it all inside. But I just looked at my coach, I'm like, I'm so over this right now. Like, I never wanna do this again. And then of course, you know, I calmed down a bit and started speaking to Archers that have gone through Target panic and they too said it takes sometimes a couple years to work past it or where they just didn't shoot for maybe a year or two and then kind of started from scratch again, back up in their career.

And they've achieved new heights and have worked past it. So it, you know, I'm not a quitter and I've never been a quitter in anything I do. And so I just knew I couldn't exit this sport at a low point. And so I really had to lean into that resilience to push past those points where I sometimes felt not a whole lot of passion for the sport.

And I'm so happy I did. I think it's just, it, it's worth it to have the resilience to push past this sport, you know, and, and see, see the light on the end. I think it's very, very important.

Manisha: One, there's one quote that says, never quit on a bad day. If you actually want to quit, quit on a good day. And that's something that Brady Ellison re-quoted from a US gymnast. And it is so important for people to realize that quitting on a bad day is a different type of quitting than quitting on a good day.

Eleanor: Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. If - when my retirement comes, I'll be quitting when I feel fulfilled and like I'm shooting, I'm happy with my shooting.

It’s - I wanted to quit really bad in that moment, but I am just so grateful I didn't, and here I am today talking to you, new opportunities, new sponsorships since then. So, I mean, I can't beat that. I mean, I even got my master's paid for through Archery. Like that's just insane. And like, all to think two years ago I wanted to throw my bow across the range and never look back.

So it's worth it.

Manisha: Well, let's talk about sponsorship. So you admittedly are not the conventional Archer that is sponsored based on, high profile finishes.

Eleanor: Yeah.

Manisha: You have a very, very unique way of being sponsored and it's really, it's new in a way that, that maybe people are seeing it differently and maybe even negatively.

Can you talk about how social media has helped you gain sponsorships and, and talk about why that's actually important for the new Archer or the new athlete?

Eleanor: Yeah, absolutely. So, yeah, like you said, I'm not scared to admit it. my social media is the reason I have gained all my sponsorships. I'm not on the podium all the time. I mean, I just talked about all my struggles with target panic and being a mess. I mean, and I'm still able to get these sponsorships due to my social media. So for, you know, Archery companies, I think they're starting to see that, social media plays a massive role in our daily lives. And, you know, at the end of the day, they want eyes on their product.

So if you have, you know, you're sharing your journey, you're contributing value to the sport by showcasing the sport, talking about your equipment and your journey in the sport, I think this is really important. And not just sharing oh, when I'm on a podium, but sharing your journey, I think that companies are starting to see the value in that.

when you're toying with your, equipment and saying what this is versus this and why, like this new product, these are all things that, you know, companies outside of the Archery community have recognized for years. but the Archery community is starting to notice that and the value in that because we're still showcasing the product, they're showcasing it sometimes maybe from a little bit more of a relatable stance because not all of us are Olympic gold medalists.

And so it brings back that relatability. someone else that's developing in their Archery journey. You may notice they have a 20 point jump since they switched to a a different bow. and for someone that's an intermediate Archer, being able to relate to another intermediate Archer, maybe that's an appealing, you know, buying stance for them to want to purchase that product.

So, I don't think you need to be necessarily an Olympian to really leverage your social media and companies in the Archery community are starting to see that value, that it's bringing to, potential customers for them.

Manisha: So your TikTok has about 20,000 followers and your Instagram has almost 96,000 followers.

How did you build that and when was it that Archery companies started noticing that the relevance of your followers could really help them in business?

Eleanor: Yeah, so, I would say, you know, to build the following, it was just starting to post regular content. Not just podium finishes and the pictures that they happen to capture of me at the tournament, but really showcasing my practice as well as starting to compare, different equipment that I was playing around with.

And anytime someone asks me a question in the comments addressing that question, especially on my TikTok, I do a lot more where I'm, you know, facing the camera, answering the question, all that, and not leaving any questions unanswered for people 'cause then that's creating a sense of community on my page.

And then also just me being a woman, sharing the fact that I am someone that does a shooting sport. I think that's fairly unique and I knew that. So I started to see some, progress with my following. And I also started studying a little bit more, following pages that kind of coach people on, kind of marketing as well as new trends going on in the social media industry, 'cause I knew if I was gonna start taking this a little bit more seriously, and really wanting to grow my following, I need to actually understand the algorithm and things like this.

So I did follow a couple accounts, just talking about this was the start of like trending audios and how Instagram reels is competing against TikTok and how they're really pushing their reels versus stagnant photos or, you know, how to interpret your analytics so that you can create more content of what people are actually wanting and consuming on your profile.

Little things like this. It's not just willy-nilly posting, it's actually looking at the numbers and seeing what is working, what's not working, and taking it from there. And then the second part of your question outside of just building it was, remind me again,

Manisha: Was, sorry, I shouldn't have layered the questions there.

Eleanor: It's okay.

Manisha: When, when was it time-wise that Archery companies started noticing that this could be a very valuable option for them?

Eleanor: Yeah, so, my first sponsor was Wifler Industries. Shortly after that was Ram Rods, and they were definitely, really open and receptive to someone promoting their product. Not from winning a bunch of medals, but talking about it on social media and just showcasing how, I'm using it.

And, this was probably like, I would say for my, I had no TikTok at this point. I had an Instagram and I think I kind of reached around that 15,000 follower point, maybe even 20. And I didn't even know this was an option because I never even really started this with the initial thought, I'm gonna be an Archery influencer. It was more like I had a little viral video and I was like, that's, so it sparked my interest.

I was like, oh, like this could actually be something, you know? And so that's when I started studying a little bit more. And then I, went to my first Vegas shoot, I think this was three years ago, about, possibly four. I'm trying to think, three or four years ago. And so, I met Alex Wifler. He was like, yeah, like, he was open to trying something out 'cause I wanted to try his plunger 'cause it was something new on the market. And I was like, yeah, you know, I have my account that's kind of getting a lot of attention. Like, what are your, your thoughts? Can we work something out? And he was open to it.

And then very shortly after that, I kept my posting up, RamRods reached out to me, saying, Hey, like we started this whole pro staff program, would you be interested?

And then this is when like the fire ignited and I realized like, oh, we could do something here. And I ended up working for Alex Wifler for a bit, doing his social media for his company. That's when I got to go to Nîmes. When I was at Nîmes using my sponsor, you know, Alex was so kind to be able to introduce me to a bunch of people in the industry that he knew.

And it kind of just blossomed from there of just this networking of you know, being able to leverage my sponsors and them able to leverage me for promoting their product. And they're helping me out by introducing me to even more people in the industry. And it just very quickly kind of all came together, from all within, I would say six months.

And then, I ended up signing with Hoyt and Easton, probably we're going on like about a year and a half now. So those were other huge names in the industry. I mean, it needs to be a, a win-win for both the sponsor, but, you know, you should take advantage not only of the equipment, but these are knowledgeable people in the industry and they can also introduce you to more people in the industry.

So, yeah, that's kind of how it all came about. It came very quickly actually, like the realization that this was even possible to get sponsorships was like, it went from, oh, I'm just posting for funsies too. Whoa. I can get, you know, great connections in the Archery community and try out all this equipment that I've been dying to try out.

Manisha: So just quickly, can you list off your sponsors?

Eleanor: Yes. So I have Hoyt, Easton, Wifler, Zeiss, Gas Pro Vanes, Beiter, Shibuya. And then I've also been sent, some other equipment just to test out as well, Ram Rods. I think that's about everything. And, also Axio, and then also a few things outside of Archery, like supplements. So, yeah.

Manisha: What is your, what's your responsibility or what do you feel is your responsibility to keep up with new equipment and understand and educate yourself about new equipment that's coming out on an annual basis with these sponsors that you have?

Eleanor: Yeah, so I mean, luckily, with my sponsorships, I pretty much get the latest equipment. But you know, even when I signed on with Hoyt, I was at that point with Win & Win. I had shot Win & Win for years. And the thing is, is like equipment's not cheap, especially a bow. So, I was hesitant because I shot Win & Win for years.

Still love, Win & Win, amazing bows. But Hoyt was -said, you know, I was at the end of my contract with them and they said, okay, we have two bows. You know, like I'm just, I said, well, I'm, I'm with Win & Win, like I don't know what I think about that. And so they said, you are not obligated to anything, but we would like you to test it out.

And so it's kind of that fine line of like loyalty but still being open and receptive to try new things. And you know, I tried out the two new bows and I actually ended up falling in love with the GMX 3 bow and it was just really working well for me. And so that's kind of when I made the switch.

But even with Hoyt, it's not like I just, like, they offered me and I'm just going in blind, never having shot any of their bows and signing a contract with them, you know. I'm gonna do what's in my best interest, 'cause at the end of the day I still wanna perform well as an Archer, you know. So I'm not just signing something just 'cause they offered me a free bow.

And with testing new equipment, you know, when my sponsors do come out with new equipment, I do test it out. So like RamRods came out with the V4 stabilizer recently. I love my Vectors. There was nothing wrong with my Vectors. I still love my Vector stabilizers, but I did try 'em out and, you know, making it clear with the sponsor that just because it is the latest, if it's not working for you, it's not working for you.

I love the V4, so I ended up starting to shoot the new V4, but, open and honest conversation with them of if they send you the latest equipment and it's just not it for you and their older equipment, you know, still resonates with you and like still works really well with your shooting style it's all about open, honest communication and saying, yeah, I mean the older stuff is just working better for me right now.

So, and they're human too. They are all Archers as well. They get it, you know. So, yeah, I don't really feel any pressure for my sponsors that I have to shoot the latest. it's always been kind of what is working best for me.

Manisha: And do you have any specifics with how many times you have to post or do you have specific obligations in your contracts if you're okay to share?

Eleanor: Yeah.

Manisha: Like you have to post x number of times a week or a month or anything like that.

Eleanor: Mm-hmm.

Manisha: And your content has to include anything.

Eleanor: Yeah. So, most of my contracts have been pretty open.

I would say my Hoyt one is a little bit more specific, you know, and especially when we're at tournaments, we have to wear certain coloured jerseys, things like that. But for the most part, most of my contracts are very open and I think it's because this whole social media thing is pretty new that it's hard to know like what it is that they even want.

So I do feel pressure though. I mean, I know that they're signing me for the social media. Like I'm not going in here thinking that they're signing me for an Olympic team. It's for the social media. So, you know, I try to uphold still posting regularly and you know, I think that they trust in me to post what is going to garner, a lot of views and showcase their company in the best light possible.

So, I do really appreciate that my sponsors have trusted me in finding like my path of like what is working because they know what I'm doing is working. So I think they just kinda leave it alone. And so I'm, yeah, I'm pretty grateful for that.

Manisha: What strategies would you suggest or recommend for parents whose Archers want to possibly move on the social media account and potentially get sponsors through that?

What kind of advice or precautions or any sort of, caveats would you give for parents? I've noticed that there are, especially for younger Archers and athletes, that sometimes it'll say parent controlled or parent posted, meaning that the parent is in charge of it, so ...

Eleanor: Mm-hmm.

Manisha: ...sort of saying like, don't be...

Eleanor: Yeah.

Manisha: ...doing mean things basically.

Eleanor: Yeah.

Manisha: Can you offer some assistance for parents whose Archers want to move on that?

Eleanor: Yeah, absolutely. So, I do think having in the bio like parent controlled, is great. Especially, the younger side. You know, I think once we start getting into later teens, maybe not, but when you're young, I think that's a great addition to have, especially 'cause you don't know who's out there on the internet.

So I think that's, something important to have at a young age. But I think also as just general advice, starting as soon as possible because my account didn't just come about out of nowhere and it takes practice doing social media. Whether it's the child is doing the social media or you're doing all the editing and everything as a parent, it takes practice, like anything.

'Cause I look back at some of my old videos of like, just like the editing style and just like, oh, it looks like terrible. No wonder like I wasn't really getting any like engagement or anything like that. So starting as soon as possible I think is the best. And, getting practice and following accounts, like I was saying that kind of teach you a little bit about the algorithm, editing, different apps that you could use to help with that editing and stuff.

And for gaining sponsorships a lot of sponsors I've noticed, 'cause we have some kids at our club that are getting into posting on their social media regularly. But a lot of the sponsors typically don't want to sign people that are under 18. And they typically are a little less likely if you're not competing in senior division.

But that's not to say, oh, I'm only gonna start my account once I start, once I'm 18, or, like I start shooting senior division. Like I said, it's takes practice, and you want to document like your progress and stuff, and start building that community on your page. So I think, the sooner you start it, but just go in knowing that they're probably not even going to offer the sponsorship until you, you're either 18 or competing in senior, but they're going to be much more likely if you've documented your progress, you've already built a decent following. People know you versus, oh, I just started an account and this is my first year competing senior division.

Manisha: Let's talk about authenticity. So you've got your own life, you've got followers, you've got comments that you want to respond to, you've got sponsors.

How do you stay authentic to yourself, especially when you are going through a struggle such as target panic.

Eleanor: Yeah. well, I mean, I've never really struggled with, lacking self identity, luckily. So, I mean, I've always had a very strong personality, which I think has helped a lot. And, like I was saying with the equipment, if the equipment's not working for me, I'm not going to shoot it just because I'm on a contract. Like I'm gonna do what's in my best interest, because I still want to shoot well.

So staying authentic to myself, just through my equipment. Staying authentic to myself when I'm posting. You know, I know for me, I'm not really the type that's going to be dancing in front of the camera, like doing silly things like that. I would just feel weird. So I don't create content like that, you know?

So I create content that's, you know, feels more like me, which is either just cool videos of me shooting or me talking about equipment, answering people's questions. That to me is more authentic to my personality and how I like to present myself. So not feeling like you need to do the latest trend, if it's not like- if dancing on the camera or whatever the trend is at the moment is not, you don't do it.

You know, 'cause if it will show, you know, just through subtle body language, like if you look uncomfortable, people are going to be uncomfortable watching your video. You know, it's just not gonna seem, yeah, authentic.

Or, if all my content is a particular style and people are engaging well with it, and now I'm posting some random video that's totally like not my normal style and just like kind of awkward and weird, people are going to be like, oh, like people, when they follow, they want to know what they're getting. And so I think presenting your authentic self, is the easiest way to stay consistent with a particular style of content. Because when people subscribe, you know, they're subscribing because they're expecting, they already liked the style of content that you were producing, you know, they didn't subscribe because there's no consistency and you're all over the place and all that.

So, I think yeah, saying true to yourself, is going to result in the best, social media presence as well. Yeah, I definitely would say I'm not easily influenced by others and I never have been in my entire life. I've always kind of done my own thing. I think it started off with the- I started off homeschooled, so I mean, I was always the, you know, some people like to say like, oh, homeschoolers are weird.

I didn't care. Like I did my own thing. I went to college at 13, graduated 17. Like I've always been doing my own thing, you know, since the beginning of time. So, yeah, being authentic to myself has never quite been a problem and I think you should be okay with, not following trends or what everyone else is doing 'cause that's what makes you unique.

Manisha: Now we all know that there's another side of social media and what I've noticed is that there is a significant difference on the way women are treated on social media versus men. And, I'll use my own Instagram, the Archery Parent podcast. I've noticed that the responses to some of the women Archers, the comments are very different than responses and comments to male Archers when they've answered certain questions that I've asked, so...

Eleanor: Mm-hmm.

Manisha: ...women will have the googly eyes, the hearts, the flames where the male Archers in response, the comments will be like, oh, that's really great, or really smart, or like really different and, well, first of all, words versus emojis. But...

Eleanor: Yeah,

Manisha: ...it is so bizarre how people value men versus women on social media.

Can you share some experiences and how you have dealt with them when it comes to the objectification and "sëggûàližatiôn" of women. How does a parent deal with that other than just shut the whole thing down?

Eleanor: Yeah, absolutely. So I think, I mean, for me, I very quickly started getting comments like that.

And so, luckily, you know, Instagram has started to create tools to filter comments or certain words and things like that. So I do leverage that because I don't wanna see that on my page, nor do I want my followers to be seeing stuff like that on my page when people are saying just like rude comments or just like, objectifying me, things like this.

So, I leverage the Instagram tools first off. and you can also turn off the comments altogether if, especially for like a child's account. I think sometimes that could be useful. 'cause you don't want like, especially a very young, impressionable child to be seeing, just like bizarre comments, you know?

So things like that, I think you should leverage those tools. and, you know, occasionally just rude comments will come through and, how I deal with that. I always kill them with kindness. That is what I always do. I, you know, I do respond to most of them. Like, if it's like something just like belittling me, or key example actually from one of my Vegas posts, you know, I was so proud of myself for shooting a personal best shooting 25th place in the flights, being in the first flight, all that.

And they're like, oh, well she wasn't. And someone said like, great job, you know? And I was like, thank you. And then someone commented on that person's and said, "oh, well she was shooting flights not championship". So honestly, like it's whatever, or it was something like this. I was like, I, and then I responded.

I was like, "I'm quite proud of how I did." And, you know, "...there's amazing Archers in the flights" and you know, "I shot a personal best. How did you do" smiley face?

You know, it's just like, not being scared of rude comments and just approaching them with the kindness because I think kindness, when you respond with kindness, it can really start to make people think about like, why was I being nasty to this like, person on the internet that I don't even know, you know, and they still chose to respond to me in a respectful way.

I think, can sometimes open their eyes to, oh, this is an actual human that I'm commenting on. You know, it's not just some robot on the internet that. Oh, it doesn't matter. They don't have feelings type of deal. So, yeah, I, I always utilize my, my filtering tools and if, if one of them trickles in and I don't, and it didn't filter it out for some reason, I never speak to their level.

I always try to be kind then, all that, but it gets tough sometimes. Like, I didn't like seeing that comment. It's like, oh, okay. So, just belittling to like a personal best or like, it's also just rude to everyone shooting in the flights, you know, like we're all working hard and stuff and it's like, my journey's just different than maybe other people's journeys, but it doesn't make it any less than.

Manisha: Right. Considering there are thousands of people shooting in the Flights.

Eleanor: Yeah.

Manisha: You know, to knock that I - some people. What are your future plans with regards to being an Archer and for you as an influencer, and I want to bring it around to ideas of supporting women in sport and women in Archery. Any long-term goals?

Eleanor: Yeah. Well, you know, I'm going to be getting this Master's here in Coaching Leadership and I'm really hoping to, 'cause I'll have some classes that are tied to, athletics, really hoping to learn some stuff there and bring maybe some more educational content onto my page, and leverage my, you know, new degree.

As well as, you know, for women in sport in general, I'm going to keep up my page, obviously, and even through my Master's and all that. And, you know, I don't do much like advocacy or anything like that on my page, but I get comments or DMs all the time. or even sometimes parents saying, my daughter loves your content.

Like, she saw your video, like she wanted to get into shooting. So simply just like keeping my presence out there, being supportive towards like other women Archers, I get, you know, sometimes DMs too from other female Archers, asking me questions and just having open, honest conversation with them.

Always being receptive to them and I think just, yeah, keeping my presence out there has made some bit of a difference, even though I am not necessarily intentionally doing it, but it's really nice to see those comments that, you know, when the, a dad's like, oh yeah, my daughter saw your video, loves it.

Or, like having a little girl come up to me at a tournament and wants to take a picture with me. Like, I just love that. So I just mainly plan to keep up what I'm doing and, hoping that my Master's degree I can somehow bring some more elements and leverage that in the Archery community.

Manisha: And I, I'm sorry, I didn't ask you before. What level coach are you and where are you a coach?

Eleanor: Yeah, so I'm a Level 4 USA Archery coach. Sometimes I help out with the Paseo Vista Archery Club here in Chandler, Arizona, but I also have my own website ArcheryByEleanor and people can book me through there.

And so I coach a lot of beginners, Girl Scout troops, that's another thing. I love coaching like little Girl Scout troops and you know, they love having a, a female coach in the sport, especially with my pink bow.

And I tend to be a pretty girly girl and like the, the little girls and like, the Girl Scouts love that. And yeah, I do a lot of kind of my own coaching outside of the club, getting beginners into the sport and yeah, that's mainly what I do.

Manisha: And, you know, there are, I mean, there are so many Archery coaches, but there aren't a lot of women coaches and...

Eleanor: Yeah.

Manisha: ...are you able to speak to keeping girls in sport by having a female coach? What I've noticed is, and there are studies about this...

Eleanor: Mm-hmm.

Manisha: ...between the ages of 12 and 15, if girls are in a sport, no matter how much they've loved it in the past, there's a tendency across all sports, across all countries that girls will tend to fall away from that sport.

Do you find that the involvement of more women coaches around that age can help from that drop off? Have you noticed anything like that?

Eleanor: Well, I will say most of who I coach are adults. so I don't have a lot of students between that 12 to 17. I have some, and I've been coaching for several years, but I haven't coached long enough where I see kind of the beginning of their journey and going through that entire age range, to see the other side of it.

So it's hard for me to speak on that in particular, but I can speak on like, you know, getting more girls into the sport in general and also women. I mean, I've coached lots of older women, even retired women. I have two ladies that I have been coaching on a regular basis. And, I think they like came across my page and seeing like a, a young woman Archer really sparked their interests even more so into the sport that made them take that extra step to actually starting the sport. They had interest, but they never really took the leap to like actually book a lesson and really start doing it.

So, yeah, I think me being a female coach has helped women get past the point of just an interest in the sport, but actually signing up for a class and like really experiencing it, you know, firsthand.

Manisha: Were there any final thoughts maybe for parents or for Archers themselves? Whether it be talking about external pressures, whether it be about target panic about social media, is there anything that you'd like to share sort of as a as final thoughts?

Eleanor: Yeah. I guess my experience, the beginning of this podcast we were talking about especially children that have shown great success in other elements in their lives and you know, that perfectionism mindset that they either have for themselves or the parents have grown to expect perfectionism 'cause they've seen it, their child excel in many other things.

You know, we had a discussion with my parents 'cause they want to be involved. You know, like what parent doesn't want to be involved in their child's sport. And you know, at the beginning stages of my Archery, they'd be: "What did you score that end?" Like, "What happened to that arrow?" You know, like, "What were you thinking during that arrow?"

Like, why did that, "Why did that happen?" and they're curious and want to know, and they want to figure out like, oh, like what can I do to help them shoot their best? And you know, my coach had a discussion with my parents and they're like maybe taking a step back and, I will do the coaching. I will, you know, ask her how she's feeling and how she did on that arrow.

You just need to be here for support, you know, comfort food, all that. And I noticed a huge difference in myself when my parents started doing that, 'cause it, I would get a little anxious, like, Ugh, what's my mom gonna think of that arrow? You know, like, ugh, I don't know why it went like 5-ring, you know, when I'm like a little kid, you know?

And I noticed a huge difference when they took that step back and they're just there for comfort, snacks, chitchatting when I'm off the shooting line. So yeah, I think that was like the, a big difference that I noticed in my parents that I think is important to let the coach do the coaching.

Manisha: So, so important and that is one of the constant themes that I'm trying to ensure that each podcast episode has. Parents are so, so vital to Archery.

Eleanor: Yes.

Manisha: Just not for maybe what they think their involvement should be.

Eleanor: Yeah.

Manisha: It's for a bigger picture -and again there goes my neighbour, cutting down their tree. That's been taking all day. Sorry. So parents think, and I think they mistake the questions, the inundating, the pressure. I think they mistake that for engagement and they think I should be asking these questions or else my Archer will think I'm not interested.

Eleanor: Yeah.

Manisha: And that cannot be further from the truth. And it's unfortunate that sometimes parents get that really mixed up.

Eleanor: Yeah. Yeah. I would a hundred percent, agree. Archers, we value our parents, as our parents, which is someone that gives us comfort, you know, gives us shelter, gives us food.

And so really leaning into that role and we pay our coaches and we pay them for a reason. And, you know, Archers need a team behind them and that team, they have different roles. So let that coach be a coach. As your parent, you're providing that comfort, the food, the familiarity, and really leaning into that role, to create a, you know, a whole team.

Because if we're all just being a coach, who's gonna be the comfort and, you know, shoulder to lean on if everyone's just being a coach. So, yeah, I think we, we need to take a moment and just realize that, you know, we don't always have to be all of the roles. Maybe that's why parents, like sometimes they're used to having multiple roles in their child's life, but when you have a coach, you no longer need to be that role, you know?

Manisha: True.

Eleanor: They're there to take that part over.

Manisha: So, so true. Can you share with us where people can find you, TikTok, your website, your Instagram? How can people find you if they wanted to follow you?

Eleanor: Yeah, so, you can find me @Sporty_Eleanor and I'm on TikTok and Instagram primarily. And also my website, and this is mainly for Archery coaching, but it's ArcheryByEleanor.com and you can see my coaching page and I have links to my social media on there as well.

Manisha: And I'm not sure if you know this, but I always end off the episode with a joke and they're not good.

And I tell jokes really, really badly. So it's a weird mix. So, there's no pressure to laugh and you know, we just set, we sort of go with it. Okay.

So, you know, with almost every Archery tournament there's always like a lunch. There's some of the places that we go to, they always do like a burger or like a sausage or something.

Eleanor:  Yeah.

Manisha: And my joke is, what did one plate say to the other plate?

Eleanor:  I don't even know.

Manisha: Don't worry. Lunch is on me.

Eleanor: That's funny, corny.

Manisha: Oh, so, so bad.

Eleanor, thank you so much for being here and kind of laughing at my joke kind of, and putting up with my neighbour and their chainsaw.

I'm so grateful that you took the time to be on the podcast. And if anyone wants to find out a little bit more about Eleanor, we'll have all the things that she's referenced in our show notes.

And I'm Manisha, that's Eleanor, and this is The Archery Parent Podcast. Thank you so much for joining us. We'll see you again next time.

Eleanor: Thank you.