Football & Life
“Change is the only constant.” — Heraclitus
What excellent midfielders constantly do is that they make conscious effort to scan and absorb information from the surrounding.
To look for what has changed and where the new opportunities/threats are.
That’s how they maintain control and keep their cool. They are aware of what is coming at them and have the time to predict, plan and prevent.
“A wise man knows that he knows nothing”
In the 21st century things are moving so quickly that what is studied today may not be relevant tomorrow.
Having awareness and the desire to constantly absorb information is so important. Embrace the journey of life long learning and your wallet will thank you in the future.
Do not fall into ignorance. Ignorance might be a bliss at times, but ignorance is also the root of all evil.
“Being too early is indistinguishable from being wrong” — Tim O’Reilly
Positioning. Timing.
Fish where the fish are.
Being at the right place at the right time has a higher chance of creating an impact compared to having the raw skill and power.
To name some scenarios : Tech products that were too early, relationships that progressed due to coincidence, opportunities that arises out of the blue.
Discipline
To have self control.
To control your emotions.
To have the focus and concentration.
To not get tempted and deviate from the goal.
To train even though you don’t feel like it.
To do things even though you don’t feel like it.
To complete tasks and your responsibilities.
To keep moving forward despite the difficulties.
There is no perfect moment to procrastinate for. Nobody is at their 100%.
Everyone including your opponents or competitor is dealing with some sort of drag, be it financially, physically or mentally.
You just got to give your 100% even though you don’t feel like you are at 100%.
The Law of Sowing and Reaping
Preparation. Practice.
Whatever you reap is what you sown.
If you don’t sow, you don’t even have a chance to reap.
Expect nothing if you don’t put in the necessary work.
Planting oranges does not give you apples.
Don’t expect to be healthy with an unbalanced diet.
Anybody can but how many will?
What are you willing to sacrifice?
“In my teams, the goalie is the first attacker, and the striker the first defender.” -Johan Cruyff
No matter how small the role, everyone counts.
If a team member fails to perform, the entire team suffers and someone has to compensate for it.
“A chain is only as strong as its weakest link” and “The team is a reflection of its leader”.
“Team” can be a group of interdependent people or a group of independent people.
As a leader, it is crucial to define which system completes the task in the most effective and efficient way.
Understand how your team works and what motivates them.
If a task requires a single person, do not send the whole team for the sake of making things “fair”.
Step up and earn that trust and respect.
The best form of teamwork is achieved when everyone is a leader. The level of trust and respect is so high between each member that they do not question any instructions from one another.
Synchronization, coordination and communication is so good that everyone understands the bigger picture and move together as one.
Adversity & Belief
“Everything that hasn’t been used is always imagined as the solution” — Marcelo Bielsa
Sometimes in football and life you can be doing everything right but still lose.
Things won’t turn your way even though you have prepared everything that is possible for it.
That’s the beauty of the game.
Trust that you had made the best decision for yourself at that point in time.
Never regret a single day of your life.
Good days give happiness, Bad days give experiences, the worst day give lessons and the best days give memories.
No days is wasted.
We can’t change what happened but we can control how we react to it.
When things don’t go your way, suck it up and continue pushing.
Do not let a win get to your head and a loss to your heart.
Perhaps the most important lesson, is to have the ability to self motivate.
“Come on get up”, “It’s ok go try again”.
Only kids get that when they are learning how to walk, read, write, etc.
This kind of luxury is rare as an adult. We just have to be there for ourselves.
Support and encouragement gives confidence.
There is going to be days, months and years where you will feel that nobody is around you and nobody likes you.
Understand that nobody owes you anything and you are not the main character in anyone’s story.
Sometimes in life people are not going to be around you to motivate and push you. Celebrate and applaud you.
Just do it on your own.
Encourage yourself.
Believe in yourself.
