From Africa to South America, people from all around the world gathered to see last week’s long-awaited world cup final, Argentina vs. Germany. Yet, the grand finale, overwhelmed me with a bitter surprise.
⚽ 🏆
I realized that my deception didn’t come from Argentina ending in second place, since I recognized it was still an incredible achievement, but the fact that THEY didn’t and that the look in their faces reflected no more than crushed ego’s; they clearly felt like losers.
Lets take Lionel Messi for instance. I’m a huge fan of his, because...who doesn’t know him, he’s a soccer “natural"; that’s how I thought before. The problem I believe, was that he thought so too.
Many times we unconsciously convince ourselves that hero’s and geniuses, from Michael Jordan or Beethoven, are innately talented or born “naturals”. We adulate them and label them as unreachable superior beings, when in reality their success is a consequence of effort and dedication. So this takes me back to WHY Messi, the man of the year, the one who won the “Balon de Oro”, and who supposedly is the best soccer player on earth, still frowned. |
I’ve learned that the key to success relies in a concept that's completely the contrary. To reach our aspirations we need to develop a growth mindset were EFFORT is not frowned upon, instead it is embraced, it is practiced, and actually is the only way that anyone--a soccer player, a job applicant to even a student in the IA--will be able to ENJOY and feel proud of themselves no matter the final result.