Mastering others is strength. Mastering yourself makes you fearless – Lao Tzu
Lionel ”Leo” Messi grew up in a small Argentinean town called Rosario.
His story, like that of so many great athletes , is one of using his innate and gifted physical talents to both shield himself from hurt and deliver himself from a life of adversity, poverty and struggle.
In so doing he went on to become arguably one of the greatest footballers of all time.
Yet, it could all have turned out so differently for a kid who was born just after the Falklands war.
At age 10 he was diagnosed with a growth hormone deficiency.
Due to his country’s economic collapse at the time, no one, no club could afford to cover his medication.
Lionel Messi departed for a trial at Barcelona, aged just 13.He was offered a makeshift contract on the back of a paper napkin to join the academy. He kept going.
Who would have thought that at age 29, standing just 5 foot six inches, he would go on to be regarded by many – as the greatest footballer ever.
Disadvantaged in many ways by his short stature, Lionel Messi chose to leverage off his lower centre of gravity and focus his energy on his greater agility, his greater balance, his greater speed and his greater ball control.
Lionel Messi is the only player that runs faster with the ball than he does without it -Pep Guardiola
Lionel ”Leo” Messi, reserved and unassuming, and a somewhat unremarkable man outside of football, proved that:
Mindset matters most.
Mindset defines Champions.
If you do not possess the right mindset, you will never achieve your own greatest potential – in either your professional or personal life
Life is full of choices to be made.
And undoubtedly one of the most important choices one has to make is that of MINDSET:
Victim or Victor?
Have you chosen the mindset of a victor – that of a winner?
Or have you unwittingly, unknowingly or habitually, allowed a sub- conscious mindset of a ‘victim’ to play a defining role in your life – that of a loser?
Who’s doing most of the talking on the inside, listen very carefully, as there is ZERO middle ground with this choice in life?
The sub- conscious human mind simply cannot store two opposing thoughts simultaneously.
Never confuse the most important part of you – your subconscious mind. You cannot have thoughts of victory and defeat in your mind at the same time. The subconscious mind has the power to send sabotaging messages to your body. All it takes is one kernel of doubt – David Becker
Commit 100% if your want to win.
The power of the human sub- conscious mind, our store house of our beliefs and thoughts, is immense.
Control the sub- conscious, or it will control you.
It can be a great partner in success or a destructive partner in self sabotage.
Your mindset, habits and internal dialogue are vital ingredients of your sustained success.
The quality of your thoughts are so important during these swims. If you start thinking, Shit, I’m cold, within a second it will be digging into you – Lewis Pugh
The great champions make a conscious choice to vigilantly programme the sub- conscious with a winner’s mindset – they adopt a victor’s mindset.
Average people fall into the human trap of allowing the sub- conscious mind to adopt a victim’s mind set.
And guess what happens next?
They unwittingly disqualify themselves from the journey of great – the journey from Good to Great to Greater.
Victim beliefs are a potent form of self sabotage.
They destroy any chance of SUCCESS IN SPORT, BUSINESS and LIFE.
Key Insight:
One’s best made plans – one’s strategies and tactics in life – will prove meaningless unless you possess the right mindset.
More examples of the ‘Victor or Victim’ mindsets from the likes of Gary Player,Elon Musk, Nelson Mandela and others greats are highlighted in my latest eBook – simple download by clicking on below link :
For a free instant digital download of Rob’s latest book: THE GAME CHANGERS. Click Here
THE GAME CHANGERS – ROB OPIE : foreword by John Robbie
How to achieve your greatest potential in your professional and personal life
The Game Changers suggests that everyone can find the key to real achievement in life. Finding real purpose need not be random. It is an awesome proposal and one that must be investigated by anyone who fears being ordinary – John Robbie.
GET IN TOUCH . robopie@thegameplan.co.za
A special thank you to Jose and Doug at Team Cell C for their continued support of our GROWING SOUTH AFRICANS GREAT initiative at THE GAME PLAN .
Rob Opie is a Brand Strategist, Entrepreneur, Speaker, Author and Performance Coach to Business executives, Corporate teams, Sports teams and Individuals.
