2005 first Champions League Final – one of the best, most unforgettable games. Winning in the first half 3-0. Liverpool tied in six minutes. It goes to penalties. We lose.
2007 repeat Champions League – first half score 1-0. 5 minutes left it becomes 2-1. We ended up winning.
Football team has all types of leaders: captain, best player (give me the ball and I’ll take care of it). We had leaders who inspired others. Need the attitude and confidence that it is going to be okay. We need that in our businesses and churches.
Motivation comes from outside that is driving me to action. Inspiration is something that comes from inside connected to my purpose, passion, my focus, discipline.
I started playing football when I was 8 with no responsibilities. At 15, I dedicated myself to becoming a professional futbol player.
What motivated me to play was I loved the game. I still love futbol. I love to watch the game. Inspiration and passion were really the things that kept me focused and disciplined.
Humility is essential in leadership. It follows the example of Jesus, to serve others. You must be humble to serve others. It’s not to feel less than others, or diminished. It’s knowing who you are. It is a very clear position in your life. Asking for forgiveness, saying “I’m sorry.”
I’ve seen people try to keep their faith separate but I couldn’t do that. I had to learn to express myself, my decisions over time in a way people can understand. I’ve learned you have to decide what you want to be criticized for. Is this something I am willing to fight for. My faith is built on a solid foundation and it’s worth fighting for.
First, criticism really bothered me. I decided that until I could deal with my emotions, I wasn’t going to read the papers. You give the criticism much more power than it should have.
You’re always going to get feedback from coaches. The best coach I ever had was the one with the best people management skills. He was good tactically, technically but his people management skills were the best. It was Carlos Ancelloti. He always did everything with love. Everyone understood he was doing what was best for the team.
You always have many interests in play, in business and in football. How do you channel all those interests into the best interest for the team? That’s when you have a championship team.
Compare two styles of leadership I’ve encountered: negative one, leadership is based in fear. You don’t play well, he quits talking to you. He sets the mood in the locker room based in fear. You perform out of fear. The risk is that this has an expiration date. You start questioning his decisions. It creates a hostile environment. Leadership that’s based in love, even if I don’t agree, always has our best interest in heart. It’s how you handle a situation and are you consistent in how you act. Underneath it all is his love of us as human beings.
A lack of leadership is different because without leadership there is no direction. There’s a lack of focus, a lack of communication.
The leader must harness all the personal interest into one direction.
Good leadership helps everybody know that the common goal is better for everyone.
World Food Programme’s Ambassador. I was captivated by the way they do work. We’re facing a very serious problem today., but we’ll fight it so as many people as possible will have food and the minimum conditions to survive. When Jesus cured the ten lepers, only one returned to thank him. I’m going to help because it’s good to help. I live in a community where I have a social responsibility.
It doesn matter if you have an official leadership position or not. At the minimum we lead ourselves. The most important thing is our own identity. My identity is in Christ, I’m a child of God, the child of one who really loves me. I will have professional successes and failures. That is all part of my journey but no one can take away that I’m a child of God.
