He’s only 29 years old and yet it just feels like he’s been around forever.
Lionel Messi, from Argentina, is a one of the best futbol players in the world. According to his young team mate, Neymar Jr., he is the THE best soccer player in the world. And he wants to make sure that the two stay together playing for Barcelona.
I didn’t pay a lot of attention to him while he was winning FIVE consecutive FIFA Ballon D’or awards. I mostly pay attention to Brazillian players. However his name would just happen to sneak into my consciousness every now and then, as those Brazillians faded into the background. And Lionel Messi took the spotlight.
I must admit that he’s VERY hard to ignore.
Things weren’t always this good for Leo Messi, born in Rosario, Argentina on 24 June 1987.
Things weren’t always easy either. And likely he works very hard doing what he does. That’s what makes a star a star in any walk in life. Lionel Messi knows he’s got talent and he doesn’t waste it. He builds on it. Natural talent is fine, but lots of people either waste it, don’t appreciate it, ignore it or get lazy.
Someone like Messi learned that he knew he had talent, but other people let external appearances impede their judgement about him. They were the “experts.” Beware of experts because they often say something can’t be done. That’s the funny thing about many experts – they really don’t know about POSSIBILITY and POTENTIAL. They think in terms of what they see now and make their judgements based on that.
To me, they are PHONY. They have their own egos and they fail to see what is truly before them.
For me, I believe in people. I believe that we are all basically good. No evil person is completely evil and no good person is completely good. If someone tells me their dreams, I give them the benefit of the doubt. I don’t feel I have a right to rain on someone’s parade. I have my own dreams and ambitions. I certainly don’t appreciate it when people rain down on my sunshine! So instead I encourage them, not tell them to slow down. Instead I try to help them SPEED it up. If they’re truly sincere, they will do as I instruct them. That is the sincerest form of honesty around.
When you do as you want and are happy about it, it changes everything, including your brain!
If you have a sincere burning desire, you won’t let anything impede you. Lionel Messi did and didn’t.
Messi was 11 years old and only 4′ 2″. His doctors determined that he lacked Human Growth Hormone (HGH). It stimulates growth, cell reproduction, and cell regeneration. Therefore it is very important in human development. I’m only 5 feet tall. My oldest son was already taller than me at age 10! But my youngest son was a late bloomer. So everyone grows at their own rate. In the end, my youngest son is a smidge taller than his dad at 5’7”.
So began very expensive injections of artificial growth hormone. Everyday he would do these and he stopped doing them as he reached adulthood. He’s 5’7″ which is average for an Argentinian male. The thing is, many of his team mates at Barca aren’t very tall either. I used to point out that you don’t have to be big or tall to play soccer well.
As I said the treatments were very expensive and Lionel Messi’s dad looked for help from his son’s soccer club in Argentina, who at first said they would pay the $1000 to $1500/month cost and then only paid a small amount.
His former team mate, Gerardo Grighini said this about Messi, ““I don’t think just anyone has the mental strength when they’re only 10 or 11 to say ‘I’m going to do this because it’s going to help me in the future … but he knew it would help him fulfil his dream.”
Interestingly Messi himself thought that being tiny actually gave him an edge. He thought that made him more agile, fast on his feet and also taught him to control the ball better. When you watch him play, he certainly has skill with the ball. It’s like a part of him. That’s what it’s like with every great person. Things look natural and easy, even when it’s not. It’s practiced.
And he’s had his share of injuries too, all along. But none of that ever deterred him. He would recover and come back and play well, as if he never left. A sign of a true champion. And someone who strongly believes in who they are and what they do with their lives.
Every person who is true to themselves goes out there with great faith and joy, no matter what.
I’m learning that too. Just do it because you love something. Don’t worry about the critics. Especially the ones who claim to be students of spiritual and mind matters. They are often arrogant, say they’ve heard it all and yet, they are still sick.
When you heal your mind, you heal everything. And it takes awareness and honesty to know this and practice everyday getting to know who you are and how you feel and if it’s not good, then do something positive and constructive about the negativity in your life!
Because you’re a winner!
My work is all about possibility and possibility thinking. It changes the brain. It heals the brain. Neuroplasticity works both ways. You’re either shrinking the brain which is therefore a sick brain or you’re growing it. As you expand your life by WHAT you are THINKING, you are encouraging the birth and growth of new healthy brain cells and creating new healthy neural networks.
Because you’ve chosen to think constructively and positively and then taken those thoughts and put them into action to produce the results you want!
So, what about you?
Are you pouring your heart and soul into something that has a lot of meaning for you?
Are you ready to make tough decisions and go after what you want?
Success is not easy, not matter how you cut it. But the results are mighty fine. Stop living small. Dream big. Do big. Take a leap of faith. And be your own person all the way!
Dr. Joanny Liu, TCMD, B.CivilEng, International #1 Best Selling Author and founder of Extraordinary Sports Medicine, where we help athletes reverse injury, get back in the game they love and improve their quality of life.
P.S. Watch Nathan’s Successful Recovery from Post Concussion Syndrome:
If you or someone you care about has a concussion or post concussion syndrome then pick up Dr. Joanny’s best seller: Heal Your Concussion: How to Quickly and Effectively Get Back in the Game
