2018 has been great for Liverpool football fans around the world with our team unbeaten so far and sitting snugly at the top of the English Premier League. :)
Of all the intense rivalry, that against Manchester United is unparalleled. Having bragging rights as well as secretly (or some openly) happy to see Man U struggling (after the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson) is a feeling to be savoured for the loyal ‘Pool fans.
A striking contrast between the two teams has been the different managers: Jurgen Klopp for Liverpool and (ex-manager) Jose Mourinho for Man U. Klopp is always overflowing with enthusiasm, energy and positivity. Mourinho, on the other hand, is always moody, finger pointing and self inflating.
There are lots of management learning points here, but I would like to just highlight one.
FUN.
It is fun for the players and the fans of Liverpool under Klopp’s management. Even before this season, since he took over, Klopp has made football fun at Liverpool. Why is fun so important?
Slightly more than a year ago, I’ve written about my departure from Mediacorp after 20 years to “play”. I believe in the idea that we should be “players” in life. Having fun is the main thrust behind playing. Fun is THE motivator in life. No matter how noble or altruistic your goal is, if the journey towards that goal is not fun, you will find it a drag. And in physics terms, there will be a lot of “friction” which causes “burnout” and demotivation.
Kids learn best through fun. Heck, adults learn best through fun too! One of the key advantages of a “play” mentality and having fun is that “failing” is not “failure”. Failing is all part of games and play. How do we respond to failing in games? Restart and play again (either try again with the new experience, or try a different game)! This means that the fear of failing is gone which opens up the mind for creativity.
When we are not afraid to fail, we will try all sorts of solutions. Test them. Learn from mistakes. People are more creative when having fun!
I was getting a little tired of seeing the same motivation videos/messages on social media: “Don’t give up!”, “Keep at it!”, “Quitters never win, winners never quit!”… When coupled with an “entitled” mentality amongst our younger generation, a rather toxic mindset can be formed. Some feel that they are entitled to success simply because they have been trying at something for a while. The only way to reconcile with failing is to find fault with everything else… team members, manager, company, society at large…
Don’t get me wrong. I’m all for the virtue of “Perseverance”. However, there are more factors that lead to success. “Talent” is one. Not just inborn talent. But talent that are horned as well. And the most important “talent” is the ability to know what you are good at and to make it much better than others. ie., there are many ways to win a game. Play to your strengths and persevere in training your strengths. We will find it fun to do so as there will be victories (however small) to celebrate along the way. If however, you persevere at something where you do not have talent, you will not find any fun.
So being a player also means understanding that it is okay to quit at some games. Playing means a lot of trial and error. Learning from feedback and statistics can quickly help us to choose the right games to play (and in the process, quitting those games that we cannot win).
Anyway, as all football fans know, Jose Mourinho was sacked as Man U’s manager and a caretaker manager was brought in. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is a “baby-face” crowd favourite as a player. Man U won all 2 matches since he took over. Of course, there are once again many factors (including playing against weaker teams). But one thing’s for sure… as seen from the following headline: “The biggest upside to Solskjaer at Man United? Football is FUN again” (emphasis mine).
Have a FUN 2019 everyone!
This was first posted on Facebook.
