In an era which is arguably defined by distraction at the hands of electronic devices, high productivity is seemingly the Holy Grail that most seekers will not have a Belgian chocolate’s chance in hell of ever attaining. Yet as our CSO observed tonight’s 2011-2012 UEFA Champions League quarter-final first leg between AC Milan and FC Barcelona, it became clear to him that better productivity is within reach of anyone who attributes value well to their experiences, and seeks to learn from them.
This realisation was exemplified by a masterful performance by a midfielder who has won every major title possible for a player whose entire career has been spent in Italy, yet who garnered a mere 35 caps over nine years (1999-2008) for a national side that he was never a mainstay in: Massimo Ambrosini. Blessed with neither sumptuous technique nor physique – at a slender 1.82m, he is physically rather average – his game nevertheless evinces a precious refinement through one key attribute: his reading of a football match. Anticipating seemingly every pass, his breathtaking challenge to deflect Lionel Messi‘s shot wide was something that should not have been possible for a 34-year-old man in the seventy-seventh minute of an extraordinarily draining encounter. Yet his experience guided him to the optimal outcome.
Far too often in life, mistakes are made which on a closer examination of our existence to date are both recognisable and avoidable. Constant consciousness of who we are, where we are and what is occurring at any given moment – particularly during activities which are vital to our lives – should yield higher levels of learning and ultimately greater skill at the tasks that lay before us to be accomplished.
