Football legends share their 9 top tips to succeed
Between them they have won the World Cup, the European Championship, the Champions League, and multiple league titles and trophies in the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and England.
Ruud Gullit and Lothar Matthäus are, in short, football legends.
They have inspired generations in their respective countries of the Netherlands and Germany, as well as football fans around the world.
They know what it takes to win; what it takes to be successful.
Speaking at TCS Summit Europe 2018 in Budapest, they both offered up the lessons they had learned about the qualities and experiences it takes to reach the top of your game – whether that is in sport or business.
1. Belief
1990 FIFA World Cup-winning German captain Lothar Matthäus knew from a very early age that success in sport was possible, thanks to the Puma and Adidas factories in the Bavarian village where he grew up.
“That was some motivation for us kids, as the stars were coming to this village,” Matthäus explains. Stars such as the World Cup-winning captain Franz Beckenbauer came to the village, while Bayern Munich was once sponsored by Adidas and Borussia Monchengladbach was sponsored by Puma.
“We got to meet our idols. This was a sense of motivation. Our idols came to us. This gave me a lot of motivation to be like them,” he said.
2. Confidence
As well as believing that success is possible, it is vital that you have confidence in your own abilities, according to Ruud Gullit, who won the 1988 UEFA European Championship with the Netherlands and two European Cups – today known as the Champions League – with AC Milan.
At the age of just 14, Gullit was invited to play with players from Ajax, some of the best footballers in Amsterdam.
“I could compare myself and thought: they are not better than me – I am better than them,” he said, adding that confidence was key.
“You need to be confident about yourself. You do not want to be overconfident. I did that once, I thought I could sing and I made a record! That is overconfident. You need to be confident about yourself and about your abilities.”
3. Discipline