Sometime ago, while tuning my TV, I got to a station where they were showing the 1974 Heavyweight Championship between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman.
I am not a sport person, but when I realized that the match was that of Muhammad Ali, I decided to watch it. Who wouldn’t pause to watch the match of the late world’s greatest boxer? Smiles.
Well, it turned out to be an interesting watch for me, and a very inspiring one at that.
Foreman was an undefeated heavy weight champion, but after the fight, Muhammad Ali regained the title. Now, this isn’t about the title he regained but about the disposition he exhibited during the match.
I watched the fight from the first round till he finally knocked down Foreman and I learnt several lessons from it. These lessons are worth holding on to, dearly.
Confidence
Muhammad Ali was filled with great confidence throughout the match. In fact, he didn’t even act like he was fighting an heavyweight champion; he fought with great confidence as if he knew he was definitely going to win.
To win in the game of life, you’ve got to have great confidence in you. Whatever you do in life or whichever field you are, “fly like a butterfly and sting like a bee.”
Focus
Muhammad Ali was very focused and calculative; he wasn’t just throwing punches. In fact, I would say Foreman threw more punches than he did, but while Foreman was just punching Ali’s belly and acting aggressive, Ali’s punches were hitting him right on his face.
Do you want to succeed in any aspect of life? Then you’ve got to be focused. Don’t just be here and there; be where you ought to be and keep your focus.
Strategy
Another powerful thing that made Ali successful in the match was that he had a strategy. While Foreman was just coming heavily at him, Ali kept on resting on ropes.
If you watched the match, you would think Ali was failing or getting tired. But all the while he kept resting on the ropes, he kept telling Foreman he was missing his target and that his punches were soft. He kept telling Foreman that he hadn’t made his own moves yet. Just imagine, that was strategic!
For me, I believe Ali first won the emotional battle against Foreman before he even won the championship. Ali was able to get control of his emotions and that contributed hugely to his success.
So you want to succeed in life? What strategy do you have? What are your plans? Remember that he who doesn’t plan is already planning to fail. Don’t walk through life without powerful strategies that will see you through.
I learnt several lessons from the match but I will just stop here for now. I hope I’ve added great value to you?
PS: Two important strategies you need in life to become very successful are: to learn how to write effectively and how to make money passively. And guess what?
We’ve got these two courses on TEBEBA Academy: The Effective Writing Mastery and Money Making Strategies course.
I celebrate you today. Go out and win BIG.
I’m Emmanuel, the exceptional being.
