Childhood Combining Hormone Therapy and Exercise
Small, Concrete Goals and Achievements Over Abstract Targets
The Power of Belief: "Effort Can Overcome Limits"
Lionel Messi (center), Angel Di Maria (right), and their teammates are cheering while holding the championship trophy on top of a bus during the 2022 Qatar World Cup victory parade held on the 20th (local time) in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina. / Photo by Reuters Yonhap News
Lionel Messi (35), the 'God of Football' who lifted the trophy as a four-time champion including the Champions League, Olympics, Ballon d'Or, and the 2022 Qatar World Cup, was once a small boy suffering from growth disorder during his childhood. Although he seemed far from being an athlete, he is now considered the greatest football player in history.
Youth Years Combining Growth Hormone Treatment and Exercise
On the 20th (local time), US CNBC introduced the 'growth mindset' as the reason Messi was able to overcome physical limitations and become the best athlete. The growth mindset refers to the belief that growth can be achieved through effort rather than innate physical conditions.
Born in 1987, Messi was the son of a factory worker father and a cleaning lady mother. He loved football from a young age and had plenty of talent, but his future looked bleak after being diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency. Growth hormone deficiency is a disease where growth hormone secretion is not properly carried out during the growth period for special reasons. Without treatment, Messi's height was feared to remain between 130 and 150 cm, which is far too short to be an athlete.
Fortunately, FC Barcelona, recognizing his talent, signed him with the promise to support growth hormone injection treatment, and Messi began his career with difficulty by combining hormone treatment and exercise from the age of 11.
Building Skills with a 'Growth Mindset' Despite Adverse Conditions
Although he started his athletic career under adverse conditions, this actually helped Messi develop a 'growth mindset' and dedicate himself to practice. According to CNBC, Messi practiced football in his youth with the sole purpose of becoming a professional football player, setting small goals each year rather than huge milestones, and improving his skills by surpassing these goals.
Messi (center) and his teammates cheer while holding the trophy after winning against France in the World Cup final held at Lusail Stadium in Qatar on the 18th. / Photo by Yonhap News
Messi's practice method is similar to the opinion of psychologist Carol Dweck, who proposed the growth mindset theory. In her 2015 book Growth, Dweck defined the 'growth mindset' as the belief that people can develop their basic abilities through hard effort.
This growth mindset is commonly found not only in Messi but also in successful figures across various fields. According to Dweck, billionaire Mark Cuban and famous actor Will Smith are also representative figures who reached the pinnacle of their respective fields through a growth mindset.
Overcoming Innate Physical Limitations Through Effort
Currently, Messi's height is 169 cm, and thanks to hormone treatment, he was able to safely complete his growth despite the disease. However, he is still relatively small compared to his fellow football players. Nevertheless, his football skills, honed through consistent effort, are by no means inferior to those of physically superior players.
A representative example is the semi-final match of the '2021 Copa America' held in July last year. In the match between Argentina and Colombia, Messi, who started as a key player, got involved in physical battles around the 30th minute of the first half with Colombian defenders Davinson S?nchez (187 cm) and Duv?n Zapata (186 cm), but he shook them off and delivered a pass. This shattered the prejudice that 'physical battles belong to the realm of physicality (physical conditions).'
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