11 Jun As sensitive as he is on the field

He is as sensitive in life as he is on the field. ‘It is also about the people around me,’ he says. And so Cruyff decides not to go to the World Cup, even though this World Cup would have been the moment for him and for the Netherlands to shine. In his home in Barcelona, he and his family are the victims of a robbery. Tied up, he lies on the table with a loaded gun pointed at him. Danny, his wife, lies beside him; his young daughter looks around the corner and sees it happening. It had a major impact on the family, and while Johan is at the peak of his career, he makes an impulsive and determined choice: no World Cup then, because football is ultimately just a game.

God-forgiven
The special thing about the new documentary about Cruijff on the Dutch television network NPO is that you can survey his entire life in just a few hours. At the end, a voice-over asks him if people will still be talking about Cruijff in a hundred years. Johan replies: ‘I don’t know, because I won’t be around then. But if that were the case, then you can say that you did well in your life, not just with football, but in many areas. The qualities I had as a football player, that was god-forgiven, but often it is aspects you don’t stop to think about that are so important. Sport is fantastic for your body, but also very good for your mind. You can set others on a certain path, which allows you to give them a better life. It is for everyone. It is actually the most beautiful thing there is.’

That is what is so nice about Cruijff, his humanity

Inimitable
Cruyff also explains how his brain functions: he thinks more with his right hemisphere, whereas in our knowledge economy, you are primarily appealed to by your left hemisphere. The right hemisphere is responsible for intuitive, visual, and creative thinking, while the left hemisphere is more for understanding and analysis. I am thinking of Zen master Deshimaru, who brought Zen from Japan to Europe in 1967. He emphasized the importance of harmonizing both hemispheres and explained that this is one of the merits of Zen meditation.

The fact is that Cruyff’s language, which comes from the left hemisphere, is inimitable. Just as inimitable as he is himself on the field!

Einstein likewise emphasized the importance of intuition. He viewed reason as its servant: reason provides the data and verifies the outcome. However, insights and discoveries stem from intuition.

Book I’ve got time
The Time Surfing method calibrates both hemispheres of the brain. You often step away for a moment to let go and muse. It is precisely then that good ideas bubble up (right hemisphere). However, it is important that you have first clearly formulated what you are looking for (left hemisphere). You also do not trust your intuition blindly, but check at the end whether the outcome also holds true for reason.

Everyone can learn Time Surfing. It not only opens your intuition but also makes your work and all your activities much more pleasant. You act carefully and precisely, yet loosely at the same time. You live more from trust and less from control. Things seem to happen on their own.

The book ‘I’ve got time’ (A Zen monk’s guide to a calm, focuses and meaningful life) is super concrete and was nevertheless awarded the title of best spiritual book of the year in the Netherlands  at the time.

*This post has been automatically translated from Dutch