Like Suarez, We all Need To Bite

Since the news of Suarez’s cannibalism and inglorious bite at the just concluded world cup hit the world, the talented striker has heavily faced criticisms from football pundits and lovers of the rounded leather game. This is because many saw this act as awful contrary to the ethics of the game. The football governing body, FIFA, has always advocate for a fair game free of violence, racism and all sort of injurious traits. But not once or twice did Suarez commit his crime; he did it thrice at different times in different stages. He’s been doing it for years, but his last draw was at the world cup under the roving eyes of FIFA with billions of spectators watching across the world. And Suarez did it again! This was why he was punished with a four-month match ban; a ban that will see him not participating in any football activity across the globe. Oh, what a pity for Suarez; a striker that had promised a lot! Oh Suarez, we shall all miss your bite, tenacity, rigour, pace and strength, those attributes that stand you out among your peers.

But the truth is that just like the Uruguay striker, we all need to bite, chew and scratch. Yes, we need to bite. Though biting is bad but it isn’t that bad. Luis Suarez hasn’t ended anyone’s career, he just needs a punishment combine with professional help to stop him carrying out a bizarre yet hardly life-threatening bodily function.

As for Suarez, biting is an art he has mastered for long. It has become part of him. In football, there are other crimes such as fisticuffs, elbowing, headbutting and many others that we’ve seen, but biting is so rare. This is why many of us were shocked. Though his act could be harmful, but the silent lesson here is that Suarez started a new idea that caught us unawares. He started something new that had become talk-of-the-town. The lesson we need to pick here is that we all need to dare to start something new and different from others; which could mean to bite in literal sense.

Suarez has also got passion; passion to rewrite his name, passion to be difference even if it would cost him a ban. He dares the ban; he is always ready to fight to finish whoever stands in his way to victory, even if it will cost him a bite.

Suarez also has a way of courting attention especially at the highest level. The truth is that his name will linger indelibly in our memories, though for the wrong reasons. The lesson here is that at every point in life, maybe in a career or business, we also need to court attention to stay in the consciousness of people. Entertainers have a way of doing this. It is their way of hogging the limelight.

While the world has continued to criticize the Uruguay striker, the player who is synonymous with controversy was recently signed to Barcelona from Liverpool in a mega deal valued at £75 million. Are you still wondering why? Barcelona, one of the biggest football clubs in the world must have seen the offensive nature in the striker which is a threat to defenders, his desire to always bite in literal sense, his urge for more. Suarez is insatiable. He won’t stop after scoring a hat-trick; he is hungry for goals, goals and goals. That was the reason Barcelona signed him.

Similarly, we all need not to stay in our comfort zones; we need to yearn for more. We need to be hungry for new things. The world is ruled by those who dare the odds. It takes guts to bite.

“To bite someone, you have to get very close, you have to put your head – the place you want to protect the most in a conflict – right up against them,” says a researcher. This is something we all need to do in our careers or businesses though in the right sense. We all need to take initiatives. Stir the water to unsettle the fish. Don’t wait for an opportunity to come, rather create opportunities, dare to take a bite as it were in Suarez’s case. Yes, we all need to bite, bite opportunities and create an imprint that will last indelibly in the minds of people.

-By Adeola Adeoti

Adeola Adeoti is a journalist with wealth of experience. He’s currently the publisher of Benconews.com