Belief. Spirit. Determination!

Umuzi Pulse brought to you by Michael Mbaya

Dennis Bergkamp turns 55 this year. Something profoundly interesting about the Arsenal legend that fully resonated with me is the fact that he said: “When you start supporting a football club, you don’t support it because of the trophies, or a player, or history; you support it because you found yourself somewhere there - found a place where you belong.”

The most interesting thing about picking your team as a young boy from Mkoba 15 in Gweru, Zimbabwe is that there is nothing British about me. However, we need to pay more attention to the power of representation.?

The argument has always been that at your age you support Arsenal because of Thierry Henry, and honestly, what a time to be alive! Maybe it’s the “Invincibles ” team because you were old enough to understand that level of greatness. You know all that is fair. At some point I even thought I supported them because of my father, it turns out he was just a Liverpool fan, even though his argument was that he is a fan of football (soccer for the semanticists) but I saw and felt that emotion when Steven Gerrard slipped. Buuuuut… I digress. We don’t need to get into the complicated football dynamics that is my family, we have a Manchester City fan, God bless her heart, she doesn’t know any better.?

Let’s take a few steps back. In the football community, Arsenal is well known as the elephant at the top of the tree on the smallest branch. At some point, all we remember is the branch breaking from the weight and pressure of being at the top and never what it took to get that high in the first place.?

Belief and faith are intrinsic to the Arsenal identity. Despite numerous setbacks and challenges, the club and its supporters have always held on to a shared vision of potential and greatness. This belief is not a weakness but a testament to the resilience and passion that define the Arsenal spirit. I know it sounds a little preachy, but this is something that I have carried with me in my own personal and work life. The true measurement of who I am and who I believe I can be has always been measured by how much better I can be today than I was yesterday. How can I reframe the setbacks, recalibrate and better show up for myself and the people around me?

Lately, I have been seeing the same level of belief, spirit and determination in the communities I work in. This has been such a key driving force that has shaped my work and how I show up in the spaces I find myself in. I am inspired daily and on the days I am struggling to show up for myself or the things I am responsible for, this always serves as true north for me.

Belief. Spirit. Determination!