Nikola Ilic

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Football (soccer) was the most important way of socialising when I was a kid growing up in Belgrade. If you were a useful player, you had a place in the pack. It gave you status among the other kids.

One beautiful, sunny day, a bunch of us gathered in front of our building to play football. The building was new, so most of us had only recently met.

Marko, who later became my best friend for life, and I were the youngest kids, maybe 10 or so. Everyone else was three to five years older. At that age, that’s a huge physical and mental difference.

Obviously, we got picked last. We were told to either play in goal or stay back - basically try not to screw up too much. If we did, an older kid would yell at us or even punch us. The streets of Belgrade were that way at the time - learning to stand up for yourself without escalating a fight with someone twice your size. Valuable life lesson, I guess.

About an hour into the game, a new guy, Pedja, came along to play with us. He was four years older than me. We had to reshuffle the teams, and for some reason he picked both Marko and me for his team. He was really good, probably the best on the pitch that day.

I remember having the ball right in front of the goal. I hesitated too long, played a late, inaccurate pass, and the ball went out of bounds. Chance squandered. I was ready to be yelled at.

Instead, Pedja said: “It’s OK. Next time, just raise your head and you’ll see me. Pass quicker. Let’s get back now.”

That was it.

Each time one of us smaller kids made a mistake, he would encourage us and give us a quick piece of advice. He was talking to us constantly, and we started talking to each other. It was a completely different way to play the game. I felt valued and motivated.

From then on, Marko and I always wanted to be on Pedja’s team. We became lifelong friends. And he taught me one of the first leadership lessons of my life, on the streets of Belgrade, without even knowing it.

I want to share key learnings from this seemingly small experience. And also, let's explore how an ordinary moment for you can be a defining moment for someone else 👇

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