Culture​

- a collection of the creative thought of human society and the results of the resulting activity​

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In the Estonian football landscape, a number of football-related podcasts and opinion pieces have emerged in which former players, journalists, and sports enthusiasts discuss football matters in a highly emotional manner. However, due to limited airtime and restricted column space, important topics are often treated rather superficially, relying on claims that lack clear context as well as a coherent line of reasoning or solutions.

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The risk is that both listeners and readers—and in fact especially the opinion leaders themselves—develop less objective or overly narrow understandings, which can ultimately lead to misguided or incompetent practices in our everyday football environment.

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As one wise man has said: “You cannot contribute outwardly without first gathering inwardly. Most people tend to express their views and aim to be productive as quickly as possible, rather than first analysing and learning” (a mistake I myself constantly fall into). “This, however, is not an effective way to move forward and develop, because the desired productivity cannot be of high quality if nothing has first been absorbed.”

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It was precisely for this reason that the idea of starting a blog focused on key issues in Estonian football was born. Gathering new information and shaping it into knowledge is essential for creating new, higher-quality connections and insights.

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Debate vs Discussion

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In his book "Principles", which addresses life and work culture, investment guru Ray Dalio defines the essence of debate and discussion as follows:

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“While debate involves opposing another viewpoint and steadfastly arguing the correctness of one’s own position, discussion means, in addition to argumentation, striving to understand the other party. Ultimately, it is not important who is right—both participants seek to move closer to a more objective and better outcome.”

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The aim of this blog is to initiate or continue discussions around key topics raised in the Estonian football landscape and, hopefully, through more multifaceted dialogue, contribute to enriching our football culture and to the practice of more objective and well-considered solutions.

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With a wish for high-quality discussion,

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Mario Hansi