3 Lessons from Kobe Bryant

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Tuesday Deep Dive: 3 Lessons from Kobe Bean Bryant

A couple of months ago I was wandering through a thrift store and stumbled upon a $1 book by Eli Ihej: What Kobe Left Behind. Score!

I am not here to tell you it was some crazy ground-breaking book that you must read, however, I do want to share some of my takeaways; specifically, 3 lessons that Kobe left behind.

If you don’t know who Kobe Bryant is, come out from underneath that rock because he is one of the greatest athletes of all time. To give a quick bio (ChatGPT):

It was on my 17th birthday when I woke to the news of his death… at the time I didn’t know too much about who he was outside of his accolades, but this book has shed some serious light. This man, and specifically his work ethic and ‘mamba mentality’ has inspired generations.

So, here are 3 takeaways from What Kobe Left Behind:

1. Visualisation/Meditation 

Did you know that Phil Jackson was one of the first coaches to implement meditation and mindfulness training sessions in the NBA? After finding success with Michael Jordon and the Chicago Bulls, Jackson was eager to implement his training with Kobe, Shaq and the Los Angeles Lakers when he joined as head coach in 1999.

Can you picture an entire NBA team of 7-foot balls of muscle, sitting in a circle meditating???

Although Kobe was skeptical at first (like everyone) he ultimately attributed much of his success to the power of meditation - agreeing with Jackson that ‘it allowed him to stay calm and centred in the during the stressful highs and lows of professional basketball’.

Post retirement, he even shared his daily meditation practices in an online e-course aimed at helping others unlock the power of mindfulness.

So, if Kobe couldn’t stop raving about it, maybe it’s worth a try?

2. The power of networking and asking questions

Did you know that the first time Kobe’s Lakers matched up against MJ’s Bulls, Kobe waited outside the Bulls locker room for hours? Everyone else had the left stadium, except for Kobe who waited to ask MJ questions about turnaround and jumpers (basketball stuff). Picture a little brother annoying an older brother (commonly how the pair referred to each other).

But MJ isn’t the only superstar he tracked down. From movie composer, John Williams, to the chief design officer at Apple, John Ive, to Opray Winfrey - Kobe became known as a cold caller! He would track down anyone whom he wanted to learn from, and he would ask them anything and everything.

I am sure it would help being a young basketball phenom, but what I found most interesting was how most people were willing and wanting to help mentor Kobe. If you show genuine interest to learn from others, who knows how much you could learn!

Kobe’s curiosity and ambition to ‘cold call’ and seek wisdom highlights the power of mentorship, networking and asking questions!

3. Baby steps/fundamentals

There is one example from the book that stands out here. After spending some years growing up in Italy (his dad played professional basketball there), Kobe came back to the States and was invited to play in Sonny Hill’s youth basketball league. Very quickly, he realised that he was not the top talent. Not even close.

But instead of freaking out, and giving up, he made a detailed plan of how he would get to the top. A plan consisting of hundreds of baby steps. According to Kobe, the plan looked something like this:

He even said that when attacking this plan, he spent the first six months just shooting 😶. Talk about fundamentals.

The next year when he was invited back to the league, the difference was noticeable. He wasn’t the best player yet, but he was starting to make a name for himself. Then, as he continued to taking baby steps forward, he propelled himself further and further in front. By the time he reached high school, he was one of the best players in the country.

Kobe’s baby steps and focus on fundamentals demonstrates the power of consistency, effective goal setting, and effective habit structures.

My takeaway: in many pursuits it can be so easy to get caught up in growing and progressing so fast that you forget to cement your foundations. Whether that be your why or your skills, you need to have these mastered first 💪.

If you want to learn more about Kobe, and enjoy reading play-by-play basketball highlights (guilty), I would definitely recommend reading What Kobe Left Behind!

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