THE KOBE CODE
Eight Principles For Success
An Insider’s Look into Los Angeles Laker
Kobe Bryant’s Warrior Life & the Code He Lives By
BY PAT MIXON
Copyright © 2010 by Pat Mixon - All Rights Reserved
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To Kelly,
You’ve taught me the most important Principle in life of all.
Thank you for your love.
SCOUTING REPORT FROM THE AUTHOR
PRINCIPLE ONE- Have a Gladiator Mentality & Welcome All Challenges
PRINCIPLE TWO- Know What Fuels You, What Drives You
PRINCIPLE THREE- Fear is a Great Motivator
PRINCIPLE FOUR- Be a Talented Overachiever
PRINCIPLE FIVE- Accept Your Nature
PRINCINPLE SIX- Honor the Game
PRINCIPLE SEVEN- Master Your Craft
PRINCIPLE EIGHT- Live With Passion
SCOUTING REPORT FROM THE AUTHOR
This is an unauthorized look at Kobe Bryant and therefore, I want to set out from the tip-off that Kobe in no way had any direct involvement with this book. However, I have done my best to get it right, really stick to the letter, stay true to the core of the man, and keep the record straight.
This book came about because I found Kobe to be one of the most intriguing and fascinating athletes of any time. I kept asking the question: what is he doing that is separating him from the rest of the pack? What is going on both physically and mentally with this superstar that creates such excellence?
And, I wanted to know what really drives him, where that hunger and intensity was derived. Lastly, I wanted to know if his perception by the media was right or wrong. My discovery will surprise you.
While I have researched and pulled from a variety of sources, this book is a culmination of all the interviews and quotes Kobe has given over the years. The principles I will outline are only examples drawn from either Kobe’s life or situations he has encountered but they are powerful and emerged during my research as recurring themes or approaches that I found Kobe using or talking about in his life.
Often, our sports stars are put on pedestals and marketed as heroes. That is because what they do on a basketball court is extraordinary. But these are real people. Please don’t forget that. They are not supermen.
In writing this book, I learned that Kobe Bryant is human. He achieves and he fails. He succeeds and he makes mistakes. But, he is to be applauded for the way he approaches his life. He truly embodies a warrior’s heart.
And, Kobe is one of the most misunderstood athletes of our time. I really didn’t realize the depth of this misperception by the public, and the media particularly, until I researched this book. Hopefully, The Kobe Code will shine a light onto Kobe’s true nature, provide a new level of understanding, and possibly even change some opinions.
No matter what, basketball fans are privileged to have him play and like the great gladiators Kobe idolizes, he too won’t be around forever. This is a rare player and an even rarer human being. He walks with courage and lives his passion. I want to really make sure that this point isn’t missed. Whether you love or loathe him, Kobe is special and we are blessed to watch him play the sport he deeply loves.
It is no coincidence that I ended up writing this book. My favorite movie of all-time is Gladiator. I still write often while listening to its soundtrack. And, I very much value the gladiator mentality and, most importantly, I truly believe that excellence is an attitude and a way of being. To me, Kobe is one of only a handful of individuals in the spotlight today that I feel really walks the walk. It was a privilege to learn more about him and his approach to everything he does.
So, enjoy all these insights into Kobe Bryant. If you take away even one small point from this book to use in your own life, I have accomplished my goal.
Carpe Diem.
Pat Mixon
September 2010
Strength & Honor. Not just words from the movie, Gladiator, starring Russell Crowe, but a code that NBA player and Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant seems to live by. The mantra is even on his website. And, he signs all his fan letters this way.
That's because Kobe embodies everything that makes a real warrior. He possess the talent and the mindset but also the determination to win the war. He treats each game like a battle, each possession a skirmish. He is both methodical and spontaneous.
“Veni. Vedi. Vici.”
That phrase is Latin for “I came, I saw, I conquered.” More words the warrior Kobe follows. These phrases are insights into Kobe’s true nature, possibly principles that guide him, and the warrior’s path he walks every day of his life. This is the essence of this book.
Kobe trains like a real Gladiator, pushing his work ethic beyond anything the NBA has ever seen. He is more than dedicated, owing his grit to becoming a legend. He is at times a solo hero, a James Bond or Jason Bourne, fighting against all comers. And, Kobe has his own motivations for feeling this way.
He approaches the latest game as another night in a deadly engagement. A playoff series is all-out war.
That is why Kobe plays like he lives, a Gladiator in the arena, the loser thrown to the lions. Kobe refuses to neither go quietly nor roll over. He has an unquenched thirst that drives him, fuels the eternal fire in his belly. There’s a reason for this hunger which you will soon learn.
Like a solider, he is committed to total warfare, leaving everything on the battlefield. This is a “scorch the earth” mentality. Fans are left to wonder how he can be so focused, so determined, so lost in the moment.
We are bewildered when a comedian like Chris Rock makes jokes at Kobe during a home game and the warrior stares into space, completely immersed, entirely focused, hearing nothing.
But Kobe has his most secret weapon of all: he lives like a modern day warrior.
He lives in the present, knowing each moment, each opportunity may be his last. He trains like a rookie and prepares like a benchwarmer wanting true minutes.
No one views more tape than Kobe. He watches current players and studies the legends from eras past, always with an eye for gaining the slightest edge. And, nothing gets by him.
He’s always looking, searching for something more, some tendency, some new wrinkle to add to his arsenal.
He is that General always assessing for the weakness, the master strategist calculating each minute detail. He is the foot solider, willing to barrel forward with brute force in the face of certain death.
From the outside, watching Kobe is like watching someone follow some invisible code, or almost like the ancient Chinese book, The Art of War, and he seems like he is driving himself to master it.
Kobe knows what he is up against: Real and imagined opponents; Legends; His own body; Father time; and, fan’s expectations.
For Kobe, opponents are to be respected. He knows when he plays that other great teams are composed of warriors as well. And, down to the last man, these are players he might not like but deserve admiration. They too are willing to die on that battlefield.
Kobe’s attitude, whether an opening night in the regular season or a Game Seven of the NBA Finals is always the same. He will either walk away a victor, hoisting another NBA Trophy, or he will be carried out of the arena on his shield.
Strength and Honor, always. Veni. Vedi. Vici.
Kobe is unlike any other NBA player, possibly any other athlete of his time. He seems to live by his own code, his own principles, his own warrior ways.
In this book, you will have an inside look into both the world and mind of Kobe Bryant. But The Kobe Code takes a unique spin on the traditional unauthorized biography. Rather than simply recap the history of Kobe, it provides insight and perspective into how he approaches his life, both on and off the court, and the essence of what makes him really tick. Additionally, by highlighting Eight Principles For Success pulled from various stages or situations in Kobe’s life, this book allows you to potentially apply these simple practices to your own life.
You’ll also discover why Kobe considers himself a talented overachiever as well as feeling like an outcast all his life. And, once and for all, you'll understand why Kobe has been so incredibly misunderstood. The Kobe Code will change your perception of this NBA superstar.
Using life lessons from Kobe’s example, The Kobe Code will teach you how to increase your confidence, overcome your daily challenges, live with passion and purpose, and realize your goals.
In this inspiring and practical guide, you'll learn the Eight Principles For Success that highlight Kobe’s life. The number eight is significant in this superstar’s life. It was his jersey number when he entered the NBA. Also, in Eastern philosophies, the number eight represents infinity.
The Eight Principles For Success are:
Have a Gladiator Mentality & Welcome All Challenges
Know What Fuels You, What Drives You
Fear is a Great Motivator
Be A Talented Overachiever
Accept Your Nature
Honor the Game
Master Your Craft
Live With Passion
If you choose, you can use Kobe’s life as inspiration and use these principles to apply in your own life, either personal or career.
To add more depth to learning about Kobe’s life, you will also discover things that the general public doesn’t necessarily know or isn’t common knowledge, such as:
* What is Kobe’s Workout Schedule?
* What is his diet?
* How does Kobe spend a Game Day? You’ll learn how he spends all the hours leading up to a Home Game.
* Kobe’s mental approach. Learn what truly sets Kobe apart. You’ll discover what * Kobe does to prepare his mind and focus related to the mental aspect of basketball.
* Find out why Kobe believes in making shots, not taking shots.
* How Kobe prepares. You'll watch his Film Study and you'll see his practice sessions.
* What Kobe does off the court- where and how he spends his time & what things besides basketball interest him.
* Lastly, you’ll discover Kobe’s thoughts on retiring.
The Kobe Code can teach you how to walk the walk of the warrior life. It’s a proven road map that you can use to achieve any goal you desire. This book is almost a spiritual guidebook, a warrior's manual, or possibly even a modern day "The Art of War" handbook.
And, like Kobe, this book is on the leading edge. You’ll have YouTube videos & links you can watch and you’ll have the opportunity to pop out to a website and read articles from Kobe’s past. This is an Interactive book and so, have fun with it.
Now, are you ready to adopt a gladiator mentality and step inside the arena?
Have a Gladiator Mentality & Welcome All Challenges
This first principle is an approach to apply to all aspects of life. Looking at Kobe’s past, he seems to welcome all challenges. This applies not only on the basketball court but also to life in general. It is a Gladiator mentality to welcome a challenge, not shy from it but rather, have the courage to face it.
The great Samurais of Japan demonstrated this quality to its fullest. It was a personal shame not to rise to the challenge. They knew that like a blacksmith working with iron, that the challenges under intense pressure & heat molded the individual.
Kobe has been carved and honed from his life’s challenges, both on and off the court. He entered the NBA as a promising seventeen-year-old, eyes wide open and eager to learn, to become great.
He faced adversity to improve, to get better on the court but his real challenges in those years were in team dynamics.
Without rehashing what has been beaten to death in the media, the Shaquille O’Neal relationship will prove to be on of the most significant relationships in Kobe’s life. That’s because he grew the most from it.
He has said about the Shaq relationship, in an Esquire magazine feature a few years ago, the following. “If I had to do it all over again, I just never would have said anything in the press," he says. "Some things need to remain behind closed doors. Do the fans really need to know everything? Do you need to know everything about what goes on in your neighbor's house? Do you even want to?”
While the partnership with Shaq produced three NBA titles in a row, the years that followed were the darkest days of Kobe’s professional life.
He had been on a team that rose to the top of what he calls “the mountain” and stayed there for three titles in a row. Kobe had learned what it took to climb that hill, the depths he had to go to make that journey. The rise to the top was sweet but the fall was equally impactful.
After Shaq and coach Phil Jackson left, Kobe and the Lakers experienced something new. The team failed to make the playoffs. Those are the bottom of the barrel times for Lakers fans, who have expectations set only at championships.
Kobe was at an all-time low in the year after Shaq. He had also experienced a massive low in his personal life.
Again, without going into the details, 2004 proved to be the worst year of his professional life. An abyss he found himself drowning in.
That year, Kobe had to overcome sexual assault charges stemming from an incident in a Colorado hotel, which while the case ended long before a verdict with a dismissal due to lack of evidence, in the court of public opinion, Kobe was a convicted man.
Sponsors fled like ants after the chicken at a picnic. Friends betrayed him. And, Kobe endured the unfair brunt of the blame for Shaquille O’Neal being traded from the Lakers.
Kobe was bad guy number one, in the eyes of most NBA fans and complete food for the tabloids. His marriage stability was questioned, his professional life damaged, to what most thought was beyond repair. His popularity waned so far that his jersey sales plummeted. There was barely a shoe contract.
But Kobe used his best asset to rise from the ashes. His intensity and focus provided the means to get him through his personal storm. The basketball court became his sanctuary and the starting point for his redemption.
Kobe said in 2006 as the Lakers continued on the long and winding road back to the top of the NBA that, “I will not back off until I’m back on top, back in the place where they said I could never be again. Mountains don’t scare me. The LACK of mountains scares me. The climb up, the struggle for every inch of ground and every level of ascension is what feeds me.”
It seems surprising but greatness needs great challenges. The climb fueled Kobe. It was the determination that he found deep within himself and began the journey back to the NBA title.
Strength and Honor. The words surround Kobe. Watch this video as further proof.
Kobe Bryant: Play with Strength. Live with Honor
Click Link Below to watch directly from YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LL5Uap85dgw
Apply the Code in Your Own Life
So, Ask yourself:
Where can you summon the courage to face challenges in your own life?
Are you shying away from something that you know will be tough but has rewards beyond your wildest dreams?
Can you dig deep, let go of your inner and outer critics, and meet the challenges you face head on?
Where are you setting your own personal bar, the level of excellence you intend to achieve?
This is the way of the warrior and goes to the heart of this first Principle. Rise to the Challenge.
Know What Fuels You, What Drives You
Underdog and Kobe Bryant seem like they don’t belong in the same sentence. But to understand how connected they are is to have a real glimpse into who Kobe really is.
Kobe is the quintessential underdog. This goes to the heart of how misunderstood he really is by the media, by everyone, by even his most die-hard fans.
Whether true or just perceived, Kobe has felt like the underdog in nearly each phase of his life. He goes so far to call himself “an outcast.”
But when you learn his background, understand his childhood, you actually realize how true that statement is, and most importantly, why he actually feels this way.
Kobe’s Childhood
Kobe Bean Bryant was born on August 23, 1978 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Joe “Jellybean” Bryant and Pamela Cox Bryant. He is their youngest of three children and their only son. His parents gave him the name Kobe after the famous beef of Kobe, Japan. Kobe’s father, Joe, is a former NBA player with the Philadelphia 76ers.
When Kobe was only six, he moved to Italy with his family when Joe left the Sixers to play professional basketball in Italy. Joe went from being a benchwarmer in Philly to becoming a star and scoring machine in Europe.
In Italy, Kobe had to adjust to a new culture and learn to speak both Italian and Spanish fluently. The learning of Latin, the root language of both Italian and Spanish, would impact Kobe’s life and his principles for the rest of his life.
Kobe would learn to play hoop at only three years old and growing up, the Lakers, with Magic Johnson, were his favorite team.
Family members would go so far as to mail the Bryant family videotapes of NBA games so they could watch them while in Italy. Kobe would devour these games, playing them countless times, learning moves from his heroes.
Each summer, when Joe wasn’t playing basketball, the family would return to the USA and Kobe would play in basketball summer leagues, developing his skills and learning the game.
Europe is also where Kobe began his love affair with futbol, or soccer here in the US. Kobe’s favorite club growing up was AC Milan.
In 1991, Joe retired from basketball and the family moved back to Philly, where Kobe would go on to attend high school at Lower Merion and become a star, catching the attention of NBA scouts, thus paving the road for him to make the jump directly from high school to the NBA, which he did in 1996.
Remember Where you Came From & Family Above All Else
There seems to be this misperception that Kobe isn’t part of the African-American community. That he isn’t really the same. The misbelief might have started when he returned to Philly after living in Italy for so many years.
Both black and white didn’t understand him, couldn’t figure him out. He also didn’t act like the rest of the high school kids he was around. How could he?
He was the son of a former player who had grown up in a foreign country. He could speak multiple languages. And, his game was already polished far beyond any of the inner city kids he ran up against.
Kobe was playing and beating players on his dad’s Italian team when Kobe was only thirteen. Think about that? He was beating pros, even if they were not NBA caliber. These were grown men.
So, when Kobe returned to the US and attended high school, he was misperceived. And, this perception simply extended on when he made the jump to the NBA. The media picked up on his background and thus came the label that he wasn’t really legit, didn’t really represent black America.
But just as there can be a doctor or a President from any race, so can a basketball player not be a stereotype. However, it doesn’t mean he isn’t fully a part of that culture.
Kobe talked about this in the following quote.
“Recently I have come to visualize my place as a black athlete within our society. I’ve always been aware of our history, from Jackie Robinson to Sweetwater Clifton.
But I never felt like I deserved to be a part of our tradition because I grew up overseas, in Italy. In that way I am very much different than many of my peers. I never truly believed that my own people wanted to identify with me.
But that’s the thing about adversity: while you’re going through it, you look around yourself and see exactly who it is that’s rallying behind you. During my time of struggle I saw the truth. My people held me down. Their love and support became an experience for me and that experience will be with me for the rest of my life.
It gave me a completely different understanding of my role. I had been wrong about my impact. Now I see that I can be a force in the lives of our youth. They look up to me for guidance and support.
They have shown me that even though I grew up in Italy, I am a part of black America. The color of my skin ain’t paint! It is, in fact, more than a color: it’s the signifier of my culture.”
Kobe realized where he came from and that he truly was not different from anyone else.
A Real Outcast
Italy is where Kobe first felt being alone, where he truly was an outsider. His feelings of being different weren’t unfounded. He would be the only African-American not only in his own school, but sometimes his family would be the only ones in their entire town.
Kobe has said, “I have been an outcast my entire life. From being the only black kid in my town in Italy all the way to when I was 17 and playing in the NBA.”
Learning where Kobe came from allows insight into what makes him tick, why he views the world the way he does.
He joined the Los Angeles Lakers as a seventeen-year old rookie and there he was, teamed with grown men. Kobe lived with his parents in a house they got for him when he first started his career in LA. While his teammates had wives, and girlfriends and went to parties, Kobe was still a teenager.
When you put this in perspective, it is easy to see why he didn’t fit in during the early years in LA, when the Lakers were Shaq’s team.
Kobe was a kid among men, truly a boy playing with adults. It is no wonder he kept to himself. The basketball court would be the only place he could prove he belonged.
Inner Drive
Think about what Kobe must have endured when he began his NBA career. Here he is, a teenager with talent, playing for his childhood favorite franchise, the Lakers.
He must have felt inferior, entirely out of place. But like Kobe would always do, he approached his new situation with his Gladiator Mentality.
His circumstances fueled him. He had to get better. He wanted playing time, needed to be respected. But as a young man, that wasn’t going to happen unless he proved himself on the basketball court.
And, that is exactly what he set out to do. Kobe had to succeed. Failure really wasn’t in his vocabulary.
But his dedication to improving his basketball skills, the need to get better, also alienated him from his teammates, made the media portray him as aloof, as an outsider.
Kobe wasn’t any of this. He simply was alone on the Lakers, was just an outcast, so different from everyone else, just like he’d been as a black kid in Italy.
About that time, he has said, “many times my drive to succeed has put me on an island all by myself because no one understood me, or they chose to misunderstand me. They chose to portray me as being something that I was not.”
His drive to get better was simply misunderstood. He had to get better. In his mind, that was the only way he’d ever fit in with his far older teammates.
Kobe Bryant 's Drive on being the best
Click Link Below to watch directly from YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUiuzqQzu4k
A Thirst To Dominate
The basketball court would be Kobe’s proving ground. Naysayers doubted him, didn’t think he was ready to skip college. Everyone was against him, even his own teammates, these grown men on the Lakers.
That is why he came across as arrogant in those early days. But that exterior hid the real underdog behind the facade. That was the face Kobe had to put forth, the one that would keep the dogs from pouncing, the one that didn’t show a weakness.
Kobe focused and set his purpose. He had a thirst to dominate, a real desire to succeed. His rookie year he would set the intention to become the best player he could be, one of the greatest ever.
He knew it would be a fight, a climb. It became his mission. He has said, “I have always had a purpose, a need to succeed. People who try to discourage me only add fuel to a fire that has always burned. Every phase of my life has brought me new risks and new rewards; in many ways I have always been the underdog. And through it all, through every struggle, the game has always been there. It has never left me alone.”
This goes to the heart of this second principle. Know what fuels you and use it to drive you.
Kobe exhibited this then and still does to this day. He is always the underdog, whether a bright eyed teenage rookie, the evil guy who made Shaq leave, the player wanting to be traded because he wanted to win so badly or even now, an aging superstar who should succumb to LeBron James and his Miami Heat super-team.
Kobe will have none of it but use it all as fuel. The fire in his belly still drives him. And, like always, he will prove everyone wrong.
Apply the Code in Your Own Life
So, ask yourself:
What makes you burn?
What drives you?
Who doesn’t believe in you?
Are you ready to prove them wrong?
Say yes to that last question and you’ve adopted this second principle.
Fear is a Great Motivator
In the summer of 2004, the media portrayed Kobe as someone who had gotten his wish. He was to blame for all things wrong in LA and most importantly, he took the heat as to why Shaq was gone and the early 2000’s Lakers Dynasty destroyed.
Everyone said Kobe had made his own bed and now had to sleep in it. It was finally his team, and his team alone. And, they would rise and fall on his shoulders, his actions.
Also gone that same summer was trusted confidant and point guard, Derek Fisher, and calming influence, coach Phil Jackson.
The following season, the Lakers would fail to make the playoffs for the first time in 11 years and only the fifth time in team history. Most franchises celebrate playoff series wins, have ceremonies for Conference titles. Not Dr. Jerry Buss’ Los Angeles Lakers.
An employee once asked Dr. Buss if he would give a bonus for making the playoffs. Puzzled for a moment, Dr. Buss then growled, “you’ll be fired if we don’t make the playoffs.”
The Lakers’ bar is permanently set at the championship level, locked on an NBA title. Nothing else matters, nothing else will do. For the fans of one of the most storied franchises in NBA history, anything short of a title is failure.
This is the depth of the valley Kobe Bryant found himself in the years immediately following the Shaq and Phil Jackson departures from LA. He stood there, on the valley floor, gazing up at the top of the tall mountain he had just fallen from, staring at the peak he had once stood, three times, actually.
He knew what it took to reach that summit but could actually never dream how hard it would be to climb it again.
In 2006, Kobe had to wonder if he would ever return to the champion podium, ever hoist the NBA trophy again.
He said at the time, “Desire is a double-edged sword. It gives you strength; it gives you motivation and focus. But occasionally, because your ambition is so great, you wonder what will happen if your goals are not fulfilled. My biggest fear is not winning another title. But fear is a great motivator. I’m determined to lead this organization back to the top. The people who once celebrated me are the same people who doubt me now. They say that because I don’t have Shaq that I can’t win, that it’s over.”
So, even our heroes have doubts. But it’s what you do with your fears, with those doubts that define you. The warrior, like Kobe, uses that desire, fueled by fear, to motivate himself to start again.
That is exactly what Kobe and the Lakers did. The first major move was the return of coach Phil Jackson. In his first season back, the Lakers again made the playoffs in 2006.
But winning pulsed through Kobe as much as his fears. Understanding this burning desire allows insight into his actions that at times have been so misunderstood.
Although not that strong of talent surrounded him in those dark days, Kobe demanded everything from his teammates. Some rose, others caved. He said, “ The only thing I truly worry about is that my drive and my will are sometimes too much for my teammates to handle. Do I expect too much from them? How can I elevate them to play with my same passion every night?”
But the warrior’s nature is to push, himself and everyone, to be the best. Anything less would be his definition of failure.
In the summer of 2007, a frustrated Kobe begged Laker management to trade him. This was instigated by frustration in not being a championship caliber team, the Lakers not having the best players to go to war with Kobe.
Kobe lashed out. That fear he spoke of still seared, was still lit and he continued to drive the organization he played for as hard as he drove himself. He pushed them.
Fortunately for Laker fans everywhere, Dr. Buss and his General Manager, Mitch Kupchak, didn’t panic or succumb to Kobe’s pressure. They too have been to battle, know the difficult road to NBA titles and greatness.
Kobe was more concerned with being heard, seeing action by Laker management, than really following through with being traded. He wanted to know that the organization had the same goal as he: a return to the top.
Even our greatest warriors can let fear overwhelm them, and in that brief moment, in that summer, it almost did that to Kobe. But a warrior pushes through and he did. He backed off from his demands and the team turned the corner, jumping out to first place at the start of the 2007-2008 season.
But Kobe’s message had been received. In February 2008, Laker management landed Pau Gasol in a blockbuster, shocking trade with the Memphis Grizzles that seemed extremely one sided, bringing the All-Star caliber Spaniard Gasol to the Lakers for what seemed like not much in return. A stroke of genius or sheer luck. Either way, Gasol was a Laker.
The quality of neither the trade nor what Memphis received is actually irrelevant to any Laker fan. What resulted is this: The Gasol trade rocketed the Lakers back into championship contention and propelled them to the NBA Finals that same year.
Although the Lakers fell to the Boston Celtics in those 2008 Finals, nothing ever would be the same in Los Angeles. Kobe now had a real number two on his side, a real All-Star, a player who could actually demand double teams. He had another talented player to stand with him in battle.
Gasol fit the Lakers and Phil Jackson’s triangle offense like he was born to play it. His game also fit Kobe’s like a glove.
But none of that happens if Kobe hadn’t used his fear as a motivator.
His trade demands were so misunderstood. Hopefully, you can now understand why.
Kobe demanded a return to that mountaintop. He pushed himself. He pushed his teammates. He went so far to push his owner and management. He didn’t care how it was perceived, he simply demanded action.
The result is three final appearances in a row since the Gasol trade and two titles. Another title looms for the 2010-2011 season.
All this is because the warrior Kobe exhibited this third principle. He used fear as a motivator, didn’t let it consume him but used it to return to the top.
Apply the Code in Your Own Life
So, ask yourself these questions about your own life:
Where are you using fear to protect you?
Can you use your fear as a motivator?
What would you go for, do, if you knew you couldn’t fail?
Develop the essence of this third principle. Acknowledge your fear, then embrace it, and use it to motivate you forward to conqueror your goals.
Be A Talented Overachiever
How do you call one of the greatest players in NBA history an overachiever? Is that even possible?
Sure, he’s talented. That’s obvious. He may be one of the more gifted players to ever lace them up. But, he’s not unique in his talent and that’s why he puts overachiever in the same sentence.
What other athlete would like to be remembered as a talented overachiever? It still doesn’t fit, barely makes sense.
But when you really think about it, really look at how Kobe approaches every aspect of his basketball life, you start to see why.
Since Kobe has always felt like an outcast, a true outsider, that has put him in a position where he has had to prove himself on the basketball court. That’s where the talented overachiever was birthed.
It may not be as true today as it was in Italy, or at Lower Merion when this kid who looked black but spoke Italian and Spanish showed up acting like he could play real basketball.
And, it most certainly applied when Kobe started his NBA career, the naive, young rookie on a talented team of veterans.
But, believe it or not, Kobe had to not only achieve but overachieve. His life depended on it, his NBA career required it, and the warrior inside him demanded it.
The list of talented players who never made a career in the NBA could circle the earth. The NBA is full of individuals who possessed super talents, super skills but failed to make it or stay in the NBA.
It is not surprising. Success is not just talent alone.
Sure, players could get by on talent alone in high school. The superior talented ones even slipped by in college. While they found success and were coddled, this actually was there undoing.
They had the wrong attitude. Their success really wasn’t a result of a work ethic or an approach but relied solely on talent.
The NBA has too many players that have both talent and a work ethic. If you only have one, you can’t compete. You must have both.
Kobe sits on top of that list. Again, he aims not to achieve but overachieve.
For insight into the roots of his work ethic, the burning desire to be the best, we can look to a quote on the subject he made a few years back.
“I always worked hard. When I saw the movie Rudy I remember thinking, “What if I worked that hard?” God has blessed me both physically and intellectually to play this game, so what would happen if I push as hard as the character in this film? I would love for people to think of me as a talented overachiever.”
This is a man who realized the talent he had but didn’t rest on it. His goal wasn’t just to make it in the NBA or be a decent player. He set his bar at the top.
But to achieve, he had to go to work. As he said, he always had a strong work ethic. He got this from his mother.
His father, Joe, while a talented NBA player in his own right, never found success in the NBA on a major level, remaining a bench player during his years with Philadelphia.
Joe even left the NBA to play in Italy for an opportunity to start, lead a team, be the showboat, the center of it all.
Kobe must have been paying attention to his father, being one of those kids that see their parent’s weaknesses and drive themselves, as they grow older to never have the same ones.
Some kids, at least the ones with awareness, see their parent’s mistakes and never want to walk down the same path.
Kobe did this. He saw a talented father who could have been more if the man had worked harder. Joe was known as a fun guy, a nice guy but not a hard worker.
Kobe is the direct opposite. He is obsessed with working hard. This had to come in part from watching his dad.
So, this is where the overachiever came from but awareness was only the first step. He had to put it to action, get to work, really push himself.
He began to develop what would become one of the greatest work ethics in NBA history. It is painful sometimes to even watch how hard he works, the extent the warrior will go to push himself. But he knows, to go to battle unprepared is futile.
He knows what it takes and will make sure he is ready.
Here’s what he said regarding his work ethic in the following video clips:
What motivates Kobe to have such a work ethic?
Click Link Below to watch directly from YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3gY48yLxig
Now, let’s take a look at his actual daily workout routine.
This is a glimpse most fans never see into what this warrior really does to be ready to battle each night on the court.
Kobe’s Training Philosophy: Be Prepared & Be Consistent
The main objective that Kobe has is actually not physical but mental.
The real warrior’s objective is to Be Prepared.
Kobe seems to live by the following quote:
“Excellence is not an Act, but a Habit.”
Aristotle, a Greek from over two thousand years ago, made this quote and it strikes to the heart of what Kobe believes. You aren’t great some of the time. It isn’t a one time or one shot thing. It is about consistency. You do it over and over again until it forms a habit.
That is how excellence is achieved.
Regarding excellence in basketball, Kobe wants to have done all the work in practice, in the gym, on the track, so when he’s at the game, in the flow, he simply re-enacts what he’s practiced. The idea or feeling is that once out on the court, he’s done it before.
This is why he trains so hard, conditions his body, practices his shots until the muscles know them and why he also conditions his mind.
The other component of his philosophy is to be Consistent.
This strikes to the core of his warrior mentality. As if trained by the military, he never misses a beat, never stops. He can’t. No true warrior can.
He has said of this philosophy,
“The thing that I tell teammates all the time is consistency. If they watch me train, running on a track, it doesn't look like I'm over-exerting myself. It's a consistency with which you do it, in other words, it's an every-day-thing. You have a program, and a schedule, and you have to abide by that, religiously. You just stick to it, and it's the consistency that pays off.”
These aren’t just training tips. This is a way of life, a warrior’s approach.
Kobe’s Fitness Objectives- Stamina, Strength & Agility
Kobe entered the league as a talented teenager but his body was more boy than man. He weighed nothing and was as lean as a supermodel. His goal was not only to become more skillful on the basketball court but also add bulk and muscle to his frame to absorb the impact he would experience over the course of an eighty-two game plus NBA season.
He accomplished this with hard work- sweat and straining that paid off. His workouts are now legendary.
Kobe’s workout routine is centered around stamina and strength but also agility. The other key is that Kobe wants to work not just harder but smarter.
Here again, the mental approach comes into play, the warrior always being prepared, always getting the most out of each and every move, each and every moment.
Before the 2005-06 season his training regimen was described this way by Lakers Topbuzz, a Web site devoted to daily updates on the Lakers:
"Kobe . . . is now a sleek Corvette Stingray. This last off-season he altered his workout, reducing his weight to 215, and increased his wind-sprint workout to create the speed of a point guard and the stamina to prevent fading in the waning moments of a game. He is now leaner and hungry. He wants to be able to run all day and have the strength to be there and make that game-winning shot."
But the warrior’s biggest asset is his willingness to push himself. You’ll believe this when you see his workout schedule below.
Kobe gave insight into his training schedules and the core reasons in an interview with Men’s Fitness a few years ago.
The highlights are below in this excerpt:
MF: Can you give us some insight into your training routine, both off-season and during the season?
Kobe: During the season, I focus a lot on weight training, obviously building up my strength level as the season progresses. In the off-season, it's about getting stronger as well, more agile. Also, conditioning plays an important part in that, because you want to make sure you come into the upcoming season in tip-top shape. Then, obviously, you want to get on the basketball floor and work on your skills.
MF: In the off-season, you probably spend many more hours training, is that right?
Kobe: During the season, it's probably about four hours or so a day, with practice and extra work.
MF: So specifically though, in the off-season, what kind of weight lifting are you doing? Is it explosive movements, like plyometrics?
Kobe: Not really, it's all Olympic lifts. I do a lot of track work.