Life is too short! This was abruptly brought to my attention in January with the tragic passing of Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and the 7 other victims including Payton Chester, 13; Sarah Chester, 45; Alyssa Altobelli, 14; Keri Altobelli, 46; John Altobelli, 56; Christina Mauser, 38; and the helicopter's pilot, Ara Zobayan, 50 who were involved in a helicopter accident on January 26th earlier this year. What a tragedy.
It hit me hard at the time and I had to think about why this was this case. I didn’t know Kobe Bryant personally (albeit I am an avid NBA fan), he didn’t play for my team and although I could respect his greatness on the court, he was a person you both loved and hated as a non-Lakers fan. You would love his competitive spirit, fire and will to win but hate the fact that he could tear your team apart and dominate a game.
Equally I was brought up in the era of Michael Jordan and as a young fan always saw Kobe as an imitation of the G.O.A.T (interestingly he also had the same trainer as MJ)
It was only as I matured and became older that I would come to respect the work ethic it would take to model yourself after someone like Michael Jordan, the dedication and hours required to your craft and the sacrifice to chase greatness. For people who didn’t know Kobe as a teenager he would train at 5am and as a professional athlete he took this to the next level often waking up in the early hours of the morning to get in extra sessions and separate himself from the competition.
I had studied his mindset through his career, (the mamba mentality) particularly as he transitioned from basketball into other pursuits with the same winning mindset and this has impacted my approach towards both life and work but this wasn’t why I felt a sense of loss.
He was taken before his time and in my opinion was only about to start the 2nd half of his career which I believe would have had a bigger impact than anything he ever did on the court. He had a whole future ahead of him mentoring the next generation coming through to chase after their dreams.
The root cause of this feeling of loss I believe was that it was easy to personally relate. He was 41, (and I am close to that) Gigi was 13 (and my oldest daughter Kyrah is 13). He was a father, a husband, provider and was lost in an instant doing something he did all the time. (no different from us driving our car) I can only imagine the pain felt by his family and the others who lost loved ones in that flight.
It also made me reflect on all he had achieved in his short life. We could talk about his basketball achievements that include:
Or the fact that his short film Dear Basketball won him an Oscar. If you have not seen it then I recommend you check it out on YouTube.
We could talk about his philanthropic work that includes:
He had appeared for Make-A-Wish more than 100 times over 20 years
He volunteered for the Boys & Girls Club of America, often hosting basketball camps.
He participated in the league’s NBA Cares initiatives, where he helped build homes and basketball courts, stocked food pantries and supported reading initiatives.
He was the official spokesman for After-School All-Stars, a national children’s charity that provides after-school programs to 72,000 kids.
He was named a spokesperson for Aid Still Required, which helps people left behind after natural disasters or human crises.
He supported cancer initiatives. For instance, he participated in a fundraising effort for Stand Up To Cancer in 2012 that raised more than $80 million for cancer research.
He and his wife Vanessa launched the Kobe and Vanessa Bryant Family Foundation, originally named VIVO, in 2007. They sponsored international enrichment experiences for minority college students and provided domestic and international youth scholarships for the Kobe Bryant Basketball Academy.
The foundation partnered with Los Angeles organizations Step Up on Second and My Friend’s Place to combat homelessness in the area. For three years, Bryant also served as the honorary chair of United Way of Greater Los Angeles’ Annual HomeWalk, a 5K run/walk that raises awareness about homelessness.
The foundation supported Mamba FC, a fee-based youth soccer club in Orange County that teaches young athletes “how to become leaders and independent thinkers, while working together as a group to achieve a common goal through health and fitness.”
He established the Kobe Bryant China Fund to raise money for education, sports and culture programs for children from both China and the U.S.
The Bryants are also founding donors to the National Museum of African American History and Culture with a $1 million pledge in 2017.
But on this day, Kobe’s Birthday 23rd August and with Mamba day being on August 24th (representing his jersey numbers of 8 and 24) I would like us to remember Kobe for showing us what true dedication is, what it looks like to chase after mastery of your craft, (whatever that may be) to pay the price for success, to always work harder, to mentor those coming after you, to outwork the competition, and to stay mentally strong.
I would like us to remember his example of greatness and let it call us to chase after our own legacy.
Thank you Kobe.
8 of my favourite quotes by Kobe:
Everything negative – pressure, challenges – is all an opportunity for me to rise.
The most important thing is to try and inspire people so that they can be great in whatever they want to do.
I can’t relate to lazy people. We don’t speak the same language. I don’t understand you. I don’t want to understand you.
Pain doesn’t tell you when you ought to stop. Pain is the little voice in your head that tries to hold you back because it knows if you continue you will change.
A lot of leaders fail because they don’t have the bravery to touch that nerve or strike that chord. Throughout my years, I haven’t had that fear.
The most important thing is you must put everybody on notice that you’re here and you are for real. I’m not a player that is just going to come and go. I’m not a player that is going to make an All-Star team one time, two times. I’m here to be an all-time great. Once I made that commitment and said, ‘I want to be one of the greatest ever’, then the game became everything for me.
I’m chasing perfection.
I don’t want to be the next Michael Jordan, I only want to be Kobe Bryant.
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