Dedicated Lifestyle of Hard-work and Preparation
I was blessed and fortunate enough to have met Kobe Bryant a few times during the time I worked in and around the NBA.
I also had the pleasure of watching his iconic work ethic up close and personal.
When I worked for the Orlando Magic, and the Lakers were in town, I always made sure I arrived at least an hour before I was scheduled to start working so that I could witness Kobe’s legendary pre-game workout.
Typically, a game would start at 7 PM, I was scheduled to be there at 5 PM when it was a Lakers game, I wanted to be there at 4.
Kobe would arrive on the arena floor about two to two and half hours before game time, before any of his teammates, coaching staff, opposing players, training staff, even before arena staff and workers.
I think he enjoyed the solitude so that he can prepare himself mentally and physically, against his greatest opponent, KOBE BRYANT!!!
Not only was Kobe known to be the hardest worker, but he was also equally known to be the most prepared and it was fueled by his dedication to his craft.
Kobe’s routine consisted of him taking shot, after shot, after shot from all the spaces and places on the court where he knew he would be taking them in the game, with the same speed, focus, and intensity that he would have if someone was guarding him.
He would shoot jump shots both left and right-handed, pull-up jump shots off the dribble, lay-ups, fade-aways, three-pointers from all over the court, runners, floaters, he must have shot over 500 shots.
Some of the shots had the degree of difficulty of 12 (on a scale of 1-10).
He would come off the court sweating profusely. It was a thing of beauty, like an artist painting on a blank canvas.
This is the way Kobe went about his work, like a craftsman, but with the strategic planning of 5-star general.
Planning is all about being the most prepared. Keep in mind this was all, before the game!!!
It was almost like he played two games on the same day. Just imagine what kind of mental toughness and physical shape he had to be in order to go through that kind routine, and then play a 48-minute NBA basketball game shortly thereafter.
Hard work and preparation, at the highest, most elite level, all because he was dedicated to his craft, the game of basketball.
The thing that made Kobe so great was that he integrated the same approach, mindset, principles, and values to every facet of his life.
This was Kobe’s lifestyle and the results spoke for themselves.
We know about the accomplishments on the basketball court because it was a finished product.
5 NBA Championships, 2 NBA Finals MVPs, 1 regular season MVP, 2 Olympic Gold Medals, 18 All-Star appearances in his 20-year career, just to name a few.
However, we were just beginning to see the results in other areas of his life.
Kobe had already won his first Academy Award; with his mindset do we think he was going to stop at just one?
He was just getting started with the Mamba Academy, so we were just seeing the early stages of his skills in developing talent, with his 13-year old daughter Gianna, as his star pupil!
Kobe started a venture capitalist fund, where one of his investments, Body Armor sports drink, started out as a $6 million investment now It is reported as a $200 million valuation.
Lastly, we saw on display his love and dedication for his daughter, Gianna, who tragically died with him in the helicopter crash.
So even on his last day on this earth, Kobe Bean Bryant left us with important life lessons of hard work, preparation, and dedication.
All the way until his last moment, just as he did on the court, giving his all, until the final shot that he was known to take.
We all know it goes in, because he was a winner in life, until his final buzzer!
As we all yell, one final time, KOBE!!!
Hanif Khalil is the CEO/President of Crescent Sports Media (Crescentsportsmedia.org / Crescentsportsmedia@gmail.com)