10. The Role Of Phil Jackson
Phil Jackson was not always a fan of Kobe, but there is no doubting the role that the Hall of Fame coach had on Kobe. Prior to Jackson, Kobe was struggling to avoid distractions plaguing his game. Jackson allowed Kobe to, as Kobe says:
“Stay present, stay in the moment and not predict what it is that you’re seeing. You see it in all the time in your profession. Writers come up and they talk to a player, and they already have a preconceived idea of what it is they’re going to write.”
While Kobe can think that now, it does not mean things were always warm and fuzzy between the two. Thankfully for the Lakers, he used that drive to become an even better player.
9. He Reaches Out To People He Admires
When it comes to being at the top of your profession, it may not come as a shock that you also want to reach out to people that are also incredibly successful. Kobe has a habit of cold-calling (or cold-emailing) different powerful people in the world to learn from them. Most recently, he had reached out to Anna Wintour, who was the editor-in-chief of Vogue magazine. When asked why her, Kobe said:
“She has a reputation in her industry similar to mine, and we drive people. But I was really curious to understand how she’s able to create such a culture of excellence, of glamour, in her publication and be able to do it consistently year after year after year after year after year. How is that culture created within that company, and how is it sustainable.”
Clearly, Kobe doesn’t just take his inspiration from other NBA players.
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