4 Life Lessons from Kobe Bryant’s Mamba Mentality
We don’t quit, we don’t cower, we don’t run. We endure and conquer — Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant is a 5x NBA Champion, Academy Award Winner, and an inspiration to a lot of people. Kobe is known for his tenacity and his ‘Mamba’ mentality. Mamba Mentality is about hard work and showing up every single day no matter what the situation. He has proved his mentality through his achievements. His mentality has inspired athletes, entrepreneurs, leaders, and many more. Unfortunately, on January 26th, 2020, Kobe passed away from a tragic accident. He may be gone, but his legacy will always live. His story will forever be an inspiration for many generations. Here are 4 life lessons from Kobe Bryant’s Mamba mentality that we can apply to our personal life.
#1: Know what you want
Do you know what you want? Do you know your definite purpose in this life? It is not easy to figure out what we want in life or the purpose of our life. But, we should keep on searching and finding our purpose. Kobe knew that he wanted to become one of the greatest basketball players that ever lived since he was a kid. In his interview with Valuetainment, Kobe said, “the world becomes the library to me.” Kobe had a definite purpose and aim in his life. And because of that, he had the advantage of learning all the information he needs to help him become a better basketball player. The lesson here is to not stop searching and finding our purpose in life. It takes longer for some people, but never stop searching.
#2: Get over yourself
Don’t hang onto the failures. Failures always happen, and we can’t avoid them. What we can do is to get over ourselves and learn ‘why’ it happened. Sometimes we get caught up with the embarrassment and insecurities of our failures. Meanwhile, what we should be doing is focusing on studying why it happened.
#3: Be obsessive
When you are obsessed with something, you will do whatever it takes to get the thing you wanted so bad. Becoming an obsess is not about doing what you can do, but it’s about doing the things that you think you can’t do. If there is a project that you can do, we don’t want that. We want to do a project that we can’t do. Kobe said, “through that curiosity, you will reach a level that you did not think was possible.” We will never know if we can reach a certain level of success if we don’t keep on challenging ourselves.
#4: Paying attention to the detail
Before playing a game, Kobe would spend hours in the gym practicing the same move over and over again. At the time Jay Williams, a former Bulls’ player, saw him practicing the same exact move. Jay knew exactly what to expect when guarding Kobe. But, although he knew what move Kobe is going to do, it was still unstoppable. Kobe was able to do that because he kept on working and perfecting that one exact move. We need to be critical and assess ourselves. Don’t settle for a good or an okay. Keep on working and perfecting your craft. The big differences in life begin with the small things.
