qualities of the “Greats”
This weekend, we spent a lot of time in the car driving to AAU practice, to Cincinnati, around Cincinnati and neighboring Kentucky for soccer matches, and then back home after Leo’s team won their championship match. The windshield time provided plenty of time to dive into a few Founder’s podcast episodes, trying to subliminally implant ideas into Roman’s mind as he rode with me most of the time (we had to meet And and Leo in Cincinnati because of Roman’s AAU practice).
We listened to an episode about Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, one about Jay-Z, and another about just Kobe Bryant.
As I listened to the episodes and thought about the countless others I’ve listened to, I couldn’t help but think about some of the qualities many of the “greats” all had in common. One day, I’ll write a longer form piece on these qualities and include examples and stories (maybe that will be the piece of content that gets David Senra on LifeDesign+), but for now, I just want to list some of the ones that come to mind:
Passion for their craft
An unshakeable belief in their self
“If that person can do it, then so can I” mentality
Relentlessness
Desire to learn from others (as Senra often says, from the “greats” that came before them)
Ability to recover from “failure” quickly and learn from it
Tireless work ethic
Entrepreneurial spirit
Many of the individuals covered in the Founders podcast have some qualities that are not necessarily considered “good”; for example, Michael Jordan could be ruthless as he tried to pull others up to his level–just watch the Last Dance and see his treatment of Scott Burrell. But, that “meanness” was part of what helped MJ become so great.
Naturally, I’ve chosen to focus on the qualities that are more “positive,” but they can still be taken over the top and lead to tarnished relationships and unhealthy behavior, ultimately tipping into the territory of becoming a “negative.”
When you think about your Pursuit and authentic life, how many of the above qualities do you exhibit?
Does the absence of any tell you anything?
This combination of qualities, along with others I didn’t list in this short list, will vary from individual to individual, but there is something important about them that leads to them being exhibited by some of the world's greatest leaders, entrepreneurs, and CEOs–learn from them if you want to emulate their success in your own unique way.
PS: a little fun fact--the number "444", today's Daily Note, is a numerical message from your Guardian Angels letting you know they are watching over you and guiding you towards a path of clarity and decisiveness.
See you tomorrow and keep pursuing,
JC
