J.W. Lynne once said, “You are so much stronger than you realize. Don’t let anyone ever tell you that you’re not. Not even you.” And Tim Fargo said, “Who you are tomorrow begins with what you do today.”
There will be challenges and obstacles that seem impossible to overcome, but if you start taking action, that’s when you’ll realize that they are actually doable tasks. Eventually, you will be amazed by how much you can accomplish beyond your expectations. So don’t sell yourself short, and don’t allow others to dictate how far you can go because you are stronger than you think.
My guest today is Tim Grover, a popular personal trainer whose clients include top NBA athletes, the likes of Michael Jordan, Dwayne Wade, and Kobe Bryant. In this episode, we will talk about what happens to us when we acknowledge our self-doubts, the three biggest lessons Tim Grover learned from Dwayne Wade and Kobe Bryant, how to change your life by adopting a winning mindset to yourself, and so much more. This is the second part of our conversation, and it’s a powerful one. So let’s get on with it.
Who Is Tim Grover?
Tim Grover is the CEO and founder of Attack Athletics, Inc, a training ground for world-class athletes. He is also a keynote speaker, consultant, and national bestselling author of the book, Relentless: From Good to Great to Unstoppable. It is a book that shows you how to be relentless and achieve whatever you desire.
As a keynote speaker, Tim Grover has traveled to different places doing various speaking engagements for top-performing athletes, business leaders, and elite achievers. He is a columnist of Sports Illustrated and Yahoo Sports and appeared in various media outlets like FoxSports and ESPN.
Tim Grover is a former basketball player of NCAA Division I at the University of Illinois, Chicago, where he earned his Bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology and Master’s degree in Exercise Science. He was inducted in 2010 into the UIC Hall of Fame with the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Working among the greatest athletes has so many benefits. There are lessons you can learn from their greatness, and Tim Grover shares with us the lessons he learned from Dwayne Wade and Kobe Bryant.
The 3 Biggest Lessons Tim Grover Learned From Kobe Bryant
Every time we work with another person, be it a boss or an officemate, there are always lessons we can learn from them. Working with Kobe Bryant for several years was a learning experience for Tim Grover, and he shared with us the 3 biggest lessons he learned from Kobe.
“Obsession, … discomfort, and also winning.” – Tim Grover
Obsession
When you’re obsessed with something, you will do anything just to get that something you want, even if it means doing things differently. For Kobe Bryant, one of his biggest obsessions was to have more championships than Michael Jordan. When Tim Grover asked him at one point when he plans to retire, he would answer, ‘After number seven.’ Michael Jordan had 6 NBA championships to his name, and Kobe wanted to beat that number by having an obsession for getting 7 championships and more. He had already won 5 NBA championships before the accident that took his life. He was so close to achieving that dream at an early age.
“Winning requires you to be different, and [being] different scares people. … So, after each championship, every single athlete, high-performance athletes I’ve worked with, even in business, would come up to me and say, ‘What’s next? Because I need to feel [that] again.’” – Tim Grover
Discomfort
Winning requires getting out of your comfort zone. For this reason, many wouldn’t dare try and simply settle down to mediocracy just to stay within the sphere where they are comfortable. If you aim to win in any competition, you have to be ready to face what lies ahead, even if it means exposing yourself to rigorous physical and mental stress.
During my interview with Kobe Bryant for episode 691, I was scheduled to meet Kobe at 8 am. I decided to go early at 6:30 am, and I thought I was the first one there since I turned on some of the lights. But to my surprise, Kobe was already in his office, resting. The staff in the gym told me Kobe was already there with his daughter for over an hour practicing. That’s how obsessed he was with winning that he had to go out of his comfort zone to practice early in the morning to improve his skills.
Was that a comfortable experience for Kobe? I’m sure it wasn’t! But he did it anyway because he knew what it takes to be the best.
The Winning Mindset
“A lot of people compete just to finish … without a purpose. … There are individuals that win, but they only win one time. … And then, there are people that win at winning.” – Tim Grover
Does this sound like you? How many times have you competed just to finish the challenge and get over it? Sometimes, we were lucky to win, but that was it, — just a one-time win. The hardest thing is doing it over and over consistently. Kobe Bryant didn’t aim to win in just one game. He didn’t even aim to win just one NBA championship.
“The way Kobe describes winning is: …. winning is everything.” – Tim Grover
Regardless of whether it is an NBA game or playing with the US Dream Team against the best basketball teams of other countries, he has a winning mindset to win in every game and grab any championship at stake.
Do you also have a winning mindset in everything you do? Winning is not just in games. Having a winning mindset is beneficial in business and in your personal life, too. You can win in marketing, in branding, in sales, in market share, in your relationship with someone, and even in small everyday challenges like going to the gym for a workout. To be successful starts with having a winning mindset. And sometimes, you may need to be selfish to win.
Why You Need to Be Selfish to Win
We tend to look at selfishness in a negative light. But the truth is, selfishness can be good if you use it in a positive way.
“Winning requires you to be selfish. … What’s wrong with taking care of yourself?” – Tim Grover
People sometimes misunderstand us for being selfish if we don’t give enough time to them. And yet, if we take time out for a yoga class, for some leisure time with games, or when we travel alone for some adventures, they don’t complain about being selfish.
“Meditation, self-improvement, [and] reading, … You do those things alone. Listening to podcasts — That’s time to oneself. … Why don’t people consider those selfish?” – Tim Grover
By being selfish, we can spend some time on self-improvement, find a new skill, or do some workouts to stay healthy. These are essentials in your life and in the pursuit of your dreams. That’s why you need to be selfish sometimes to win. This is one of the secrets of the greatest athletes.
