Two role models for the game of life: Kobe Bryant and Clayton Christensen

What do a superstar NBA player like Kobe Bryant and a Harvard professor like Clayton Christensen have in common? In addition to leaving earth within a few days of each other (Mr. Christensen on January 23, 2020 and Mr. Bryant on January 26, 2020) and influencing me, below are three things these champions in the game of life have in common. These are three reasons each man is worth knowing about and remembering.

1. Vision. Both had visions for life beyond their daily tasks. Both excelled in their fields of basketball and business, yet they aspired for more. Kobe’s Los Angeles life was more glamorous than Clay’s in Boston, but that’s not what either aspired to attain either. Stories about Kobe’s basketball success, emerging business leadership, creative talent, and love for his family abound, so please allow me to share about Clay.

(Please pardon the use of first names. It felt weird using more formal references for these two who have influenced me so much. Plus, once you cheer “Kobe” when shooting balled-up paper into the office trash can, you can’t go back to Mr. Bryant. Right?!)

Clay had a strong business career before pursuing a career in academia at Harvard. He was as famous and highly regarded in business as Kobe was in athletics. Clay’s research on disruptive innovation changed business and earned him guru status—not the self-proclaimed kind either. In the mid-2000’s, Clay had a heart attack. A few years later, he was diagnosed with cancer. A year after the cancer diagnosis, Clay had a stroke that left him without the ability to talk. This brilliant business leader and teacher could still think but could not form the words to share his thoughts.

As he re-learned how to speak, he wrote an article for Harvard Business Review called How to Measure Your Life. The article influenced my life and inspired the name of our company, Voyage Consulting Group. In the article, which later became a book, Clay talks about staying true to one’s values no matter what and shares a challenge to his values that solidified them. Jeffrey Skilling, the former chief executive of Enron who spent time in prison, was Clay’s classmate at Harvard—Clay knows a thing or two about values.

Living according to one’s values was a priority to Clay and Kobe. Obviously, that doesn’t mean either was perfect.

2. Teaching. Both men found ways to share their expertise and mentality with others. I took Harvard Business School’s online course Strategic Disruption because Clay was the professor. He shared his theories and their counterarguments with humility. He made the material accessible, as if he really cared we learned it. He clearly was not teaching to boost his own ego or gain more fame.

Kobe’s “Mamba Mentality” is part of his significant legacy. I’ve watched several videos in which he says the mentality is about always striving to be the best version of yourself. Kobe was known for his work ethic in a field known for work ethic. He stood out for it, wrote a book about it, created an academy for it, mentored it, and more.

We may not learn the extent of their teachings because both did a lot privately; however, we can access their ideas via their videos and books.

3. Faith. Clay was a leader in his church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. On his website, Clay wrote that his church’s organization “forces us to teach and care for each other – and in my view, this is the core of Christian living.” (http://claytonchristensen.com/beliefs/) He believed his live would be measured by how he impacted others, and he spoke of his belief openly.

Kobe was open about being raised Catholic and raising his children Catholic. He spoke about turning to his faith when he made mistakes that were not aligned with his values. He also spoke about it when he and his wife, Vanessa, worked on homelessness in Los Angeles.

From the Los Angeles Times in 2012 The future NBA Hall of Famer acknowledged that he hopes his legacy transcends the inspiration he provides on the court for the Lakers. “You have to do something that carries a little bit more weight to it, a little more significance, a little more purpose to it,” Bryant said Wednesday at an event in Hollywood to promote his work to help the homeless in Los Angeles. “My career is winding down. At the end of my career, I don’t want to look back and just say, ‘Well, I had a successful career because I won so many championships and scored so many points.’ There’s something else that you have to do with that.”

You don’t have to have to be a Harvard professor and world-renowned business guru or a world-renowned basketball champion to incorporate these three things into your life. Is there room for them? There certainly is room for improvement in those areas in my life. I’ve wondered why someone like me, who never met either of the men, sheds tears over their passing. Perhaps it’s because they had so much more to teach, and I still need to learn more from them. Well, luckily, their lessons are already here, and they can continue to serve as role models in this game of life.

Links for you:
HBR Article How will you measure your life?
TED talk on How will you measure your life?
Video on The Mindset of a Winner | Kobe Bryant Champions Advice 
Video on The Mind of Kobe Bryant - Hard Work