There comes a time in your life that you wake up and feel this overwhelming sense of something is missing. This may cause you to rise from your bed and feel like something is not right, or you might have been bitten by a bug or something. In the life of Gerald Lacey II, the author of the book The Visionary: A Collaboration of Visionary Insights, he called this phenomenon being bitten by the “craving success bug”.
He explains in his book that the effects of the bite of the craving success bug leave the person with a feeling like they need to be great at all costs. The feeling expands to tell them that they need to persevere in all things, no matter the circumstances. This bug, he states, is the actual fuel to a person’s fire.
This fire is the desire that wants to better a person’s current situation. It’s about being the best that one can be. It’s the unsatisfactory feeling that wakes one up from sleep, knowing that they can be doing more or better. It’s a feeling that pushes people to extend their days to complete exhaustion, even when sick or injured. It’s an overwhelming feeling of dissatisfaction; however, a critical drive that pushes people to do more.
A Tale of Two Kings
In his book, Lacey mentions two thought processes that exemplify the concept of going above and beyond. These two examples are people who are most known for being the best players in the history of the National Basketball Association (NBA) – Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant.
Michael Jordan is known by many people across the world, being called names such as Air Jordan or His Airness. Also known for his incredible speed and agility in playing the sport, what many people seem to not realize is that Jordon spent five years as a pro basketball player before he and his team earned their first championship ring in 1991. Although he was capable of achieving 30 to 40 points in a single game, he was consistently being pounded by much stronger opponents. It was for this reason that he started training with Tim Grover, who was specifically hired to increase Jordan’s core, lower, and upper body strength.
Unsure about lifting weights at first, Jordan decided to try out the training regimen for thirty days. “Thirty days turned into fifteen years,” Grover said later on. The improvements on Jordan’s physique were apparent to everyone and he would soon be joined by Scottie Pippen and the other Bulls teammates in his morning training session in which they would all be collectively called the “Breakfast Club”.
After this applied training method, the Chicago Bulls went on to win three straight championships from 1991 to 1993 and another three straight titles from 1996 to 1998! The team was led by the improved Michael Jordon, who began dominating both the airway to the hoop as well as the opponents that got in his way through his workout training that he was unsure to take in at first!
It’s always been about the journey for Kobe Bryant, who kept a strict regimen of training every single day until his retirement and untimely death in 2020. He was known for his early morning training routines, waking up at four in the morning. Due to his unbelievable duration and intensity, he would coin the “6 hours, 6 days, 6 months” workout program. This program consisted of two hours of running, two hours of basketball training, and two hours of weightlifting.
It was genuinely believed that Bryant loved this entire process. The challenge the rose from waking up early in the morning and repeating the same intense routine every day was embraced by Bryant in its entirety. This, naturally, left to an undeniable growth. “So, that’s why I do it,” he would explain.
Bryant’s process might not be everyone’s key to success. Many people might think that this kind of routine was unique to him. Nonetheless, the results were undeniable. This journey brought him to retire from the sport as an all-time great, rather like Jordan, and his lack of sleep and schedule was the edge he needed to push his limits. The fact remains that he did this continuously until he could no more.
Discussing the Makings of Success
Lacey would mention these two examples in his book extensively as he looks up to the success of these two inspirational figures. The continuous energy that they showed not only for the dedication in their sport, but the respect for the work that was given in, only exposed the undeniable growth that they gained that allowed them to excel and rise to the top of their fields.
The process is not always easy, Lacey would continue to say in his writings, and the first thing that a person may try could not be the one that clears up one’s vision, but it’s possible to make adjustments along the way, making changes that clarity is achieved as according to the plan. The key is the consistency and repetition of the routines. Wake up happy, be thankful, and ensure progress every single day.
