Quote of the Week...from Kobe Bryant

You always have to be on edge.  You always have to take every practice, every game, like it is your last.                                                                        ---Kobe Bryant

This past Sunday afternoon I had just gotten home after enjoying some coffee and a couple of doughnuts, flicking on the TV to see what was on...only to be devastated by the breaking news that NBA great Kobe Bryant had just died in a helicopter accident just outside Los Angeles.  The tragedy worsened as it later came out that eight other passengers had died in the crash...including Kobe's treasured thirteen-year old daughter Gianna.  My condolences to Kobe's family and those closest to him...

Kobe Bryant...like just about all of us when you get down to it...was a complicated person with many things about his character and past to praise and a few areas to criticize.  When he took on a goal, he was uncompromisingly competitive, meticulous and unwavering in both his preparations and his expectations of others working with him...this was publicly apparent during his playing years with the Los Angeles Lakers.  The above quote of Kobe's demonstrated his attitude of intense focus on whatever he was doing, but you don't have to be a sports star to emulate his high standards.  Kobe said you always have to be on edge...I'd qualify that a little to say "You always have to be on edge during your chosen battles" because I believe that sitting back, resting and reflecting are also important.  And in the end I think Kobe Bryant in his practical life adhered to that modification, too...he chose his battles and always pushed himself to his limits to succeed but I'm sure he also enjoyed some down time...the main thing is to impose high standards for oneself and then stick with them.  Now the question I think a lot of people have is which battles they need to choose for themselves...too many of us stumble through our daily existence in a confused, muddled state, not attuned to or even knowing where we want to go.  Most of us aren't going to be professional athletes anytime soon, but each of us has areas where we want to succeed: once that's established, then it's time to focus and get on edge...