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The other day Tiger Woods was asked what makes LeBron James so great? His answer was obviously something that he had previously given a lot of thought to, considering the length and breadth of the answer he gave.
Woods felt that what makes LeBron great, and others he mentioned like Michael Jordan and Wayne Gretzky, in his eyes has mostly to do with consistently succeeding at the highest level for an extended period of time.
But that only half answered the question. The other half of the answer has to do with WHAT DO THEY DO that enables them to succeed at those levels for an extended period of time?
Motivational speaker and New York Times bestselling author Don Yaeger, who has interviewed and spoken with dozens of the best athletes over his decades writing for Sports Illustrated, told CNBC Make It the players who succeeded the most all exhibited the same four traits.
Some highlights and quotes from his interview…
1. They have humility.
“They have an ability to see themselves truthfully when others are busy adoring them.”
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2. They seek feedback daily.
“Feedback is the breakfast of champions, and true champions eat breakfast.”
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3. They start every day at zero.
“The truly great ones believe that what they achieved yesterday means little today.”
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4. They have an insatiable appetite for learning.
“The best ones have questions, they don’t have answers. They know they need the ability to recognize the needs they have to be better every day.”
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As you may have noticed, while those four traits were honed by people he has met who play sports, none of those traits are exclusive to people who play sports.
“They don’t have anything to do with physically imposing your will on other people. These are about how you drive the best from yourself,” explained Yaeger. “These aren’t sports conversations, these are about how you win.”
“Will you be more successful in business if you are humble, if you seek feedback, if you’re an insatiable learner? In the words of Joe Namath: ‘I guarantee it.'”
Check out the entire piece over at CNBC Make It.
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