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Kobe Bryant’s LAST GREAT INTERVIEW on The MINDSET Of A WINNER & How To SUCCEED | Lewis Howes

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Kobe BryantguestLewis Howeshost

Sep 10, 201844mWatch on YouTube

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Transcript

50 min read · 9,996 words

0:00 – 3:54
Greatest Teachers and Scoring Zero at Age 11
1. KBKobe Bryant
  You know, when you play the game-
2. LHLewis Howes
  Mm-hmm
3. KBKobe Bryant
  ... you hit a game-winning shot, you miss a shot, the reaction's there. You can see how people are responding to it, right? You can feel it.
4. LHLewis Howes
  The energy is like-
5. KBKobe Bryant
  And the energy is there. What I do now, you don't. Like, I, I don't see how people are affected by Dear Basketball, or, you know, creating The Punies and you put it out there. Like, I wish I could see a car ride of a family the first time their daughter hears Lily's Lemonade and what she's doing, you know, if she's singing along to it. That's not there, right? So that's the, the challenge. That's the, the one thing-
6. LHLewis Howes
  Mm
7. KBKobe Bryant
  ... that I miss is being able to-
8. LHLewis Howes
  The feedback
9. KBKobe Bryant
  ... to feed off of the energy. [upbeat music]
10. LHLewis Howes
  Welcome everyone to the School of Greatness podcast. We have the incredible, legendary Kobe Bryant. My man, it's good to meet you.
11. KBKobe Bryant
  Pleasure, man.
12. LHLewis Howes
  Um, congrats on everything. You're an icon, a legend. And the thing I love the most about you is that you really care about other human beings.
13. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah.
14. LHLewis Howes
  Your heart is so big. Even though you've been known for this focus mentality that is just almost psycho in some ways.
15. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah. [laughs]
16. LHLewis Howes
  But you care deeply about human beings, and I think that's why so many people love you as well, so I wanna acknowledge you for your kindness-
17. KBKobe Bryant
  Thank you
18. LHLewis Howes
  ... and your generosity towards humanity. Um, my first question for you is, I'm curious about who was your greatest teacher growing up? Because you had an in- uh, an interesting childhood being in Italy-
19. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah
20. LHLewis Howes
  ... for a while, coming back to Philadelphia, I think it was.
21. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah.
22. LHLewis Howes
  Who was the greatest teacher for you in those early days?
23. KBKobe Bryant
  It's funny, man. I, I had a lot of them. You know, my parents were, were great. You know, growing up, you know, they instilled in me the importance of imagination, of curiosity, and understanding that, okay, if you wanna accomplish something, you're ... I'm not just gonna sit here and say, "Yes, you can do whatever you want."
24. LHLewis Howes
  Mm.
25. KBKobe Bryant
  Yes, you can, but you have to also put in the work to get there, right? So they taught me that at a really early age, man. And, uh, when you grow up as a kid thinking that the world is your oyster and all things are possible if you put in the work to do it, you know, you grow up having that fundamental belief.
26. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah. Who was more influential for you, your father or mother?
27. KBKobe Bryant
  It ... Both were in- influential at different points.
28. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
29. KBKobe Bryant
  Right? My, uh, my mom was there on a daily basis. Uh, my father, uh, was really influential at a really critical time where I, I, you know, I had a summer where I played basketball when I was, like, 10 or 11 years old, in a very prominent summer league in Philadelphia called the Sunny Hill League. Where my father played, my uncle played, and they were, like, all-time greats-
30. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah
3:54 – 6:41
From Zero Points to Best in the State: The Math of Practice
1. KBKobe Bryant
  I think that's when the idea of understanding a long-term view became important. Because I wasn't gonna catch these kids in a week. I wasn't gonna catch them in a year, right? So that's when I sat down and said, "Okay, this is gonna take some thought."
2. LHLewis Howes
  Mm-hmm.
3. KBKobe Bryant
  Right? "What do I wanna work on first? All right, shooting. All right, let's knock this out. Let's focus on this. Half a year, six months, do nothing but shoot, right? After that, all right, creating your own shot." And then you focus ... So you start ... I started creating a menu of things.
4. LHLewis Howes
  Mm.
5. KBKobe Bryant
  When I came back the next summer, I was a little bit better, right? And I came back-
6. LHLewis Howes
  And when you mean, like, I've got my jump shot from 15, I've got my-
7. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah
8. LHLewis Howes
  ... fade away, I've got my-
9. KBKobe Bryant
  I got my jump shot from 15. I got my three-point shot. Like, just open shots. Not miss open shots, right?
10. LHLewis Howes
  Right.
11. KBKobe Bryant
  Be able to shoot it with speed, 'cause those kids are so much more athletic.
12. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
13. KBKobe Bryant
  And then the next summer I came back, I was a little better. And the summer I came back-
14. LHLewis Howes
  You scored
15. KBKobe Bryant
  ... the next summer I was a little better. I scored.
16. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
17. KBKobe Bryant
  You know, it wasn't much-
18. LHLewis Howes
  Right
19. KBKobe Bryant
  ... but I scored, you know?
20. LHLewis Howes
  And this is 12, 13.
21. KBKobe Bryant
  12, 13. And then 14 came around, back half of 13, 14, uh, years old, and then I was just killing everyone. And it happened in two years. And I wasn't expecting it to happen in two years, but it did. Because what I had to do was work on the basics and the fundamentals, while they relied on their athleticism-
22. LHLewis Howes
  Mm
23. KBKobe Bryant
  ... and their natural ability. And because I stick to the fundamentals, it just caught up to them. And then my body, you know, my knee stopped hurting. I grew into my frame. And ...
24. LHLewis Howes
  And then your athleticism, once you have the fundamentals-
25. KBKobe Bryant
  Exactly
26. LHLewis Howes
  ... the hard work, the mindset, and you tack on the athletic-
27. KBKobe Bryant
  Exactly
28. LHLewis Howes
  ... athleticism-
29. KBKobe Bryant
  Then, then-
30. LHLewis Howes
  ... it's game over
6:41 – 10:18
Origins of the Mamba Mentality
1. LHLewis Howes
  But you have this Mamba mentality. Your book's coming out soon. And how did you develop this? There's a, there's a beautiful story that I love from Jay Williams.
2. KBKobe Bryant
  Mm-hmm.
3. LHLewis Howes
  I don't know if you remember Jason Williams.
4. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah.
5. LHLewis Howes
  Where he did an interview a while back, and he talked about how when he played you, I think the first time, or one of the first times he played against you, he was, he was like, "I'm gonna show up so early to the court to warm up and practice, like, before anyone."
6. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah.
7. LHLewis Howes
  And he shows up at the court. I don't know if it was in LA or where it was, and you were the only one there.
8. KBKobe Bryant
  Right
9. LHLewis Howes
  Already shooting free throws, already doing your f- fundamentals. And he goes, "I'm gonna stay here until Kobe leaves."
10. KBKobe Bryant
  [laughs]
11. LHLewis Howes
  And then he was like, "Gosh, an hour and a half, two hours later-
12. KBKobe Bryant
  I gotta go. [laughs]
13. LHLewis Howes
  ... I'm tired. And Kobe's still shooting free throws, scoring, like, just going over the thump- the fundamentals.
14. KBKobe Bryant
  Right.
15. LHLewis Howes
  And he goes... And then we played that game, and you were lights out. And he came up to you afterwards and said, like, "Dude, why were you in there for so long, or how'd you do it?" And you said, this is what he said you said, said, "I knew you were watching-
16. KBKobe Bryant
  Right
17. LHLewis Howes
  ... and I wanted to show you I was willing to outwork you."
18. KBKobe Bryant
  Right.
19. LHLewis Howes
  Something along those lines.
20. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah, yeah.
21. LHLewis Howes
  I don't know if you remember this.
22. KBKobe Bryant
  I remember it.
23. LHLewis Howes
  You remember, yeah.
24. KBKobe Bryant
  Oh, yeah.
25. LHLewis Howes
  And I thought that was so powerful that you have this mindset. But how did you develop that? I don't, and I don't know if that's what you call the Mamba mindset, but how did you develop that?
26. KBKobe Bryant
  Well-
27. LHLewis Howes
  And when did it start?
28. KBKobe Bryant
  Uh, it, it started in, in middle school and high school because a lot of the kids that I was playing against were inner city kids.
29. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
30. KBKobe Bryant
  And so they're looking at me as if, "Okay, this kid is soft," right? "He's from the suburbs of Philadelphia. His father played in the NBA, played professionally."
10:18 – 13:09
Getting the Best Out of Teammates
1. KBKobe Bryant
  That's, that's interesting because I, when I, when I played, um, one of the things that I had to learn is how to get the best out of my teammates.
2. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
3. KBKobe Bryant
  And most people think it's a simple thing, you know, passing the ball. You know, but that's not how you make guys better. You have to really affect their behavior.
4. LHLewis Howes
  How do you do that?
5. KBKobe Bryant
  So, you know, like, I would tell guys, you know, "We got back to backs. You know, I don't care if we're in Miami. I don't care if we're in the great city of Chicago. We can't go out. We gotta get rest." Right?
6. LHLewis Howes
  Back to back games.
7. KBKobe Bryant
  Back to back games.
8. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
9. KBKobe Bryant
  Right? Monday, Tuesday. You play Monday, and we play again Tuesday. But guys aren't gonna listen, right? You gonna... You know.
10. LHLewis Howes
  Right.
11. KBKobe Bryant
  So a few times, say, "All right. We'll all go out.
12. LHLewis Howes
  [laughs]
13. KBKobe Bryant
  We'll go out together."
14. LHLewis Howes
  Really?
15. KBKobe Bryant
  "I'm, I'll drink with you," right? But the next morning, I'm banging on your door at 5:00 in the morning. [hands clapping] "Let's go."
16. LHLewis Howes
  They're not getting up.
17. KBKobe Bryant
  "Where are we going?"
18. LHLewis Howes
  [laughs]
19. KBKobe Bryant
  "I hung out with you, now you come hang out with me."
20. LHLewis Howes
  Wow.
21. KBKobe Bryant
  "This is what we do, all right? Let's go." And we're at the gym. We're working out, right? We hit the bus. We go to practice. We play that night.
22. LHLewis Howes
  And they're dead.
23. KBKobe Bryant
  And they're dead. And they're like, uh, lesson learned. [laughs]
24. LHLewis Howes
  Really?
25. KBKobe Bryant
  Lesson learned.
26. LHLewis Howes
  So you take them out once.
27. KBKobe Bryant
  Listen, if you're gonna do that, do that, but don't let that compromise what we're here to do.
28. LHLewis Howes
  Right.
29. KBKobe Bryant
  This is why we're here. This is why you're here in the first place.
30. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
13:09 – 15:23
Understanding Psychology: Lessons from Phil Jackson
1. LHLewis Howes
  How important is understanding human psychology and human behavior to work with a team-
2. KBKobe Bryant
  Yes
3. LHLewis Howes
  ... as opposed to just relying on your gifts and talents?
4. KBKobe Bryant
  It's, uh, it's probably the most important thing. You know, when you're in a, in this culture, in our society, you can do some phenomenal things individually. Um, but they'll never reach their full potential unless you do them collectively. And you have to figure out how to do that, and, you know, Phil Jackson was great at that.
5. LHLewis Howes
  Mm-hmm.
6. KBKobe Bryant
  Phil, uh, you know, he wouldn't just coach the team or coach the game, but he'd read everything about every single player.
7. LHLewis Howes
  Really?
8. KBKobe Bryant
  He'd learn about your history, how you grew up, um, how you were raised, where were, where were you raised, you know. He'll read every interview.
9. LHLewis Howes
  Hmm.
10. KBKobe Bryant
  And he'll learn about you and gives him a better understanding of what's motivating you, uh, or what your insecurities are, right? And then it just helps him communicate with you better, or even push a button here if he needs to.
11. LHLewis Howes
  When did you learn that it was important to understand who your teammates are, what their likes or dislikes are? Was that in high school for you or more...
12. KBKobe Bryant
  No, it was, uh, I learned it from Phil. There, there was a stretch, um, in '03, uh, where Shaq was out with an injury. And Phil called me up to his office and said, "Okay, we need you to really turn on the afterburners and start scoring the ball-
13. LHLewis Howes
  Wow
14. KBKobe Bryant
  ... if we have to win." So I did, and I wind up scoring, I think it was nine straight games of 40-plus points.
15. LHLewis Howes
  Nine straight?
16. KBKobe Bryant
  Nine straight games. And then Shaq comes back sec- uh, his second to last game of that, and then Phil calls me up to his office. He says, "Kobe, okay, I need you to dial it back." I'm like-
17. LHLewis Howes
  Why? [laughs]
18. KBKobe Bryant
  ... like, "We're winning. I, I don't understand." He says, "Because our goal is to win a championship."
19. LHLewis Howes
  Hmm.
20. KBKobe Bryant
  "And we can get through the Western Conference with you playing this way. But in the East, you know, we, we can dominate them inside with Shaq in the post. But if you continue to do this, we'll lose Shaq. We'll lose him."
21. LHLewis Howes
  His motivation, his excitement.
22. KBKobe Bryant
  What triggers him, right? He... "So I need you to pull back so we can pull Shaq forward for June."
23. LHLewis Howes
  Wow.
24. KBKobe Bryant
  And I'm, I just looked at him like, "Man, this is one smart dude." [laughs]
25. LHLewis Howes
  Wow.
26. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah.
27. LHLewis Howes
  That's really smart.
28. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah. He's one smart dude, man. So I pulled, pulled it back.
29. LHLewis Howes
  Wow.
30. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah.
15:23 – 19:49
Life After Basketball: Fear, Injury and Finding Storytelling
1. LHLewis Howes
  What do you think what's been, uh, the greatest challenge you've had since leaving the game?
2. KBKobe Bryant
  The greatest challenge. Um, [sighs] I think it's, I, you know, I mean, it's-
3. LHLewis Howes
  I mean, you won an Oscar.
4. KBKobe Bryant
  [laughs]
5. LHLewis Howes
  You're, you're launching podcasts and shows.
6. KBKobe Bryant
  Well-
7. LHLewis Howes
  And you got a book coming out.
8. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah. But it's, it, it's, uh, it's different though. Like, you know, um, we were just talking about it here in the office the other day. Um, you know, when you play the game-
9. LHLewis Howes
  Mm-hmm
10. KBKobe Bryant
  ... you hit a game-winning shot, you miss a shot, the reaction's there. You can see how people are responding to it, right? You can feel it.
11. LHLewis Howes
  The energy is like-
12. KBKobe Bryant
  The energy is there. What I do now, you don't. Like I, I don't see how people are affected by Dear Basketball or, you know, creating The Punies and you put it out there. Like, I wish I could see a car ride of a family the first time their daughter hears Lily's Lemonade and what she's doing, you know, if she's singing along to it. That's not there, right? So that's the, the challenge. That's the, the one thing-
13. LHLewis Howes
  Hmm
14. KBKobe Bryant
  ... that I miss, is being able to-
15. LHLewis Howes
  It's the feedback
16. KBKobe Bryant
  ... feed off of the energy. Yeah.
17. LHLewis Howes
  The instant feedback-
18. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah
19. LHLewis Howes
  ... you get from shoot- missing or scoring a shot-
20. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah, man
21. LHLewis Howes
  ... winning or losing a game. It's like either way you're getting a, a result, right?
22. KBKobe Bryant
  Yes, yes. Yes. That's the one thing. And, and when I, when I went to, uh... 'Cause I spent a lot of time with mentors as well-
23. LHLewis Howes
  Uh-huh
24. KBKobe Bryant
  ... up at Pixar and Disney Studios.
25. LHLewis Howes
  Wow.
26. KBKobe Bryant
  They've been absolutely wonderful, animation, Disney Animation. And I've talked to them about Frozen and Moana and how our kids love them, and they're always like, "Oh, that's awesome." And they, they wanna hear it because they don't ever get a chance to truly see it.
27. LHLewis Howes
  [sighs]
28. KBKobe Bryant
  Like, they're, they're not-
29. LHLewis Howes
  Not sit in the movie theater like-
30. KBKobe Bryant
  No, no. And they don't have time to go to Disneyland and walk around the park and see how many families are enjoying the content that they've created because they're busy making the next one.
19:49 – 22:25
Why Stories Matter and Resting at the End
1. LHLewis Howes
  Storytelling is something you're really passionate about. What's a story, uh, over your life that's been a, a constant theme that you go back to? Is there something you heard as a kid that you, that really resonates with you, or a book, or a movie that just feels like this is me?
2. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah, that's funny. Um, uh, movies there are plenty, but there, there's a quote from, uh, one of my English teachers at Lower Merion named, uh, uh, Mr. Fisk. He had a great quote that said, "Rest at the end, not in the middle." And that's something I always live by, you know. I'm not gonna rest, and I'm gonna keep on pushing now. There are a lot of answers that I don't have, or even questions that I don't have, but I'm just gonna keep going. I'm just gonna keep going, and I'll figure these things out as I go, right? And you just continue to build that way. So that, I try to live by that all the time.
3. LHLewis Howes
  Rest at the end.
4. KBKobe Bryant
  Rest at the end.
5. LHLewis Howes
  What's the question that eats you alive the most that you haven't answered yet?
6. KBKobe Bryant
  The question that eats me alive that I haven't answered yet-
7. LHLewis Howes
  Or that you're still looking for the answer
8. KBKobe Bryant
  ... um, I'm still looking for the answer. Uh, how to tell a good story. [laughs] I don't think, I don't think anybody has that answer.
9. LHLewis Howes
  [laughs]
10. KBKobe Bryant
  You know, like when I, when I sat down, uh, to write Dear Basketball, I was like, okay, what do I wanna say? And, um, you know, you, you have certain acts and how you can structure certain things, right?
11. LHLewis Howes
  Mm-hmm.
12. KBKobe Bryant
  The ebbs and flows of story. Uh, certain formulas that have been there since the beginning of time. But it's such an, an, a- an exact science.
13. LHLewis Howes
  So challenging, yeah
14. KBKobe Bryant
  ... isn't it? Right. And so that one question is really interesting.
15. LHLewis Howes
  Why do you wanna tell a great story?
16. KBKobe Bryant
  I think stories is what moves the world. Whether it's an inspirational story or it's an informational one, nothing in this world moves without story.
17. LHLewis Howes
  Mm-hmm.
18. KBKobe Bryant
  You know, be it in from the political world, sports world, nothing that we have moves without story. Um, and so I think that is the root of everything. And if we're gonna try to make the world a better place, story's the right place to start.
19. LHLewis Howes
  It's, uh ... I agree.
20. KBKobe Bryant
  But most people don't understand. Like my, like my last year, people would come up to me and say, "Okay, what are you gonna do?" I said, "I'm gonna be a storyteller."
21. LHLewis Howes
  Really? [laughs]
22. KBKobe Bryant
  And they go, "All right, man."
23. LHLewis Howes
  They're like, "What are you talking about?" [laughs]
24. KBKobe Bryant
  All right, man. So, uh, the, so what's gonna happen-
25. LHLewis Howes
  What are you really gonna be? Yeah. [laughs]
26. KBKobe Bryant
  They're like, "What's gonna happen when you retire is you're gonna go through like a week of depression."
27. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah. [laughs]
28. KBKobe Bryant
  Then the second week is gonna be like denial and all that.
29. LHLewis Howes
  Right.
30. KBKobe Bryant
  I'm like, "Dude, seriously, I'm good." So after a while I just got sick of it, and I just, just said, "I don't know. I don't know. I'll go play golf or something."
22:25 – 28:34
Facing Losses and Studying Film
1. LHLewis Howes
  What does losing feel like to you?
2. KBKobe Bryant
  Uh, it's exciting.
3. LHLewis Howes
  Why is it exciting?
4. KBKobe Bryant
  Um, because it means you have different, um, ways to get better. There are certain things that you can figure out, that you can take advantage of, right? Certain weaknesses that were exposed-
5. LHLewis Howes
  Mm
6. KBKobe Bryant
  ... um, that you need to shore up, right? So it was exciting. I mean, it, I mean, it sucks to lose-
7. LHLewis Howes
  Right
8. KBKobe Bryant
  ... but at the same time, there are answers there if you just look at them. Um-
9. LHLewis Howes
  'Cause you get the information from losing more than from winning probably.
10. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah, yeah. I mean, the answers are there when you win, too. You j- you s- you, you just have to look at them.
11. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
12. KBKobe Bryant
  Right? So it's a constant process, and it's exciting when you win, it's exciting when you lose, 'cause the process should be exactly the same. Whether you win or you lose, is you go back and you look, and you find things that you could have done better, you find things that you've done well, that worked. You figure out how did they work, why did they work, and how can you make them work again.
13. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
14. KBKobe Bryant
  And, uh, but the hardest thing is to face that stuff. Um, that's a really, really tough challenge.
15. LHLewis Howes
  You mean, facing, you mean look yourself in the mirror and say, "Okay, this is how I showed up," or, "This is what happened," and-
16. KBKobe Bryant
  I'll give you an example. So, uh, Katie Lou Samuelson is one of the best college basketball players in the country. She plays at UConn. She's gonna be a senior.
17. LHLewis Howes
  Right now.
18. KBKobe Bryant
  Right now.
19. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
20. KBKobe Bryant
  And, uh, she's from Huntington Beach out here by us, and so she comes down and she works with some of my, my, my girls on the team, and she helps coach.
21. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
22. KBKobe Bryant
  And, uh, they just had a really tough season last year where they lost to Notre Dame in the final.
23. LHLewis Howes
  That's right.
24. KBKobe Bryant
  Really tough.
25. LHLewis Howes
  First loss in like-
26. KBKobe Bryant
  First loss
27. LHLewis Howes
  ... years, right?
28. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah. And so I asked her, I say, "Have you watched the Notre Dame game?" She's like, "No." I said, "Well, why not?" She said, "I don't wanna watch that." I said, "I know you don't, but you're gonna play Notre Dame this year, yeah?" "Yeah." "What's the chances you see them again in the final?" Goes, "Well, we'll probably see them again." I said, "Well, you can't show up and play them without knowing why you lost that one." Right? So, you, you, the mistakes that you've made in that game, you have to do the hard stuff and watch that game and study that game to not make those mistakes over and over again just because you weren't brave enough to face it. So she came down to the office. I brought her down to the office, and we sat down, we watched that game together.
29. LHLewis Howes
  Wow.
30. KBKobe Bryant
  Right, and you gotta f- you gotta deal with it.
28:34 – 32:04
Leading Through Tactics, Compassion and Empathy
1. LHLewis Howes
  Now, did you have your teammates also follow on this obsessiveness that you had as well? Or did you just encourage them, or what was the-
2. KBKobe Bryant
  No, you can't push somebody to do that, right?
3. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
4. KBKobe Bryant
  But what you can do is, is alter behavior and also change the vernacular of how they speak about the game.
5. LHLewis Howes
  Mm.
6. KBKobe Bryant
  So on team buses, team planes, in a locker room, after practice, I would look at the film. I'd pull Pau, Lamar, D. Fish, pull them aside and say, "Let's look at this. Right? We probably should've done this, that, and the other."
7. LHLewis Howes
  So you'll show them the game film a little bit-
8. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah, yeah
9. LHLewis Howes
  ... here and there.
10. KBKobe Bryant
  And then you speak to them in, in executional terms. It's never, "Come on, guys, we can do better. Come on, guys, we can do better." That's rah-rah stuff, right? A leader must give very tactical, you know, uh, things that we can do, adjustments. "Okay, the defense is doing this, that, and the other. That means we should probably do this, this, this, that, and the other."
11. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
12. KBKobe Bryant
  By midway through the season, through that behavior, you start seeing them communicating the same way back to you, right?
13. LHLewis Howes
  Wow.
14. KBKobe Bryant
  And it's like, "Okay, cold. They're doing this, that, and the other to you. Maybe we should do this..." And you're like, "Okay, yeah."
15. LHLewis Howes
  Oh, yeah.
16. KBKobe Bryant
  "Awesome. Great. Let's do it."
17. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah, yeah. What about, um, season 16, 17, 18? Are you still watching every game film as obsessively as the first 10 years?
18. KBKobe Bryant
  Not, not now, no. Well, when I was playing.
19. LHLewis Howes
  When you were playing.
20. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah.
21. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
22. KBKobe Bryant
  So when I was playing, what I would do is, is, um, study the film, but study our younger players-
23. LHLewis Howes
  Mm
24. KBKobe Bryant
  ... and see what areas do they need to develop in, and how can I help them develop. I mean, that was, that was the big challenge, as you move from, you know, um, um, being the single dominant player-
25. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah
26. KBKobe Bryant
  ... to understanding, "Okay, I have to help these other guys."
27. LHLewis Howes
  How do I lift everyone else up?
28. KBKobe Bryant
  It's tough.
29. LHLewis Howes
  What, I mean, you were so dominant in your whole career, one of the greatest of all time. W- was there a weakness that you had? Or did you, 'cause obviously you're always trying to master your weaknesses so they became your strengths.
30. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah.
32:04 – 35:01
Proudest Moment: Beating the Celtics in Game Seven
1. LHLewis Howes
  What are you most proud of from your 20 seasons?
2. KBKobe Bryant
  Um, honestly, it was, uh, sounds, um, um, may sound a little shallow, but I gotta say beating the Celtics-
3. LHLewis Howes
  [laughs]
4. KBKobe Bryant
  ... in game seven. [laughs] Um-
5. LHLewis Howes
  Hey
6. KBKobe Bryant
  ... that's what I'm most proud of, 'cause it was, it was-
7. LHLewis Howes
  Why?
8. KBKobe Bryant
  ... it was the hardest. Um, you know, you're playing with Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce-
9. LHLewis Howes
  Mm-hmm
10. KBKobe Bryant
  ... Kevin Garnett-
11. LHLewis Howes
  Mm, all-stars
12. KBKobe Bryant
  ... Ray Allen, and you know, it was myself, Pau, and players that other teams didn't want. And you know, how do we figure out as a group what to do? And the reason why I love that series so much is that we went down three games to two against Boston.
13. LHLewis Howes
  [sighs]
14. KBKobe Bryant
  And now you got two games coming home. I remember sitting in the locker room, and they beat the crap out of us, too, that game. So we're sitting in the locker room-
15. LHLewis Howes
  [laughs]
16. KBKobe Bryant
  ... and it's really, really quiet. I'm sitting there looking around, and we just lost to Celtics in '08, so this is like revenge, right? And they're kicking our butt again, right? So I sit around, I just start laughing. I start laughing, and then I remember, uh, Derek Fisher looked at me like, and Lamar looked at me. He goes, "What, what is funny?" I said, "Dude, they beat the crap out of us." [laughs]
17. LHLewis Howes
  [laughs]
18. KBKobe Bryant
  They just beat the crap out. And he said, "I'm, I'm missing the part where that's funny." I said, "Man, listen. If we start this season and they say, you know, 'All you have to do is win two games at home, and you're NBA champ,' would you take that?"
19. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
20. KBKobe Bryant
  And like, right.
21. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah. [laughs] Right.
22. KBKobe Bryant
  That's all we gotta do.
23. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
24. KBKobe Bryant
  Go home.
25. LHLewis Howes
  Down three to two.
26. KBKobe Bryant
  Win two, we're NBA champions. All we gotta do is win two ga- two games in a row. That's it. We'll take care of the first game, and I promise you they're not winning game seven on our home floor.
27. LHLewis Howes
  Wow.
28. KBKobe Bryant
  It's not happening. And so we all just laughed about it. And then we went out and we figured it out. But that game seven was, we're down 15 points-
29. LHLewis Howes
  Wow
30. KBKobe Bryant
  ... in the fourth quarter, right? And that's when you have to collectively look at each other and say, you know, the spirit of your team must be good, because at that moment is when teams fracture. And if the energy amongst each other isn't there, that trust isn't there, you're done.
35:01 – 37:55
4 AM Training, Family Joy and What Love Is
1. LHLewis Howes
  why still wake up that early and train at this level in your life right now?
2. KBKobe Bryant
  Well, I mean, there, there's several factors for that. Like, when I first retired, let myself go a little bit.
3. LHLewis Howes
  Really?
4. KBKobe Bryant
  And-
5. LHLewis Howes
  You got a little-
6. KBKobe Bryant
  Oh yeah. Oh yeah
7. LHLewis Howes
  ... got a little chubby life?
8. KBKobe Bryant
  Oh, it was awesome.
9. LHLewis Howes
  [laughs]
10. KBKobe Bryant
  'Cause I was like, eating whatever.
11. LHLewis Howes
  You enjoyed everything.
12. KBKobe Bryant
  Oh man, I'm eating what?
13. LHLewis Howes
  [laughs]
14. KBKobe Bryant
  It was, well, man.
15. LHLewis Howes
  Bring it to me. Let's go.
16. KBKobe Bryant
  [laughs]
17. LHLewis Howes
  Steak? Oh, let, let's go, right? Milkshakes?
18. KBKobe Bryant
  I just did, yeah, man.
19. LHLewis Howes
  Let's do it. Let's do it. And then the challenge was, okay, can I get back in shape?
20. KBKobe Bryant
  Oh.
21. LHLewis Howes
  And it's, it's really hard because it, there's no end goal.
22. KBKobe Bryant
  There's no game.
23. LHLewis Howes
  I'm not training for anything.
24. KBKobe Bryant
  There's no season. There's not-
25. LHLewis Howes
  Right.
26. KBKobe Bryant
  So how do you motivate yourself to do it?
27. LHLewis Howes
  How do you?
28. KBKobe Bryant
  How do you? And so for me it was like, okay, I have to, I have to aim for something.
29. LHLewis Howes
  Mm.
30. KBKobe Bryant
  So I said I want to aim for size. I want to aim for bulk, right? So that's a tangible thing.
37:55 – 42:28
The Punies Podcast
1. LHLewis Howes
  you've got a new podcast out right now called The Punies.
2. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah.
3. LHLewis Howes
  Which I started listening to. I've listened to the first two episodes. It's incredible.
4. KBKobe Bryant
  [laughs]
5. LHLewis Howes
  They're like 13 to 15 minute, um, episodic, uh, storytelling, you know, cartoons, I guess-
6. KBKobe Bryant
  Yes
7. LHLewis Howes
  ... for kids, and the thing I love about it the most is it's, it's funny. It's entertaining. Uh, there's original music. There's all these different characters. You're teaching history, like, in a fun way.
8. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah. [laughs]
9. LHLewis Howes
  Which I like the last one where it's like, you know, we, we talk about history so we don't repeat it-
10. KBKobe Bryant
  Right
11. LHLewis Howes
  ... in our own lives. And then you teach lessons about overcoming failure for kids, and insecurities, and challenges we're facing, and I think it's beautiful. Can you talk about The Punies and the podcast and what it's all about?
12. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah. The, so The Punies, um, came to me, uh, from... You know, we have our family tradition where we watch, um, The Sandlot every Fourth of July.
13. LHLewis Howes
  God, it's the greatest movie, man.
14. KBKobe Bryant
  It's the greatest. It's the greatest.
15. LHLewis Howes
  In the summer?
16. KBKobe Bryant
  Squints saying, "Ya, ya," and all-
17. LHLewis Howes
  Oh, my gosh. S'mores, baby
18. KBKobe Bryant
  ... it's the best thing. Dude, come on.
19. LHLewis Howes
  Give me s'mores.
20. KBKobe Bryant
  Right? So, like, that's our family ritual.
21. LHLewis Howes
  Oh, my gosh.
22. KBKobe Bryant
  Every Fourth of July.
23. LHLewis Howes
  Sandlot.
24. KBKobe Bryant
  Sandlot, right? And so after watching The Sandlot movie, I was like, "We need a new sports movie like this," right?
25. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
26. KBKobe Bryant
  So I started kinda concepting ideas and stuff, but nothing I truly loved. And then, uh, over Thanksgiving, our other ritual is to watch Charlie Brown.
27. LHLewis Howes
  Uh-huh, sure.
28. KBKobe Bryant
  Right? And the Pumpkin Patch.
29. LHLewis Howes
  Sure.
30. KBKobe Bryant
  Right? So we watched that, and then I go-
42:28 – 44:20
Mamba Mindset Book and Defining Greatness
1. LHLewis Howes
  and your book is out in October. It's called Mamba Mindset.
2. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah.
3. LHLewis Howes
  Do you wanna talk briefly about that?
4. KBKobe Bryant
  Well, the mentality book is, is really about, um, process and craft. I've broken the book up into two sections, and process is really about- The process of preparing.
5. LHLewis Howes
  Mm-hmm.
6. KBKobe Bryant
  You know, through injury, recovery, uh, studying of the game. And then the craft is the actual performance and the tactics. And so a lot of things that I learned, uh, through the game were through photos. You can look at a photo-
7. LHLewis Howes
  Photos, wow
8. KBKobe Bryant
  ... and see like a player making a move, or look at the angle of his feet, look how he's using his hands on defense. And I can really break down things to the smallest detail through that, and that's what you'll see in this book. I mean, it's really a basketball bible.
9. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah. Mamba Ment- But it's also your mindset bible, right?
10. KBKobe Bryant
  Yeah, yeah. But when you see how I break things down, like how I'm looking at things to the smallest of detail.
11. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
12. KBKobe Bryant
  And, uh, that's the best way to understand how to have that kind of mentality, is to ask questions, then find answers.
13. LHLewis Howes
  Mm.
14. KBKobe Bryant
  And then that lead to more questions, and you find more answers.
15. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
16. KBKobe Bryant
  And that's what the book is.
17. LHLewis Howes
  I love it. Make sure you guys get the book. You can pre-order it right now. Download The Punies. Um, follow you on social media. The final question is what's your definition of greatness?
18. KBKobe Bryant
  Um, I, I think the definition of greatness is to inspire the people next to you. Yeah, I, I think that's what greatness is or should be. It, it's not something that's, that, that lives and dies with one person.
19. LHLewis Howes
  Mm.
20. KBKobe Bryant
  It's how can you inspire a person to then in turn inspire another person-
21. LHLewis Howes
  Mm
22. KBKobe Bryant
  ... that then inspires another person. And that's how you create something that I think lasts forever.
23. LHLewis Howes
  Yeah.
24. KBKobe Bryant
  And, uh, I think that's our challenge as people, is to, um, is to figure out how our story can impact others-
25. LHLewis Howes
  Mm
26. KBKobe Bryant
  ... and motivate them in a way to create their own greatness.
27. LHLewis Howes
  Well, I wanna acknowledge you again, man, for the inspiration. You're just a symbol of truth and inspiration to so many people.
28. KBKobe Bryant
  Oh, thanks man.
29. LHLewis Howes
  And, um, I just appreciate you as a human, so Kobe-
30. KBKobe Bryant
  Appreciate it, man