In this world, it’s either you are or you are not. If you are not, the best chance you have of ever becoming is to learn from someone who is. In order to do so, you must be willing to accept that you are not and they are.
Unfortunately sometimes pride, ego, and insecurities won’t allow us to admit that we are not and someone else is, so we try to fake it; we try to act like we are. We may fake it well for some time and fool a few people, but still at the end of the day, you are not.
One day last Summer, I was hanging out with my friend Chris in Virginia and he asked if I wanted to learn how to skateboard. He knew how and I didn’t, so I said “sure, show me.” That required me sitting back and trusting that he would show me. I followed every direction to the letter and I ended up doing a pretty decent job. More importantly, I didn’t fall and break my head. Chris was a skater and I wasn’t. I accepted that and as a result I was able to learn from him and eventually become a somewhat decent skater.
DaFamCam Episode #3:Phella Kick Pushin from Da Fam Cam on Vimeo.
In the following episode of Boy Meets World, Cory feels as though teaching is easy. He ridicules Mr. Feeny and feels he could easily teach a class better than Mr. Feeny does. So Mr. Feeny hands over the chalk and allows Cory to do things his way. Naturally, chaos ensues and he falls flat on his face.
When I worked under someone else, I let him make decisions. I took decisions only in his absence or if he said I should. I let him get the first and the final word. I gave my opinion only when it was asked for or when I felt it would be beneficial to the entire team. We walked into a venue, I made sure he would walk in first because he knew who was who and what was what. I always deferred and I was clear on who the leader was. Even in moments when I felt I knew better I still let him play his role. As a result, I was able to blossom under the system and learn enough to one day do my own thing. If I tried to do my own thing before I was ready, I would have made a fool of myself.
Kobe is Kobe for a reason. When Ron Artest tries to be Kobe, the team loses and he looks foolish. When Ron Artest is Ron Artest, Kobe airballs, Ron gets the put back, the team wins, and he’s the hero for the night. Ron deferrs to Kobe, Kobe deferrs to Phil Jackson, Phil deferrs to Mitch Kupchak, Mitch deferrs to Jerry Buss. As a result, you have a championship team.
Just a random thought on this beautiful evening as the Sun gives way to the Moon. It’s nature. We all get our chance to shine if we wait our turn.
