I was thinking a lot while watching ‘The Last Dance‘, I began reflecting on my own life/ lives in general and realised I wanted to share these thoughts on a post.
Michael Jordan is phenomenal. #GOAT
But Michael Jordan probably wouldn’t be Michael Jordan if there was no Scottie Pippen. If Pippen had the same mindset as Jordan and decided to go play for another team so the spotlight could be on him as the star player, then the Bulls wouldn’t have achieved the amount of success they did. He played the necessary role to lead the team to success, regardless of if he got the credit he deserved or not.
(I’m speaking general here).
As for Dennis Rodman, he knew his wants and needs but most importantly, he knew what he needed to do off the court in order to be at his best self during games.
Basketball aside…
I think it’s important to realise, we aren’t all meant to be Michael Jordan’s in our field of excellence. Sometimes, we are the Pippen’s to the Jordan’s – and this is what truly makes us happy.
We can all be MJ – if that’s who we desire to be. Or we can be Scottie, because that’s what’s going to fulfil us. If you want to be a Dennis Rodman because that’s what helps you live your best life – you should.
MJ and Dennis’ character really got me thinking.
There were moments I’d think MJ was arrogant or a bit much. But at the end of the day, that’s who he was and he delivered time and time again. There was one line he said in one of the episodes where he said “I’m not asking anything of them that I haven’t put myself through”. He was entitled to behaving with a sense of superiority. I believe he could’ve toned it down a notch but hey, his insensitivity in certain scenes really has no impact on my life so who cares #nahmean.
Now… Dennis Rodman. This guy has gotta be one of the most entertaining characters out. I loved watching every moment of him. Regardless of what anyone said about him, he gave zero fucks. His antics were amusing (probably not for the team at the time) but he pulled his weight for every game, stepped into the role and thrived. It doesn’t matter that he gave zero fucks because he knew himself and didn’t fall short or let anyone down when it was game time.
Now… life as we know it today.
Hypothetically speaking..
There’s no point aiming to be Michael Jordan if you’ve never picked up a basketball. There’s no point thinking you’re the next Michael Jordan if you feel bad every time you tell someone to step their game up. Even if you work in a completely different field – you have the potential to be the Jordan of that field. However, you need to know if it feels right – because no matter how good you are at what you do, if you don’t know yourself properly, you may even be in the MJ role, to later find you’re unhappy and not satisfied.
Sometimes, your purpose in life might actually be acting as the Pippen’s to the Jordan’s – and that’s what makes them feel their very best.
For others, you might be a Dennis Rodman. If that’s the case, I hope you make the very most of it.
In order to achieve your greatest accomplishments – the internal satisfaction – you need to be true to who you are.
Live your best life – given you’re fulfilling responsibilities, and your actions aren’t detrimental on the team’s success. (e.g. your ‘team’ could be your partner/ family/ friendship/ children etc).
Don’t be the person who’s out here having Dennis Rodman’s benders; perhaps even failing to even show up at games, then expect to be admired or respected as Michael Jordan when you haven’t even acknowledged the Scottie Pippen’s in your life.
Before I finish, there’s one more type of person I want to discuss.
If you’ve seen the last episode… that Utah supporter in the crowd. LOL. If you’ve seen it, you know who I’m referring to. There are so many people like that in life – mouthing off from the sidelines. Imagine if each time she said something, one of the players decided to start yelling back. They’d lose focus of the game right? So disregard these naysayers in life.
At the end of the day, people say what they want because they can. If someone had to pay $50 every time they gave their negative opinion about you, they’d probably think twice before they said anything at all. Talk is cheap. If she had to stand in Jordan’s position for two seconds, she’d probably miss the jumpshot.
As annoying as she was to watch for the two seconds she appeared (pretty sure she appeared twice lol) – her behaviour is viable during a basketball game. Try not yell out bullshit in real life… or at least buy a ticket first. Nah but seriously… know your impact on others.
More importantly, don’t let naysayers distract you or make you take your eyes off the ball.
Know which role you’re meant for and make the very most of it.
Inner Truth Gym 