Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on Leadership
Leadership, passion, perspective, and grace in the face of competition.
This week I was touched by an essay by basketball legend
that showed leadership, passion, perspective, and grace in the face of a competitive situation that sparked ego, jealousy and selfishness by some.
In “What I Think About LeBron Breaking My NBA Scoring Record” (https://lnkd.in/eqNbuPrS), Kareem explains how watching Lebron James eclipse his all-time great achievement was a joy, not a source of envy or distain.
Here’s the full quote,
“I’m 75. The only time I ever think of the record is when someone brings it up. I retired from the NBA 34 years ago. For the past 20 years, I’ve occupied myself with social activism, my writing career, and my family—especially my three grandchildren. If I had a choice of having my scoring record remain intact for another hundred years or spend one afternoon with my grandchildren, I’d be on the floor in seconds stacking Legos and eating Uncrustables.
Sorry, Earvin. I love you, brother, but this time you got it wrong. I’m not the grumpy grandpa on the porch yelling at kids to stay off my lawn. I fret much more over picking the right word in this sentence than in my record being broken.”
Read the full article here: “What I Think About LeBron Breaking My NBA Scoring Record”: https://lnkd.in/eqNbuPrS
Huge respect for Kareem. He is more than a leader... he is a wise Elder. This is how big our hearts and minds should be.