Mindset Monday: Kobe Bryant, Time, and the Truth About Greatness

Every now and then, you come across a clip that hits you in the chest. The other day I posted a Kobe Bryant interview where he talked about why he trained so early in the morning — and his reasoning was painfully simple:

If he got up at 3:00 a.m., he could get his first workout in at 4:00.
Recover, rest, eat.
Train again mid-morning.
Recover.
Train again later in the day.

While most players were waking up at 8 or 9, Kobe had already put in what most athletes call a full day. He wasn’t handed more talent — he stole more hours from the day.

He wasn’t magically gifted with more talent or advantages. He simply created more time to get better.

And that’s a lesson I think a lot of today’s young athletes desperately need to hear.

We are living in the busiest youth-sports era in history. There is lacrosse available every single weekend, year-round, often on multiple teams, with camps, clinics, tryouts, showcases, travel, and more. Families have so many options they don’t even know what to pick anymore.

But here’s the crazy part:

When you have everything available all the time, you stop valuing it.

I remember growing up and getting one season of lacrosse.
That was it.
No fall ball.
No winter indoor.
No spring/summer/travel/everything.

That single spring season was everything to me. I waited for it. I counted down to it. I felt the anxiety of excitement. And because it meant so much, I spent hours on my own passing off the wall, shooting in my yard, and trying to squeeze every ounce of improvement out of the little time I had.

Today’s athlete has the opposite problem:

So much lacrosse that none of it feels special.

And with constant tournaments, games, and team practices… kids now genuinely feel like they don’t have time to train on their own.

When I talk to athletes in my mentorships or kids who come to the field after school, I always ask:

I usually get the standard, rehearsed answers:

“Um… a couple times a week.”
“Yeah, I practice in the backyard sometimes.”
“I shoot… like… an hour on weekends.”

And then comes the embellishment, usually unintentional.
But here’s the truth — I can tell.
A coach can always tell who trains and who doesn’t.

Most kids are busy.
Most kids are overscheduled.
Most kids feel like they’re doing enough.

And most kids — even the talented ones — get left behind because they never learn how to create time the way great athletes do.

This is where good players separate from great players.

Great players are curious. They are obsessed. They’re constantly asking:

They understand what Kobe understood:

Volume creates greatness.

Not hype.
Not games.
Not tournaments.
Not being “busy.”

Volume.
Work.
Routines.
Consistency.

Many kids today aren’t lacking the desire to be great — they’re lacking the space to become great.

They play on two travel teams.
They play another sport.
They do piano to look good on a resume.
They have school commitments.
They have social commitments.
Parents want them well-rounded.

Before you know it, the kid who “wants to play college lacrosse” is training… maybe… two times a week outside practice, if that.

And then they wonder why they plateau.

At a young age, you don’t need to specialize in one sport — but you do need to understand your purpose.

You need one thing in your life that grounds you. One thing that teaches you discipline. One thing that forces you into discomfort, consistency, and personal growth.

For some kids, that’s lacrosse.

Not because lacrosse defines them — but because it becomes the tool that shapes their personality.

When a kid decides, “I’m going to shoot every day,” they start learning life skills long before they realize they’re learning them:

Those reps don’t just make them a better shooter.

They build confidence.
They build discipline.
They build self-worth.
They build belief in themselves.

They build a young adult who knows how to attack goals.

That’s the purpose.
That’s the win.
That’s the point of all of this.

As parents, we walk a fine line.

We want to give our kids opportunities.
We want them to be exposed to things.
We want them to enjoy sports.
We want to help them find their passion.

But sometimes the best thing we can give them…
is space.

Space to train.
Space to get bored.
Space to try.
Space to fail.
Space to practice deeply instead of bouncing from one activity to the next.

We don’t need Little Johnny on four different travel teams.
We need him in the backyard, with a stick in his hands, learning how to compete with himself.

And the best way to start those habits?

Talk to them about mindset. Talk about greatness. Show them what the great ones actually do.

Kids don’t know that Kobe Bryant took 250 shots before games.
Kids don’t know that Paul Rabel recommends 100 shots a day… and Kobe did more than double that just warming up.

Kids don’t know how much volume greatness demands.

They need to know it's okay to be locked in.

They need to know it’s okay to be obsessed.

They need to know they’re allowed to chase something at a high level.

If you’re an athlete reading this… or a parent of an athlete… and you’re wondering:

How much training is enough?
How much should I be doing?
What’s normal vs. what’s required for greatness?

This is literally what I help athletes map out every single day.

If you want help figuring out the right amount of volume, how to structure your week, or what “Kobe-level” training looks like for a young lacrosse player — reply to this email or shoot me a message.

I can help you build it.

Because at the end of the day, the difference between average players and great ones often comes down to one thing:

They both have 24 hours.
Great ones build more hours inside the same day.

Just like Kobe.

From the desk of,

Elliott Bender