Psychology of a Winner

Tom Brady: I didn't have an easy experience. I didn't come in as a top-rated recruit, nor did I come in with the opportunity to play right away. I had to earn it, and I appreciate it. I'm nowhere else, I'm in the present. It's probably the best part about my life, to be in the present. You talk about how do you enjoy your life, how do you find balance. Right, it's to live in the present. You play to live like a kid, like why do kids have so much fun? Because they just care about what they're doing.

Kobe Bryant: It's a matter of what's important to you, and what's important to you, for whatever reason. You know, I felt like I didn't feel good about myself if I wasn't doing everything I could to be the best version of myself. If I felt like I left anything on the table, it would eat away at me. I wouldn't be able to look myself in the mirror. Right, so the reason why I can retire now and be completely comfortable about it, because I know that I've done everything I could to be the best basketball player I could be. And so that's where it comes from for me. You can't leave any stone unturned.

Lewis Hamilton: The drive, I just, I change, I improve all the time through experiences. Not race by race, not just race by race, but in life, you know. I'm always taking all these different experiences, positive or negative, extracting the best bits out of them, learning, becoming older and wiser. I think I'm quite wise for my age. I think I still got a long way to go, but then when it comes to driving, I just, I excel. I push beyond limits. When I'm training, I go beyond the pain barriers. I just do everything I can to make sure that when I arrive at the racetrack, I've already got two or three tenths on the other guys.

Michael Phelps: I think of myself as the greatest person that I can be. That's it. I'm not gonna go out on the limb and say I'm the greatest this or that. I was a kid with a dream. That's it. And the people before me set the bar so high, and I was a little kid that wasn't afraid to dream as big as I could. And that's really it. I, like you said, was dedicated, hardworking, and that put me in the shoes where I am now.

Serena Williams: I have to tell each and every one of you that it doesn't matter how old you are, how young you are, your age. You can achieve anything that you set your mind to. And I always say, if I can do it, anyone can do it. And the reason that I always say that is because I didn't grow up with things being handed to me. I had to work hard, I had to dedicate myself, and I had to be determined. And I was even outside a sport. It could be education, it could be business, it could be anything. It requires discipline and hard work and determination, most importantly, it requires self-belief because, like me, some people might not believe in you, but you have to believe in you. And sometimes you're going to be your own cheerleader, and you have to be your biggest and your best cheerleader. So to all you young athletes, take that to heart and never stop believing in yourself, and really always support who you are. This thing you're doing it for yourself. You're not doing it for anybody else. Yes, your family supports you, yes, your friends