“The greatness within is why we are alive.”

“How can we move from bracing for failure to waiting for fulfillment?

Is there any other question as significant for our performance or our happiness?

I’ve been around greatness all my life. I roomed with basketball great Dr. J (Julius Erving) in college, and I’ve worked with the elite of elite athletes, including Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Kobe Bryant, and Shaquille O’Neal. There is no doubt these athletes were tremendously gifted, loaded with talent. But what I’ve learned from my association with them is that natural ability wasn’t what made them great. What made them so exceptional was that they were what I call unlocked—they were in close touch with that a part of themselves that was most truly who they were. That is what allowed them to develop their potential in the way they did.

Greatness can be discovered in each and every one of us. It’s not just the Kobes of the world; I’ve seen that greatness emerge in men convicted of murder serving consecutive life sentences in prison. This potential is not a euphemistic, feel-good fantasy. It is real and tangible and attainable for all.

I know this from working with everyone from elite athletes and powerful CEOs to those pushed to the margins of society. I also know this from the arc of my own life. I’m almost forty years into recovery from alcoholism, and heroin addiction. My life changed through prayer and meditation and through service. I dedicated myself to working with people from Yale to jail, from locker rooms to boardrooms. I know that in order to keep learning and growing and expanding, I have to teach. That’s what I’m doing in these pages.

My mission has been to help anyone in any place at any time unlock the greatness within them. The greatness within is why we are alive. It is what we have to offer the world.”

George Mumford

I agree with Mr Mumford, and am fascinated as to why, if it’s so bloody great, both for the self & society, so few folks are “Unlocked”. Why is it not the “Default Setting” for humanity?

I honestly believe that “The Greatness Within” is our “Godshard“.

And I agree with Mr Maslow that if you deliberately choose to hide your light under a bushel, the unhappiness will find you.

Photo by Anita Austvika on Unsplash