Competitive Mindset: Why Doing What Everyone Else Does Keeps You Average

Want to make your competitive mindset a career advantage? Then stop doing what everyone else does.

Former UNC coach Roy Williams once shared a story about Michael Jordan’s freshman year—and it holds the secret to performance leadership: control the controllables and outwork everyone, even when no one is watching.

Williams was then an assistant-coach on the legendary Dean Smith’s coaching staff. One of his roles was off-season training, so when the summer workouts started, Williams decided he was going to physically try to break the players.

He wanted to make it so hard on them that guys would puke or quit. In his words, an "a&@&" to make them stronger throughout the season than any opponent they had.

During one of the practices, Williams and then freshman Michael Jordan have a conversation and Jordan shares that he “wants to be the greatest player in UNC history” when he graduates.

“That’s quite a list,” Williams told the 18-year-old. “You’re going to have to work hard and from what I’ve seen of you in high school, you don’t work that hard.”

Incensed, Jordan defiantly responded, “I worked as hard as everyone else on my team!”

“That’s right. You did work as hard as everyone else on your high school team. But you said you want to be the greatest player in North Carolina history – which means you have to work harder than anyone who has ever played here.”

Jordan’s demeanor changed as he understood both the challenge his coach laid before him and the opportunity, knowing that how hard he worked was 100% within his control.

Years later, I heard Tyron Lue share of the time he was first introduced to Jordan’s legendary work ethic. Having spent his first three years with the Los Angeles Lakers around Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal, Lue felt he was a hard worker.

He had won two NBA titles with the Lakers and confident as he signed with the Washington Wizards in 2001 – the same Washington Wizards team that a 38-year-old Michael Jordan had given up retirement to join.

Here is the greatest player of all-time, past his prime, and coming out of retirement to play again – and as Lue told, outworked everyone.

“I thought I knew what it meant to work hard until I saw him.”

Jordan had immense talent, but it was two things 100% within his control – his competitive drive and work ethic – that set him apart.

The lesson that Coach Williams taught 18-year-old Jordan is the same lesson that leaders must embrace today.

Doing what everyone else does doesn’t make you impactful. It makes you average..

And average doesn't inspire better. Being uncommon does.

To have greater influence within your team, you have to do things that other leaders aren’t willing to do. Things that may seem common sense, but aren’t common practice today, like getting to know your people, giving both frequent positive and productive feedback, holding yourself to a higher standard than you do even them.

It’s the uncommon choices that other’s don’t see us make consistently that create the extra edge others see us have.

Adopting a competitive mindset means asking more of yourself than anyone else will. This week, where can you raise your standard? What’s one leadership habit you can control and improve?