Kobe Made Me Quit My Job (right before COVID)

I first saw the news on Facebook. I didn’t believe it. It was from a news source I had never heard of and, more importantly, it couldn’t be true.

Then the YouTube spiral. I watched video after video of athletes and sportscasters reacting to the news. First their incredulity. Then shock. Then tears. Right there, on national television, the tears.

It was a Sunday, and I was supposed to do some work for a local gym that I had been helping out on the side while working at MassMutual. I called the gym owner that late afternoon, asked if he had heard the news, and explained that I just didn’t have it in me today.

I revisited the YouTube spiral a few times over the next week or two. More people crying on air. Jerry West. Shaq. “Girl dad”. An incredible outpouring of grief and admiration in the comments. Oof.

Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna, who both died in a helicopter crash in January.

One week after Kobe’s death, I gave MassMutual my notice.

Kobe’s legacy is utter dedication. He lived basketball. It was his entire focus. He worked insanely hard on his craft. I don’t mean the hyperbolic way we often use the word “insane”. Kobe’s work ethic actually bordered on insanity. On the day he died, commentator Jay Williams told a perfect story. Williams was a rookie about to play the Lakers that night. He went into the gym early to take a bunch of jump…