Muhammad Ali Shows Us a Version of Ourselves That We Wish We Could be

As I scroll through the internet today, there’s only one subject that people are talking about; The death of boxer, Muhammad Ali.

Some of the things he said were inspirational, others were hilarious, most were the perfect combination of both.

It’s got me wondering what makes someone like Ali live on in the minds of people long after his days of boxing success, and what we can learn from him.

It’s more than a black and white picture of the man himself with a quote in capital letters over the top. It’s what he represents. As a culture today, we are afraid to be great.

We all have heard the speech by Marianne Williamson, which has often been wrongly attributed to Nelson Mandela, that begins by saying, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate, Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.” If you haven’t heard this before, watch this video from the movie, ‘Coach Carter’.

We are afraid to stand out from the crowd. Our natural instincts tell us that not being part of the crowd is a bad thing. 1000’s of years ago, the crowd was a safe place, and being on your own could mean being eaten by a lion. Today’s version of being lion-food is perhaps having a few people talk behind your back, giving back-handed compliments.

Ali exemplified and embraced standing out from the crowd. He didn’t care if people thought he was cocky, arrogant or had delusional self-belief.

We see in Ali and version of ourselves that we wish we could be. When we’re good at something, deep down, we want everyone to know it. We wish we could say, “That’s my talent, and I’m awesome at it.” Instead we cover it up with false modesty. It doesn’t serve anyone. If you’re good at something, you should be recognised for it. Not only because it’s encouraging and well-deserved, but also because others can benefit from learning from you.

Its also sad to think that modesty has stopped so many from doing what they were truly great at or potentially truly great at. Wouldn’t the world be a better place if everyone was in the position they were best at?

Of course at the time, Ali received the backlash from spectators. The nail that sticks out gets hammered, after all. But as he started to prove himself, people started to see what he was talking about. He became a beacon of hope. And years later, remains that way.

His death can remind us that we too, can be great. For us, it may not be about going around telling everyone we are the best. It may mean putting ourselves in a position to be seen doing what we’re good at. It may mean accepting a compliment instead of brushing it off. It may mean telling yourself and believing that you can be better. Or it may be dedicating yourself to that one thing you know you can be great at, and becoming The Greatest.