This may be the most controversial post I make in 2021

Do you have those tomatoes ready to hurl at me? Get ready…

I really admire Tom Brady.

Look, it’s not because he’s the winningest winner that ever winned. And definitely not because some people think he’s super handsome (personally, I don’t see it 🤥). 

It’s because he was never supposed to be this good.

The million-dollar idea fallacy

I was on a snowy walk with my kids this weekend, and once again one of them (my youngest, Kai) shared another one of his brilliant ideas (his words). I always do two things when this happens. First, I weighed in on how great I thought the idea was. That’s me being the dad he needs right now. 

Then, I switched hats and became the dad he needs in the future. I told him that, while a great idea like his is important, at the end of the day, there are no great ideas unless he’s willing to put the hard work in to bring them to reality.

199th pick

Tom Brady was the 199th drafted player in the 2000 NFL draft. The smartest people in the NFL thought 198 players that year were more valuable than him. And here we sit, 21 years later, with Tom Brady having won seven Super Bowls in ten appearances. 

Since he joined the league, he’s never had a losing season, is the NFL leader in QB wins, regular-season touchdowns, and career touchdowns. Oh, and those seven Super Bowls are two more than anyone else, and three more than any other quarterback. (Ever hear of Joe Montana? He won a measly four Super Bowls.)

So just how did he do that, when he was deemed less talented than 198 players the year he joined the league? By being the most talented? No way. The strongest or the fastest? Not by a long shot (you’ve seen him run, right?). By being the handsomest? Stop it already with that.

He dominated the league by doing what everyone who achieves their goals does:

Through uncompromising discipline and a relentless pursuit of the goal. 

In other words, EFFORT.

Every ‘overnight success’ was years and years in the making. Years of persistently doing the hard things that are necessary to find your way to success. I believe we can all accomplish our dreams, it just depends on how hard we’re willing to work, and for how long.