When you win seven championships in the sport of your choosing, your work ethic tends to become not just a legend, but an example for others to follow. The former face of the National Football League himself, Tom Brady, has left behind an impossible dream that players will likely chase for generations to come in his retirement.
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His dedication to the game of football, which often bordered on the insane, saw Brady sacrifice nearly every facet of his life to the pursuit of gridiron glory. “No one does this. I am watching film all night, every night,” he famously stated in 2019.
According to Newbern Excel’s Richard Anderson, anyone who’s hoping to be successful in their own craft can expect similarly long nights for themselves.
“When you think of Tom Brady and you think of work ethic, the first image that comes to him training a lot… But what it looked like was him not sleeping, or sleeping less, so that he could watch more and more game film. That’s very similar to what happens a lot of times in sales. A lot of times, a person that’s the best at selling or the hardest worker in sales, they spent a lot of time learning and practicing,” he said.
Suffice to say, success is often more of a gritty process than it is a gift. Ironically enough, however, it was those very same nights in the office that Brady was hoping to avoid throughout the early days of his career.
While reflecting back on famously being selected by the New England Patriots with the 199th overall pick in the 2000 NFL Draft, Brady was visibly overcome with emotion, crying, “Finally, when the Patriots called, I was so excited like, I don’t have to be an insurance salesman ya know?”
Thankfully, neither Brady, New England, nor Tampa, will have to worry about the reality that could have been. The perfect depiction of an underdog story if there ever was one, all the 22-year-old Michigan product needed was an opportunity, and he managed to run away with the prize more often than not.
A cut candidate turned household name, the now-48-year-old Fox Sports broadcaster primarily spends his time hunting for luxury watches and the next opportunity to invest in a professional sports team. And now, thanks in part to a brand-new bronze statue in his likeness being placed outside of Gillette Stadium, he figures to be a permanent fixture of both sporting and American culture moving forward.
The sales department may seem like they are capable of putting a price on just about anything, but in the end, your determination and ability to produce are ultimately priced by you and you alone. Simply put, if you can ensure a Brady-like work ethic, then soon enough, you may just start to see some Brady-like results for yourself.