Kobe Bryant was one of my favorite basketball players to watch of all time. His competitiveness, IQ for the game, incredible athleticism, and nonstop motor are just a few of the reasons why he’s considered one of the greats. Recently I came across a clip from a well-known basketball performance coach, Alan Stein Jr., reflecting on the first time he got to see a Kobe Bryant practice.

The practice started at 4am but to try to show Kobe that he was serious about watching and learning from his workout, Alan showed up at 3:30 only to find Kobe in the middle of a pre-workout drenched in sweat. After what looked like a grueling pre-workout had ended, his workout with his trainer started. What Alan saw in that workout was a huge surprise. For the first 45 minutes Alan watched as arguably the best basketball player in the world at the time (2007) spent all his time doing the most basic moves in basketball. Jab step, crossover, step-through, and other simple movements repeatedly. While they were the most basic moves even my 10-year-old would be working on, every move was done with incredible precision, focus, and intensity.

Later that day Alan’s curiosity got the best of him and he asked Kobe, you’re the greatest player in the world so why are you doing basic moves? Kobe responded by asking a question back, why do you think I’m the best player in the world? It’s because I never get bored with the basics.

Here’s one of the greatest players of all time that could go into a gym and put on an incredible dunk show, hit shots from 30 feet out, show off a combination of moves that would make any defender fall to the ground but where is his focus? It’s on the basics. The little details of each step, angle, ball positioning, eye placement, and any other precision point that will make guarding him a nightmare. His focus of perfecting the basics was continuing to build a foundation for him to maximize his effectiveness on the court with every single movement he made.

It’s our human behavior to think that once I have something basic executed, I’m ready to move on to the next thing. Admittedly I sometimes sway to this way of thinking when it comes to my growth. I feel good with the basics now it’s time to dedicate energy and effort to the next level of complexity. But Kobe shows us one of countless examples of how the importance of the basics never goes away. Basics build foundation and the only way to grow high is to make sure that foundation is consistently worked on and strengthened.

I see it in our health and wellness journey all the time. Just take a few minutes to search gym workouts and you’ll see some crazy ideas out there. Don’t get me wrong – challenging ourselves with new movements can be a great thing. But this will never take away the importance of how critical perfecting the basics of working out is. All these complex movements we may see as workout ideas are rooted in the most basic movements of squatting, pressing, pushing, etc. Ignoring the importance of investing consistent time and energy to work the basic movements brings us some of the greatest risk of failing with the more complex movements. The basics of working out build the foundation and this foundation must continue to be strengthened if we’re to grow higher.

In our career growth, the theme remains the same that consistent investment in the basics is essential. Building relationships, staying curious, asking good questions, bringing a team mindset, staying collaborative, and many more represent the most basic foundational pieces of a successful career. The importance of these foundational pieces of success will not suddenly disappear when you reach a certain career level. The basics of growing your career must continue to be invested in no matter what stage of your journey. Consistently investing time in perfecting the basics strengthens the foundation we need to grow higher.

The basics aren’t glamorous. The basics aren’t what causes you to gain a million followers or jump the career latter with one amazing moment.

The basics provide the foundation. Investing time strengthening this foundation allows us to grow higher in a sustainable way. The importance of this foundation will never go away so we must embrace the need for consistency investing time and energy into the basics so that the foundation we build is for the heights we deserve to reach in life. Basics may be boring, but they lead to the breakthroughs we need for our authentic greatness.

Take your step: take time to reflect on an area you’ve become accustomed to bypassing time investing in the basics. What would it look like if you invested more time in the basics? What are activities you see as basic that you can start incorporating on a more consistent basis? Think through small adjustments you can make to invest in your foundation through the basics to continue to strengthen your foundation.