Mental Pivot #60: Mind the Fundamentals

Kobe Bryant, an out-of-tune guitar, and obsessing over the basics, the Gambler’s Fallacy, and an effective content discovery tool.

There is no magic pill. There are no shortcuts. There are only reps, reps, reps.

—Arnold Schwarzenegger

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This week, I’ve got two stories to share with you. One is about a failure to learn the fundamentals. The other is about an obsession with them.

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In the summer of 1991, I worked at a music store in Hawaii called “The House of Music.” The store was in the middle of Honolulu’s largest shopping mall, the Ala Moana Center, adjacent to a performance stage known as “Centerstage” where local musicians, bands, ensembles, and hula groups would perform regularly.

The House of Music sold recorded music as well as sheet music and musical instruments (mostly guitars and ukuleles). I was proficient on the cello, ukulele, guitar, and piano, so I was frequently assigned to the instrument department.

One evening, a trio of out-of-breath rockers, ran up to the counter where I was working.

I knew they were musicians because—in addition to the requisite big hair—one of them was holding an electric guitar, another had a bass slung over his shoulder, and the last one clutched a pair of drum sticks. They weren’t kids; they looked to be a good 5-10 years older than me.

“How can I help you guys?” I opened with my practiced customer-service voice.

“We’re playing Centerstage in 15 minutes,” said the guitarist. He looked anxious. He placed his Fender Stratocaster on the counter.

“You need new strings?” I asked.

“No,” he said sheepishly. “Can you tune my instrument?”

That was an odd request. I’ve tuned my share of instruments for others, but never in this circumstance. My face must have betrayed my puzzlement.

“I…uh…can’t tune it myself,” he clarified.

“Ok, no problem,” I said, still perplexed. I grabbed the A440 tuning fork we kept behind the counter and picked up his guitar.

“Standard tuning?” I asked. He stared back blankly. “Never mind,” I assured him, “I’ll just do it the normal way.”

As soon as I started on his guitar, the bassist leaned over the counter and gestured to get my attention: “Hey man, can you do mine next?”

I nodded, but what I really wanted to tell them was that if they couldn’t tune their own instruments, they had no business going onstage in front of a live audience.

Tuning is one of the most basic skills you learn when playing a stringed instrument. So much so, that it’s literally the first thing one does before practicing, before starting a lesson, before working with an ensemble, and certainly before (and often repeatedly during) a performance. Tuning is more than just making sure the instrument sounds right, it’s about accuracy, intonation, and listening. These aren’t trivialities, they’re core aspects of making good music.

How can you play well if you haven’t practiced and developed the fundamentals? I’m not saying you need to have mastered the skill, but at the very least you should cultivate some comfort and fluency with something so basic and essential.

I remember being annoyed at the thought of this, and immediately concluded that these guys must not be very good.

I handed back the guitar and then the bass. The band thanked me profusely and ran straight back out the shop to go play their set. I could only shake my head and chuckle to myself at the absurdity of the exchange.

Half an hour later, during a lull in business, I took my break and headed outside. I went over to the Centerstage, where the band was playing, to give a listen.

Unsurprisingly, as the tepid audience was discovering, they weren’t any good.

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If ignorance of the fundamentals are a sign of mediocrity, does it follow that an obsession with them signals excellence? That’s one takeaway from the following story recounted by Allen Stein Jr.

Stein is a high-performance coach who has worked with the best basketball players on the planet, including Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, and Kobe Bryant.

In 2007, Stein was invited to attend the inaugural Kobe Bryant Skills Academy as an observer (the event was a 3-day training camp for top high school and collegiate basketball players). During that trip, an encounter with Kobe left an indelible impression on Stein and reminded him of the importance of the fundamentals and high-performance success.

Here’s Stein’s account from his book, Raise Your Game:

Few would argue at that time, Kobe was the best player in the game. Jordan was the past, LeBron was the future, and Kobe was the guy. There had been urban legends about what his workouts entailed. Word around our circles was that Kobe used to call them ‘blackouts’ instead of workouts.

Since I was staff and might never again get the chance, I asked Kobe if I could watch him work out. That’s how it is in my business. Everyone can see the game, but to really learn the secrets, you have to watch the practice.

“Sure,” Kobe said. “I’m going tomorrow at four.”

“But don’t we have a camp session at three thirty tomorrow afternoon?” I reminded him.

“I know,” he replied, “I’m working out at four a.m.”

Okay then. I figured if I was going to be there anyway, I might as well try and impress Kobe…So I planned to beat him to the gym…

I got to the gym around 3:30 am., so of course, it was pitch black outside. But as soon as I stepped out of the cab, I could see the gym light was already on. And I even heard a ball bouncing and sneakers squeaking. I quietly walked in the side door, and Kobe was already in a full sweat. He was going through an intense warm-up before the real workout started. I grabbed a seat, didn’t say a word to him or his trainer, and just watched.

For forty-five minutes I was shocked. For forty-five minutes I watched the best player in the world do the most basic drills.

I watched the best player on the planet do basic ball-handling drills. I watched the best player on the planet do basic footwork. I watched the best player on the planet do basic offensive moves.

Granted, he did everything with surgical precision and superhero intensity, but the stuff he was doing was so simple. I couldn’t believe it.

Later that day I went over to him. “Thanks again,” I said. “I really enjoyed watching your workout this morning.”

“No problem,” Kobe replied.

Then I hesitated, not wanting to sound rude—or worse—condescending. “You’re the best player in the world. Why do such basic stuff?”

He flashed that gleaming smile of his. “Why do you think I’m the best player in the game?” he asked. “Because I never get bored with the basics.”

Shoutout to the awesome Josh Spector whose blog first introduced me to Alan Stein’s story.

Now onto this week's recommendations…

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Thinking Tools:

• 7 Mental Models for Problem-Solving to Avoid Catastrophic Mess: Ivaylo Durmonski shares his favorite cognitive shortcuts.

• Doing the Work: Monica Dinculescu writes about the periodic discouragement in developing a new skill, setting realistic expectations, and avoiding the trap of social comparison.

• The Five Levels of Hype: Johannes Klingebiel’s proposes a categorization scheme for exuberance (particularly when it comes to marketing new technologies). Yes, hype invites skepticism and scorn, but it can also foster a shared vision about the future.

• Gambler’s Fallacy and the Regression to the Mean: Steven Novella reminds us that we are pattern-seeking creatures—often to our detriment.

• Plan, Do, Learn: Channing Allen (founder of the popular Indie Hackers online community) explains how he “nests” his plan-do-learn loops across five different timeframes: months, weeks, days, sessions, and cycles (5-30 minute blocks of time). It’s his model for coordinating small actions into long term progress.

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Reading Enrichment:

• E.O. Wilson Saw the World in a Wholly New Way: “Variation/selection/replication processes are taking place all around us at different time scales, including genetic evolution, cultural evolution, and intra-generational personal evolution.”

• How Hobbies Infiltrated American Life: Julie Beck examines the obsession with “productive leisure”: “The anxieties of capitalism are not confined to the workplace. They have a long history of leaking into our free time.”

• Ideas Want to Be Shared: Kevin Kelly (founding editor, Wired) argues that the default framework for intellectual property should be public domain and fair use. IP ownership and monopolies should be the exception and granted temporary windows of exclusivity. He sees this as they key to reinvigorating present-day innovation.

• Lessons from a Flawed Genius: Philosopher Julian Baggini’s brief overview of David Hume and the enduring relevance of his ideas. It’s a sampling from Baggini’s latest book, The Great Guide: What David Hume Can Teach Us about Being Human and Living Well.

• Where Is Today’s Beethoven?: Holden Karnovsky ponders the case of “innovation stagnation.” Why are the exemplars of certain disciplines found in the past (e.g., Darwin, Shakespeare, Plato, and Beethoven)? It’s an interesting question, despite the unsatisfying analysis.

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Odds & Ends:

• Refind is an excellent content discovery tool that sends curated articles to your email inbox or via mobile app (iOS and Android). Users can customize their feed based on topic (e.g., history, blockchain, mindfulness), publication, and recommendations from thought leaders. It’s a cross between a personalized newsletter, curated RSS feed aggregator, and recommendation engine. The service is free to use, but those desiring extra bells and whistles can sign up for a premium-tier subscription.

• Learn Your Philosophical Beliefs is an interactive quiz that helps you understand your personal beliefs vis a vis philosophers and other quiz participants. Do you believe that abstract objects exist? What about beauty, is it entirely subjective? As you answer each question, you can a read a description about the competing schools of thought and observe the pattern that there’s always support for any given position.

• Every Pair of Sunglasses in The Matrix Movies, Ranked: It doesn’t get more trivial than this, but as a fan of the film series, I approve.

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