Game changers are the worst
Many people could barely handle even watching “The Last Dance”, a documentary on the Chicago Bulls dynasty with Michael Jordan. If you dreamed of being on a winning team like the Chicago Bulls in the 90s, sooner or later you would conclude that it would be hard to handle. In doing some research, I’ve noticed that the highest performers and most capable players are not automatically friendly or nice with others. This comes from a drive within themselves that isn’t derived from nice feelings; they tend to build a tension within themselves that drives their outward performance. Most of us have settled to get ourselves to a comfortable place. What goes on inside the minds of most ‘settlers’ is goal-setting, not the angst of a tension-building competitor.
From what I’ve gathered from my research, people like Michael Jordan, Winston Churchill, Tom Brady, and Steve Jobs are seen as intense, often rude, and hard to deal with people. It’s only in retrospect that people see them as legendary geniuses. Forward-thinkers are often seen as "the worst". Our ideals of making a difference or doing something remarkable can be a picture painted in the most peaceful way. We often have dreams surrounded by this soft glow, so it’s no wonder when the reality of what it takes to move things forward ends up being more like a harsh light, one that the average person is unable to handle. They quit, they whine, and they throw shade.
Another observation is that these forward thinkers didn’t have a lot of people around them because they were so mission-driven. They both needed and didn’t need people, if that makes sense. They had their own internal drive that they found different ways to fuel. Because they weren’t people-driven, but self-driven, they could have a low tolerance towards others. That might be part of why people don’t always get the best vibes from them; they are so vision-focused that people feel secondary.
I don’t write this for the insensitive, unaverage, champion-level forward thinker. I am writing this to the people who might want to be a part of greatness, but who may not be mentally prepared for what they might find. The average individual has a strength in being more people-sensitive and caring inwardly about what they do—that is a good thing. They are that necessary heart that an intense forward-thinker needs in their orbit. I don’t want to suggest that average, caring people are not forward-thinking. I believe they are. It’s just the radical game-changers that have slightly different characteristics that make them who they are. And I don’t want to excuse the rude and harsh behavior that often stings the people who are a part of the journey with them. They should do better and be better to others. I just want to provide an understanding that game-changing forward-thinkers can be detrimental for your self-esteem but the best thing to happen to a sport or enterprise that you have had the privilege to be a part of.