Being ambitious means my brain is almost always moving fast. I’m constantly thinking of new ideas, new projects, or better ways to do the things I’m already doing. On one level, that’s a huge advantage. It keeps me creative and motivated, and it helps me build systems that stack on top of each other. But on another level, it can be a real problem.
The hardest part is knowing what’s actually worth my time. When your mind moves quickly, it’s easy to go deep into something that feels productive in the moment but doesn’t really connect to your bigger goals. Sometimes it’s work-related, sometimes it’s something completely random I see online, and before I know it, an hour or two is gone. That’s how you end up moving really fast without actually going anywhere.
I like to think of it as going 20 miles an hour in the right direction versus 100 miles an hour in the wrong one. Speed doesn’t matter much if you’re off course. For me, that shows up not just in work, but in training too.
Today at the gym, I had a slight flare-up in my patellar tendon, right below my kneecap. Since I’m a professional dunker, knee health is everything. I had to decide whether to push through like I did last week or slow things down and do only what my body could handle. I chose to take it easy so I’d be ready for an upcoming dunk show. The day before, I didn’t make that choice, and progressing too quickly during warmups is probably what put me in this spot.
That training example feels like a perfect parallel to work and building long-term projects. If you push too hard or chase too many things at once, you can end up taking steps backward instead of forward. Over time, I’ve started noticing how many lessons from training apply directly to building a personal brand, running companies, and managing focus.
The goal isn’t to stop thinking creatively or coming up with new ideas. It’s to recognize when something stops being aligned with what you actually want to build. Being able to pull yourself out of those moments matters just as much as having the ideas in the first place.
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