The Tom Brady Mantra for Life and Business

Here we go again.

The New England Patriots are going to their 11th Super Bowl. After defeating the number one seeded Kansas City Chiefs 37-31 by means of an epic overtime battle that I'll be telling my children about when Tom Brady is turning 58 and on his way to his 19th Super Bowl, or at least this New England homer can only hope.

Deemed the 'Evil Empire' by national media outlets and led by the duo compared to the NFL's own Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine, the Patriots, Tom Brady, and Bill Belichick are headed to their fourth Super Bowl in five years.

What is really mind blowing is Tom will soon have appeared in more Super Bowls on his own (9) than every other franchise in football, other than the Patriots (11).

Greatness.

When Brady last beat the Rams in 2002 at Super Bowl XXXVI, running back Sony Michel was 6 years old, Ram's head coach Sean McVay could not legally operate a vehicle, and tight-end Rob Gronkowski wasn’t half way through the 6th grade yet. To which Brady is unfazed.

Brady has already won more Super Bowl rings than any other quarterback with five. Belichick, with two from his stint as Giant's defensive coordinator under coach Bill Parscells, and five more as New England's head coach, has more than any other coach, and both of their legacies have long-been cemented as the all-time greats in each of their own rights. Yet here they are together again furthering their greatness.

Why can't any other franchise in the NFL even come close to replicating what is being done in the little town of Foxboro, Massachusetts?

One might think that the Patriots plan on being in this position every year. I mean, this was their 10th straight AFC championship game, how could they not plan on being here? But that is just not how business is done at Patriot Place. Whether it is an un-drafted, un-proven, rookie, or the 19 year veteran quarterback, the Patriots seem to never take the opportunity to accomplish their goal for granted. The team's mantra each week is simple: 'Do Your Job.'

Immediately, after the wild finish to the AFC Championship game and screaming to wide receiver Chris Hogan that he's 'too f***in slow,' Brady was able to harness a moment of clarity with the sideline reporter.

"How do you do it?" the reported asked. "How do you manage to stay so calm in the biggest moments?"

Tom said simply:

"Part of playing sports is just staying in the moment. You know, we always say 'one play at a time.' You can't make up for things that have happened in the past. You've just got to think about what you're going to do moving forward."

One play at a time.

That is the mantra. That is why Tom Brady, love him or hate him, has constructed a tenure that is undeniably more impactful than any other players in NFL history. Peyton Manning? Good joke. Aaron Rodgers? Laughable. Lawrence Taylor? Joe Montana? Not anymore.

In a time where it seems that other figures at the top of their world find a way to lose control and, no pun intended, fumble the handle of their greatness, Tom Brady has stayed put in New England, keeps mostly to himself, remains focused, and continues to exude greatness.

Tiger Woods couldn't stay on top. Elvis became Fat Elvis. The Beatles hated each other by 1970. Michael Jackson lost his mind, befriended child-star Macaulay Culkin, and bought giraffes, a monkey, and a full amusement park to house them in. Mike Tyson couldn't do it. Neither could Kurt Kobain, Jimi Hendrix, or Heath Ledger. Lance Armstrong tried to take the entire sport of cycling down along with him. Michael Jordan ran away from the limelight to play blackjack and minor league baseball for crying out loud. Nothing remotely close to any of this has happened to Brady.

Tom Brady's name rightfully belongs with the likes of Muhammad Ali, LeBron James, Serena Williams, Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt. Sustained greatness. You cannot tell the story of their respective sport without telling the story of these particular individuals in unison. How could one talk to their children about Olympic track without telling them who Usain Bolt was? How could they describe dominance without mentioning Phelps? How could anyone discuss greatness and not mention Thomas Edward Patrick Brady, Jr.?

This same mantra, 'one play at a time,' is observable in the greats of many sectors. Steve Jobs, Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, and Oprah Winfrey all had long-term goals, of course. But it takes a remarkable amount of discipline to remain focused on the task that is immediately at hand. Tackling that which you need to do today in order to progress on your goals tomorrow. It takes discipline and accurate, honest self reflection to be able to realize areas for improvement and make needed adjustments in order to attain victory. It takes discipline to work through the days when you feel destined for failure or feel like you have nothing left to do but quit.

One play at a time.

The ability to sustain greatness long enough to actually become, or do something, truly great, is something few have the ability to pull off in the first place, let alone maintain it sustainably.

If it were easy everyone would do it, right?

In your life, or throughout your career, you do not need to dream of being Warren Buffet or Tom Brady or Serena Williams. Not ever reaching that level of greatness is not a failure in your life. You don't need to be 'the Lebron James' of accounting. You don't need to be 'the Steve Jobs' of marketing, you should just aim to be the greatest version of you. Look for and seize opportunities to grow your own unique greatness. There is an old saying that goes something along the lines of, 'aim for the moon, 'cause even if you miss you'll likely land on a star,' and that's exactly what you should do. Aim for sustained greatness. Find what makes you great. Maintain it. Have an incredible end goal to strive for, but remember that greatness does not happen over night. For some it could take decades. Others, it may not ever happen. But everyone can aspire to be great in their own way. Find your own way, then progress like Tom does - one play at a time.

Elliot Tousley - Contributor from De Novo Agency

ETousley@Denovoagency.com