Lessons in maintaining hunger and drive from Billy Mays, Sylvester Stallone, and the world’s top performers
The relentless pursuit of excellence means never losing your hunger for success
Last week, I was watching Pitchmen on the Discovery Channel because they were playing every episode in the series, which allowed me a chance to watch all of them (filled up my DVR). It is a great show and I really like Billy Mays and Anthony Sullivan, who constantly argue like school kids. Even though Billy isn’t with us any longer due to his recent death, it was obvious they cared for one another.
In one of the last shows of the season, Anthony Sullivan had a quote that stopped me in my tracks:
“If you want to be in front, you have to act like you are behind.”
That quote from Anthony Sullivan really rang true to me because I think we need to constantly remind ourselves to keep loving, keep fighting, keep working, keep living. But at the end of the day, be content with what we have. Sometimes when we are financially secure, our jobs and relationships are going well, our bodies aren’t ailing us, we stop trying as hard as we should.
The Danger of Success: Losing Your Hunger
Mays was wildly successful being the #1 pitchman in the world, which afforded him a Bentley and a mansion. We all know money doesn’t buy happiness, but my point is God gave him a talent, and he wasn’t using that talent to its fullest extent.
In that episode, Anthony noticed Mays had lost his focus or hunger for achieving as much as his talent allowed. While pitching the Zorbees, he allowed Vince (who famously pitched the Shamwow) to steal some significant sales away from their product.
As Tony Robbins said in another more famous quote:
“It’s not what’s happening to you now or what has happened in your past that determines who you become. Rather, it’s your decisions about what to focus on, what things mean to you, and what you’re going to do about them that will determine your ultimate destiny.”
Success can be dangerous exactly because it makes us comfortable. The very achievements that should propel us forward often become the anchors that hold us back. We reach a certain level of accomplishment and unconsciously decide that’s enough—forgetting that growth isn’t just about the destination but the journey itself.
The Rocky Principle: Rediscovering Your Fire
Probably the most famous example of this principle is Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky movies. Consider the premise of Rocky II from IMDB:
“Rocky Balboa is enjoying life. He’s got a lovely wife, Adrian, had a successful fight with Apollo Creed and is able to enjoy the wealth coming off the draw. Unfortunately, Rocky becomes embarrassed when failing to complete an advert and ends up working in a meat packing company. He believes that he will no longer have a career as a boxer. Apollo wants to rematch with Rocky to prove all his critics wrong that he can beat Rocky. Can Rocky once again have a successful fight?”
In the iconic training sequence below, you see what happens when Rocky once again rededicates himself to his passion and the talents he has been blessed with:
Rocky’s story resonates because it reflects a universal truth: our greatest enemy isn’t external competition but our own complacency. When success makes us comfortable, we lose the edge that made us successful in the first place. The only solution is to mentally place ourselves back in the challenger position—to act like we’re behind even when we’re ahead.
The Winning Mindset: Wisdom from Champions
I could write about winning for a really long time—I love motivational books and quotes. Here are some powerful insights from those who have mastered the art of sustained success:
“One reason so few of us achieve what we truly want is that we never direct our focus, we never concentrate our power. Most people dabble their way through life, never deciding to master anything in particular.”
— Anthony Robbins
“Winning is not a sometime thing, it’s an all-time thing. You don’t win once in a while, you don’t do things right once in a while, you do them right all the time. Winning is habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.”
— Vince Lombardi
“A quitter never wins, and a winner never quits.”
— Napoleon Hill
“Winning isn’t everything, but the will to win is everything.”
— Vince Lombardi
“Winning is great, sure, but if you are really going to do something in life, the secret is learning how to lose. Nobody goes undefeated all the time. If you can pick up after a crushing defeat, and go on to win again, you are going to be a champion someday.”
— Wilma Rudolph
“There is no ‘i’ in team, but there is in win.”
— Michael Jordan
What unites these perspectives is an understanding that winning isn’t just about the scoreboard—it’s about the mindset. Champions maintain their hunger by focusing not on what they’ve already accomplished but on what still remains possible. They understand that complacency is the silent killer of greatness.
The Balanced Approach: Hunger with Contentment
Anthony Sullivan’s wisdom—”If you want to be in front, you have to act like you are behind”—offers us a powerful framework for sustainable success. It’s not about perpetual dissatisfaction or ingratitude for what we’ve achieved. Rather, it’s about maintaining the hunger and drive that got us where we are, even as we appreciate the journey.
This balanced approach means:
- Being grateful for current success while still setting ambitious new goals
- Celebrating victories without letting them diminish your drive
- Maintaining the work ethic that created your success in the first place
- Approaching each day with the same hunger you had when you were still striving
Always remember to give life your all, but be content with what life has afforded you. This dual mindset—hungry yet grateful, driven yet present—is perhaps the most powerful formula for not just achieving success, but sustaining it over a lifetime.
Join the Conversation
Have you ever found yourself losing your edge after achieving success? What strategies do you use to maintain hunger and drive even when things are going well? Share your experiences in the comments below.