In boxing, success can be a drug, especially when it comes fast and early. Mike Lee knows the taste-first-round knockouts, sponsorships, TV commercials. Yet for all his triumphs, the 24-year-old light heavyweight prefers to focus on a much different motivator: failure. "For me, it's a positive thing," says Lee. "The fear of failure reminds me of my passion for the sport."
Failure is what landed Lee in the ring in the first place. A born competitor, he grew up in suburban Chicago playing football, baseball, and ice hockey. But it wasn't until he was cut from his high school basketball team that he discovered boxing. "I was devastated about being cut," says Lee. "But after, my cousin brought me to a boxing gym and everything just clicked."
For everyone else, it just plain hurt. Rocking skulls came naturally to Lee, who spent a year at the University of Missouri before transferring to Notre Dame. ("Like Rudy," he jokes.) He quickly became one of the school's sports heroes, winning its famed Bengal Bouts 3 years in a row. "For the first time in my life, I was excited to go to the gym," he says. And that's a good thing because, as Lee puts it, "training is the hardest part of fighting."
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Training Is Everything
In boxing, actual fights are typically few and far between, separated by weeks or even months. The interim is devoted entirely to building the strength and stamina needed to overpower an opponent. Lee had expected to lift weights, toss tires, log miles, and sweat like Stallone circa 1976. But he hadn't expected to sling kettlebells, swim laps, and exercise in ways that might have made Rocky shake his head. "The old-school training mentality is fading fast," says Lee, adding that exercise science is changing the sport and creating more formidable fighters. "Swimming, for example, taught me to breathe efficiently, which is important when you take body shots," he says. "And I did yoga before my first few fights—the stretching made me faster and helped prevent injuries."
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The Mind Can Be A Weapon
Perhaps the greatest tool in Lee's arsenal, however, is his brain, which is filled with about $100,000 worth of knowledge from Notre Dame. "People often hear about my education and ask me why I'm doing this," he says. Here's his answer: "I'm good at it, I love it, and I don't want to ever feel regret."
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Lee also argues that boxing gave him the discipline to succeed in school, while his education made him a smarter fighter. (Want to gain that discipline? Here’s how: The 6 Best Tips to Achieve Mental Strength) "I feel like I need to be constantly learning and bettering myself," says Lee, who believes that his finance degree, along with his connections from Wall Street and summer jobs at the CME Group, will set him up for a strong second act after he's finished with boxing. "When you get smarter, you evolve, and that improves every aspect of your life."
Goals Breed Success
So far this holistic approach has served Lee well, boosting his performance in the ring (he won his first eight fights) and expanding his influence beyond it (he's involved with several charities, including the Ara Parseghian Medical Research Foundation and the Kelly Cares Foundation). Indeed, it has even helped turn the national spotlight in his direction (you might recognize him from Subway commercials). Eventually, however, he hopes it will help him achieve his ultimate goal: a world championship belt.
"I can't predict the future," says Lee, who's excited by its possibilities. "All I can do is take one fight at a time, keep getting better, and keep going out there with everything I have." (And, you can too! With these 7 Steps to Achieve Any Goal.) If you're on a card opposite him in an upcoming fight, that's something to worry about.
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