BOOK SUMMARY 97 Coach Wooden’s Pyramid of Success
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Summary written by: Dianne Coppola
"Success is peace of mind which is a direct result
of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best that you
are capable of becoming."
- Coach Wooden’s Pyramid of Success, page 12
By
anyone’s definition Coach John R. Wooden was a success. He is best known as the
Head Coach who led UCLA basketball teams to capture 10 NCAA championships in a
12 year period and an unprecedented seven consecutive championship victories.
In 40 years of coaching high school and college basketball, his teams won more
than 80 percent of their games. That’s impressive! John Wooden was also a
devoted family man, a man of faith and at his core, a teacher and a student of
life.
Like
the pyramids of old, Coach Wooden’s ‘pyramid of success’ (hereafter referred to
as the pyramid) did not arise overnight but took years of research, reflection
and refinement to build. The imagery associated with pyramids – a wide
foundation layered with rows of sloping blocks rising to form a peak in the
sky, solid and stable over time – is well suited to illustrate the 25 timeless
personal qualities that Coach Wooden believed would guide anyone to success.
Coach
Wooden’s Pyramid of Success is strongly grounded
in spiritual elements and scripture references, however one doesn’t have to be
a person of faith to benefit from the wisdom contained within the pages. You do
have to have a willingness to reflect on how you currently execute the
fundamentals described in each block of the pyramid along with the ‘mortar’
qualities that help those fundamentals stick together and then think about how
to apply those principles more consistently in your work and personal life.
Bring Your ‘A’ Game
"Competitive
Greatness…It’s not about winning. It’s about learning to give all we have to
give."- Coach Wooden’s Pyramid of Success, page 87
The
peak, the uppermost block in the pyramid is competitive greatness which Wooden
describes as being at your best when your best is needed and
the enjoyment of a difficult challenge. He is clear that the
scoreboard is merely one measure of the outcome of a game noting you can score
more points than the other team and still lose, and you can lose a game and
still come out a winner. Athletes describe this as “leaving it all on…the
ice…the field…the court”.
How
often can you say you’ve given a task all you had to give? That you brought
your ‘A’ game attitude and work ethic to the items on your daily to do list. I
suspect that all too often we give only what we deem is necessary and
sufficient – a good enough effort. We may work hard and long, but that is not
the same as giving all we have to give.
Stop
and consider the impact you could have if you made the commitment to give each
task in your day all you have to give. If you listened to your partner or
child’s dilemma with an open mind and heart. If you took the time to research
potential solutions to the supply chain bottleneck before the troubleshooting
meeting. If you rehearsed that sales presentation multiple times before meeting
with the client instead of winging it. Even if the results are less than
stellar, you will have the satisfaction of knowing you didn’t hold back – you
gave it your all. That is the success Coach Wooden wishes for you.
Gem #1
Be Enthusiastic
"If
we don’t enjoy what we do, we won’t be able to push as hard as we need to push
for as long as we need to push to achieve our best."- Coach Wooden’s Pyramid of Success, page 34
Enthusiasm
is one of the foundational cornerstones of the pyramid (the other one is
industriousness). I think Coach Wooden chose enthusiasm as a foundational
building block because of its dual influence – enthusiasm not only sustains us
during our quest for success, it rubs off on those around us. I’m sure you can
think of times when someone’s unbridled enthusiasm for a project or activity
inspired you and other members of the team to roll up your proverbial sleeves
and pitch in (most likely with a smile on your face). We’ve also experienced
the opposite – someone who seemed to suck the life out of a project because of
their negativity and lack of enthusiasm. When given a choice – who would you
rather be? A team booster or a party pooper?
Adopting
a mental ‘can do’ attitude and embracing your day with enthusiasm is similar to
turning on the lights in a dark room. It brightens the space and makes it
easier to see things clearly. The room might be a dingy, messy space that needs
cleaning and painting yet approaching the task with enthusiasm for what
it will become makes it easier to bear down and tackle the
myriad steps in the renovation process.
Try it
yourself. Adopt a positive, enthusiastic attitude towards the next task you are
undertaking. Look for the upsides and consider how you can achieve those
outcomes in a fun and supportive way.
Gem #2
Take Initiative
"Initiative
is having the courage to make decisions and take action. People with initiative
move forward without fear of failure, even though they might make mistakes or
fail."- Coach Wooden’s Pyramid of Success, page 58
I have
always associated initiative with action and intrinsic motivation. I don’t
think I have ever consciously acknowledged that overcoming fear is a
prerequisite for action and yet it makes sense. Fear of failure causes us to
pause before acting or to not act at all. This is a by-product of associating
failure with our self-image (“I’m no good”) instead of viewing failure as a
learning opportunity (“Well that didn’t work out like I thought”).
Coach
Wooden believed that his players would not reach their full potential (as
athletes, as students, as citizens) if they were afraid of making mistakes,
afraid of failing. He wanted his players to be pushing against the
walls of [their] capabilities and viewing mistakes as learning
opportunities. Like the butterfly that pushes against the walls of its cocoon
to break free and take flight, we need to push against our fear of failure and
learn to take action even when there is no guarantee of success. As Yoda told
Luke – “Do or do not. There is no try.”
Coach
Wooden’s Pyramid of Success is in many ways
simply good old-fashioned common sense. Just as athletes must practice the
fundamentals of their sport continuously and deliberately before they can
dazzle crowds with showmanship moves, there are fundamental principles and
values that need to be practiced regularly before one can become successful.
Pyramid
of Success is not so much a how-to book as it is a
road map to guide you along the road to success. Before you can embark on that
journey, you need to first define what success looks like to you. In a world
too often focused on material wealth, status and power, I like the simplicity
of Coach Wooden’s definition of success (peek back at the opening quote) and
the principle behaviours he has identified that underpin that success. I’ll
definitely be practicing ‘pyramid power’ in the weeks and months to come.
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