A Lif

Re f
e t ime o f
l e c t io n s
Ob s e r v a t
On a n d Of f t he
N
io n s a n d
Co u r t

C o a c h J o h n Wo o d e n
with S t e v e J a mis o n

CONTEMP ORARY BOOKS

Library of Congress Cataloglng-ln-Publication Data

Wooden, John R.
Wooden: a lifetime of observations and reflections on
and off the court / John Wooden and Steve Jamison,
p. cm.
ISBN 0-8092-3041-0
1. Wooden, John R. 2. Basketball coaches—
United States—Biography. 3. Coaching (Athletics)—
Philosophy. 4. Conduct of life.
I. Jamison, Steve. II. Title.
GV884.W66A38 1997
796.323'092—dc21 97-664
[B] CIP

Excerpt on page 8 is reprinted with the permission of Scribner, a Division

of Simon & Schuster, from The Poems of Henry Van Dyke (New York:
Scribner, 1920).

Every effort has been made to determine and acknowledge copyrights,

but in some cases copyright could not be traced. The publisher offers
apologies for any such omission and will rectify this in subsequent
editions upon notification.

Cover illustration by Dan Krovalin

Interior design by Kim Bartko

Published by Contemporary Books

An imprint of NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company
4266 West Touhy Avenue, Uncolnwood (Chicago), Illinois 60646-1976 U.S.A.
Copyright 01997 by Steve Jamison and John Wooden
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a
retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior
permission of NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company.
Printed in the United States of America
International Standard Book Number: 0-8092-3041-0
18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4
Re fle ctions on Coa ch Woode n

J o h n Wo o d e n is a “philos opher-coach” in the trues t

sense: a man whose be liefs, te a chings , and wis dom go
fa r be yond s ports , and ultima te ly address how to bring
out the ve ry best in yours e lf and othe rs in a ll areas of
life .
He is a ma s te r te a che r who unde rsta nds motiva tion,
orga nization, and ps ychology. Coa ch Woode n is able to
s ucce s s fully share his wis dom because he has a gift for
expressing his philos ophy dire ctly and s imply, in a
ma nne r accessible and a pplica ble to everyone.
Coa ch Woode n’s own life is the e mbodime nt of
e nduring Ame rica n values. His prioritie s are, and always
have been, corre ct—fa mily, fa ith, and frie nds —and he
never veered from the m in spite of profe s s iona l success
and ce le brity of the highe s t ma gnitude.
 J ohn Wooden is an Ame rica n legend who would be
as comforta ble a mong the a ncie nt sages as he is
we lcome d and respected by toda y’s citize ns and leaders.
He is a ve ry special Ame rica n.
Bill Walsh
Form e r Head Football Coach
S an Francisco 49ers

vi
J o h n Wo o d e n is the gre a te s t ba s ke tba ll coa ch of a ll
time , but wha t I le a rne d from him ha d much more to
do with living life tha n with pla ying ba ll.
The s kills he ta ught us on the court—te a mwork,
pe rs ona l e xce lle nce , dis cipline , de dica tion, focus ,
orga niza tion, a nd le a de rs hip—a re the same tools tha t
you ne e d in the re a l world. Coach s howe d us how the s e
s kills a re tra ns fe ra ble . He wa s n’t jus t te a ching us a bout
ba s ke tba ll, he wa s te a ching us a bout life .
J ohn Woode n ta ught us how to focus on one
prima ry obje ctive : Be the be s t you ca n be in whate ve r
e nde a vor you unde rta ke . Don’t worry a bout the s core .
Don’t worry a bout ima ge. Don’t worry a bout the
oppone nt. It s ounds easy, but it’s a ctua lly ve ry difficult.
Coach Woode n s howe d us how to a ccomplis h it.
Coa ch ga ined re s pe ct with a ve ry s imple me thod:
by his pe rs ona l e xa mple . He worke d ha rder, longe r,
s ma rte r, a nd was more de dica ted, loya l, conce rne d,
ca ring, de ta ile d, me ticulous , a nd e nthusia s tic tha n
a nyone I ha ve e ve r worke d with.
J ohn Woode n ne ve r ha d to te ll you tha t he wa s the
one in cha rge or ge t up a nd give ra h-ra h spe e che s to
ge t your a tte ntion. He le d by be ing hims e lf.
You saw how true he was to doing things right, by
thinking right. Coach Woode n wa s more inte re s te d in
the proce s s tha n in the re s ult. This wa s ve ry importa nt
to him. He re a lly wa nte d things done corre ctly a nd it

vii
s ta rte d with the wa y he did things . You wa nte d to
follow him a nd his e xa mple .
For us, it a ll s ta rte d with our pra ctice s a t u c l a ,
which we re nons top a ction a nd a bs olute ly e le ctric,
s upe r-cha rge d, on e dge , cris p, a nd incre dibly
de ma nding, with Coach Woode n pa cing up a nd down
the s ide line s like a ca ged tige r, ba rking out ins tructions ,
pos itive re inforce me nt, a nd a ppropria te ma xims : “Be
quick, but don’t hurry.” “Fa iling to pre pare is pre pa ring
to fa il.” “Ne ve r mis ta ke a ctivity for a chie ve me nt.”
“Dis cipline yours e lf a nd othe rs won’t ne e d to.”
At the same time he cons ta ntly move d us into a nd
out of minute ly de ta ile d drills , s crimma ge s , a nd pa tterns
while e xhorting us to “Move . . . quickly . . . hurry up!”
It wa s wonde rfully e xhila ra ting a nd a bs olute ly inte ns e .
In fa ct, ga me s a ctua lly s e e med like the y ha ppe ned
in a s lowe r ge a r because of the pace a t which we
pra ctice d. We ’d run a pla y pe rfe ctly in s crimma ge a nd
Coa ch would say, “OK, fine . Now re -s e t. Do it a ga in,
fa s te r.” We ’d do it a ga in. Fa s te r. And a ga in. Fa s te r. And
a ga in.
I’d ofte n think during u c l a ga me s , “Why is this
ta king so long? ” be ca use we ha d done e ve rything tha t
ha ppe ne d during a ga me thous ands of time s a t a fa s te r
pace in pra ctice .
Coach Woode n wa s n’t one to ca s ua lly throw a round
complime nts . He e xpe cted you to be re a lly good. Be ing

viii
re a lly good wasn’t s omething special. He assumed you’d
be on top of things because tha t’s the way he was. He
didn’t think you needed to be complimented for doing
wha t was norma l.
Howe ver, as players we kne w we were ris ing to a
grea ter level whe n we’d see tha t s mile on his face.
Whe n four guys touche d the ba ll in two seconds and
the fifth guy hit a la y-up, man, wha t a fe e ling! Whe n
things re a lly clicke d, the joy of pla ying was re fle cte d by
the joy on his face. He cre a ted an e nvironme nt whe re
you expected to be your best and outs core the
opponent; whe re ca pturing a cha mpionship and going
undefeated was pa rt of the norma l course of events.
Coach made the e xtra ordina ry seem norma l.
I can’t de scribe how e xciting it was to be a pa rt of
tha t—the joy he created in prepa ring us for
competition. Of course, the real compe tition he was
pre pa ring us for was life (even though I didn’t re alize
tha t until much la ter). His lessons were inva lua ble to me
whe n I s ta rte d ra is ing a fa mily and purs uing othe r
profe ssiona l a ctivities be yond basketball.
Afte r my fa the r, Coach Woode n has had the most
profound influe nce on me of anyone in my e ntire life . I
was touche d by Coach Woode n’s greatness—he set a
standard I have been trying to live up to ever since. He
is as pos itive as you get. He ta ught us the values and
cha ra cteris tics tha t could make us not only good

ix
players, but also good people. He ta ught us how to be
true to ourselves while also s triving to be our best.
Now I’m forty-four years old and I’m te lling my
four teenage sons wha t Coach Wooden used to te ll his
players. I’m even writing his maxims on the ir lunch
bags and the n lis te ning to them compla in a bout it, jus t
like I used to compla in.
The y’ll see. My kids will le a rn. Soon enough the y’ll
come to unde rs ta nd and appreciate the gre a t wis dom of
a ve ry wise man: Coach J ohn Woode n.
I have nothing but the gre a test love and respect for
Coach. Thanks for your sa crifice , gifts , and patience.
Bill Walton
College Basketball Hall of Fame
n b a Hall of Fame
C o a c h Wo o d e n was firs t of a ll a te a che r. I be lie ve he
ta ke s more plea s ure from te a ching tha n from a ll the
re cognition he amassed during his illus trious ca re e r.
As a n a s s is ta nt coa ch unde r Coach Woode n, I
le a rne d more a bout orga nizing your time , pla nning,
e va luating, a nd te a ching tha n in a ll my ye a rs of colle ge
put toge the r. He wa s a ma s te r a t orga nizing wha t
ne e ded to be done down to the la s t de ta il a nd the n
te a ching it the same way.
I be lie ve his longe vity a t the top of the colle ge
ba s ketba ll la dde r wa s no a ccide nt. His willingne s s to
lis te n to the ideas of othe rs a nd his la ck of e go a llowe d
him to cha nge a nd ke e p up with the e ve r-cha nging
ga me. But don’t le t tha t fool you into thinking he was
s oft. He was as tough a compe titor as I ha ve e ve r me t at
e ve rything we e ve r did toge the r. From cribba ge to
s nooke r to fre e -throw s hooting, he gave no qua rte r a nd
a ske d none in re turn. He wa nte d to be a t you a t your
be s t—a nd us ua lly did.
His life a way from ba s ke tba ll has be e n domina te d
by his fa mily a nd church. Othe r tha n his writing a nd
re a ding, his s pa re time is s pe nt ca ring for a nd loving his
fa mily a nd God. I ha ve ne ve r me t a nice r or more
de dica te d fa mily ma n tha n Coa ch Woode n.
It is ve ry difficult to put into words wha t Coach has
me a nt to me both pe rs ona lly a nd profes s iona lly. I guess
it would s uffice to say tha t a long with my fa the r, he has

xi
had a tre me ndous influe nce on my life . To try to
emulate him both on and off the floor is ve ry difficult
to do. He is such a wonde rful pe rson in e ve ry way. I
can’t ima gine what my life would have been had Coach
Woode n not been my guiding light. As the years pass,
I appreciate him more and more and can only pray
tha t I can have ha lf as much influe nce on the young
pe ople I coach as he has had on me.
Ma y God bless my coach, J ohn Woode n.
Denny Crum
Head Basketball Coach
Unive rs ity of Louisville

xii
F r o m t h e d a y I me t Coach Woode n, I ha d the utmos t
confide nce in him. It didn’t ta ke me ve ry long to
a ppre cia te the “coolne s s ” he possessed. Coach ta ught us
s e lf-dis cipline , a nd was a lwa ys his own be s t e xa mple . He
dis coura ge d e xpre s s ing e motion on the court, s tre s s ing
tha t it would e ve ntua lly le a ve us vulne ra ble to
opponents .
To this da y I ca n see my coa ch, ca lm a nd confide nt,
twis ting a ga me progra m be twee n his ha nds , s howing
tha t he s ha re d the pla ye rs ’ e xcite me nt.
The wis dom of Coach Woode n ha d a profound
influe nce on me as a n a thle te , but a n e ve n gre a te r
influe nce on me as a huma n be ing. He is re s pons ible , in
pa rt, for the pe rs on I a m toda y. Coa ch a nd I we re
s impa tico from the be ginning—tha t has a lwa ys me a nt a
gre a t de al to me , both on a nd off the court.

Karee m Abdul-Jabbar
College Bas ke tball Hall of Fam e
n b a Hall of Fam e

xiii
A ma n o f J ohn Woode n’s a ccomplis hme nts a nd inte grity
would s ta nd out in a ny e ra , but now, more tha n two
de ca de s a fte r he coa che d his la s t ga me , he is in s ome
wa ys a n e ve n more s triking figure . He re ma ins the ra re
s ports gia nt without a ma rke ting pla n, without
s ome thing to hype or s e ll.
As a coa ch he wa s a ble to a da pt to cha nging
circums ta nces without be nding to e ve ry tre nd, without
compromis ing wha t was a t his core . His unde rs ta nding
a lwa ys we nt be yond the mome nt; his thoughts a nd
a ctions guide d by e nduring principle s no less va lid toda y
tha n s e ve nty ye a rs a go ba ck home in Ma rtins ville ,
India na. P e rha ps tha t is why, e ve n now, he re ta ins a
compe lling voice tha t ne ve r has to be ra ise d to be
he a rd.

Bob Costas
NBC S ports

xiv
In t h e c o u r s e of a life time , a lmos t e ve ryone is
pos itive ly a ffe cte d by s omeone in a life -cha nging way.
S uch a pe rs on a nd I cros s e d pa ths twe nty-s ix ye a rs a go.
His love a nd commitme nt to living life to the fulle s t
ha ve wa lke d with me a ll my da ys s ince the n a nd a re
continuing to cha nge me da y by day.
His na me is J ohn Woode n. S uch a s imple a nd
common na me , is n’t it? But so wa s Be n Fra nklin, Tom
J e ffe rs on, a nd ma ny othe rs . Coach Woode n is a s imple
ma n, but a ma n who unde rs ta nds life like no othe r I
ha ve e ve r me t. In my opinion, he has ma s te re d the a rt
of living by pra cticing s imple wis dom in a ll s ituations .
In e ve ry a re a of life he has purs ue d e xce llence a nd
unders ta nding. J us t as a ma s te r me cha nic knows a ll the
workings of a n a utomobile , Coa ch Woode n truly
unde rs ta nds the workings of life . S ome one once s a id,
“The pe rs on who knows ‘how’ will a lwa ys ha ve a job.
The pe rs on who knows ‘why’ will be his bos s .” J ohn
Woode n unde rs ta nds “how” a nd “why” as the y pe rta in
to life a nd tha t is why it seems like he is pla ying chess
when e ve ryone else is jus t pla ying che ckers .
J ohn Woode n is truly a re ma rka ble ma n. His s imple
wis dom a nd love ha ve cha nged the cours e of my life ,
a nd for tha t I will a lwa ys be gra te ful.

S wen Nate r
Re pre sentative
Price Costco

XV
For all the wonde rful young people with whom Vve had the
ple as ure of working throughout m y career.
And, for Ne llie . You are with me always.

— C o a c h J o h n Wo o d e n

For m y dad, Eve re tt, who began a life tim e of le ading,

teaching,, coaching as conductor of his Hal Le onard
Orche s tra and who helped bring this book about.
For m y mother,; Mary; as warm as a s um m e r breeze, pre tty
a m ile of roses, and funny as an Iris h ange l.
For John Wooden. Thank you for your trus t.

— S t e v e J a mis o n E d s t r o m
Conte nts
Preface xxtx

Pa r t i: F a mil ie s , Va l u e s , Vir t ues i

My Roots Go De e p in Ame rica 5

Nothing Is S tronger tha n Gentleness 3
My Mothe r’s Grea t Exa mple 4
The Real Coaches and Teachers 5
S trong Ins ide 6
Life ’s Ga me P la n S ta rts Ea rly 6
Two Sets of Thre e s 6
P ride or P unis hme nt 7
The Gift of a Life time 8
Living Up to Da d’s Cre e d 14
Give It Awa y to Ge t It Back 15
Six of Life ’s P uzzle rs 15
Trus ting Others 16
Politeness and Courte s y 16
Wha t You Are 16
Ne llie and I Agre e d to Be Agre e able 77
Passion Is n’t Love 77
Love and Ma rria ge 18
Ma rria ge Is Not Courts hip 18
Whe n Ma rria ge Weakens 19
Team Woode n 19
Fa mily Firs t 19
Sports, Books, and Kids 20
Parents, Childre n, and Goa ls 21
Me ntors 21
You Are More Influe ntia l tha n You Think 25
Comme nd, Don’t Criticize 26
P a re nting and Coaching 26
My Fa vorite Four-Le tte r Words :
“Kids ” and “Love ” 27
Cha racte r 28
The Funda me nta l Goal 28
P e rfe ction 29
P rioritie s 29
Le a rn Forever, Die Tomorrow 50
Faults Are Fine 50
Time le s s Tra its 50
Giving and Re ce iving 57
Are You Looking for the Right Things ? 57
Apples 52
Bringing Out the Best in People 55
India na and Basketball 54
 Five More P uzzle rs 55
The Fa mily Ha s Cha nge d 55
The Gre ate s t J oy 36
Peer Pressure 57
Acce pting Our Re s pons ibility 57
A Lesson on Emotion and La ngua ge 38
A Re minder: Be True to Yours e lf 38
Ma ke Fate Your Frie nd 40
Five More Puzzle rs 42
Young Folks , Old Folks 43
Six Ways to Bring Out the Best in People 44
Los ing Ne llie : Peace of Mind 44

Pa r t ii: S u c c e s s , Ac h ie v e me n t ,
C o mp e t it io n 49
Mr. We bs ter’s De finition of Success 51
Joshua Woode n’s De finition of Success 52
P re para tion Is the P rize 55
A Successful J ourne y Is the De s tina tion 55
Fa ilure s and Mis ta ke s 55
Bla ming Othe rs 55
The De s ire to Win 56
The Infe ction of Success $6
Unde rdogs 57
The Opinion of Othe rs
Pressure 58
Hinds ight 58
The Re a lis tic Optimis t 5p
De ta ils Crea te Success 60
Hope s and Drea ms 63
P a ying the P rice 64
The Worthy Oppone nt <5j
Follow Your Bliss?
Compa ris ons
A Worthwhile Goa l 66
Ta ll Versus “Ta ll” 66
The Ma in Ingre die nt of S ta rdom 66
Peace of Mind 67
Circle Wha t You Are 68
The Bigge st Change of All 68
Personal Glory Is S e conda ry 69
Individua l Honors 70
Quick to Judge 77
Ove ra chie ve rs 77
Eight Suggestions for Succeeding 72
Be a ting Yours e lf 72
Winne rs Ma ke the Mos t Mis take s 75
Ca s hing in on Fame 75
Cha racte ris tics of a Team P la ye r 74
All-Time Best S ta rting Five 74
Why Teams Fa il 75
Orange Peels, P ride , and P roductivity 76
Ka re e m’s Selflessness 77
Mira cle s 79
Nine Promises Tha t Ca n Bring Happiness 79
Los ing and Winning 80
Sage Advice 81
Fame 83
On Ta lent 83
Unha ppine s s Toda y 83
Ma ke the Mos t of Wha t You’ve Got 84
Is My Ford Be tte r than Your Ca dilla c? 8$
Re cognizing a Cha mpion 86
Corpora te Compe titors 8j
Be ing Too Compe titive 88
Is Winning the Only Thing? 88
Ego and Arrogance 89
Work Creates Luck 90
B.O. Ba rn’s Une xpe cte d Re wa rd 91
Cha ra cte r Versus “Cha ra cte r” 92
Right from Wrong 93
Tricks of the Tra de 93
Act Quickly (But Don’t Hurry) 94
Your Own S ta ndard of Success 94
P e rce ptions of Success 93
Ze ro Na tiona l Cha mpions hips 96
Fa ilure Is Not Fatal, But Fa ilure to Change
Might Be 96
Big-Mone y Players and Coaches 97
Adve rs ity Ma ke s You S tronger 98
Cha ra cte r Creates Longe vity 99
Ka ree m Le arns from Adve rs ity 100
Persistence Is S tronge r than Fa ilure 101
 Alwa ys Be P rogre s s ing 102
The India Rubbe r Ma n 103
Balance in Basketball (and Life ) 705
The Importa nce of Basketball 104
The Olympics : Good and Not So Good 103
The Fina l Score 106
The Glory Is in Ge tting The re 10 8

Pa r t h i: C o a c h in g , Te a c h in g , Le a d in g lop
A Sacred Trus t ///
P hilos ophe rs and P ris on Gua rds ///
Who Ca n Lead? 112
“But, Coach Woode n, Time s Have Cha nge d!” 112
“Why Did Woode n Win? ” 113
A Le a de r’s Difficult Task 114
Respect 114
A Le a de r Is Fa ir 775
Wa lk the Wa lk 116
P ride as a Motiva tor 116
Dicta tor Leaders 777
Leaders Lis ten 777
Anothe r Golde n Rule 118
Le a ders hip and P unis hme nt 118
P ublic Emba rra s s me nt 118
The Wors t P unis hme nt of All up
False Expe ctations 120
S couting 120
P sychological Wa rfa re 121
Lea de rs hip Is More tha n Fa cts 122
Wilt Te a che s Me a Le s s on 125
Emotiona lis m 124
Ha tre d 124
Whe n to Be De je cte d 125
J ubila tion 126
S piking, Dunking, Ta unting, Fla unting 127
A Coa ch’s Be s t Frie nd 128
S ports as Te a che r 129
Be ing P re pa re d 750
The Gua ra nte e d Divide nd 130
Te x S chra mm’s P oint 151
Owne rs a nd P rofits 151
Bringing Out Your Be s t (Wha te ve r It Is ) 152
The Gym Is a Cla s s room 152
Love of the Routine 136
The Crowd Love s Blood 136
Fla s h Ve rs us Clas s 157
Role Mode ls : Good a nd Ba d 157
S pirit Ve rs us Te mpe ra ment 138
The Va lue in Fe e ling Va lue d
S we n Na te r Unde rs tood His Role 141
no P e rce nt Is n’t the Goa l 142
S low a nd S te a dy Ge ts You Re a dy 143
Tough Toe s Bring Hidde n Re wa rds 143
The La ws of Le a rning 144
P laye rs : P olitics a nd Re ligion 144
 A Le a de r Ca n Be Le d 145
Criticis m and Praise 146
His toric Loss? 147
Basketball in the Year 2000 148
De a ling with Big-Headedness 750
A Coach’s Highe s t Complime nt 757
Ke e p P rioritie s S tra ight 151
Wa lton’s Whis ke rs 752
Why Did Players Lis te n to My
Old-Fa s hione d Message? 755
A Ke y to Le arning 154
Ne gotiating and Giving Speeches 755
On Race 75 6
Le a rning from Ka re e m 75 6
Athle te s as He roe s 757
Be Ca re ful Who You Follow 758
Seven Na tiona l Cha mpions hips in a Row 158
The Pressure to Set Records xyp
Re acting to the Cha mpions hips 160
Knowing Whe n to Leave 161

Pa r t iv : P u t t in g It Al l To g e t h e r : My
P y r a mid o f S u c c e s s 165
The Genesis 767
Are You a Fa ilure if You Do Your Best? 168
Did You Re a lly Win if You Gave a Second-Rate
Effort? 168
 Re ca lling Da d’s Words 169
Crea ting My De finition of Success 770
You Are Diffe re nt; I Am Diffe re nt 777
The Ha rd P a rt Is S till Ahead 772
Te n Na tiona l Cha mpions hips 772
Finding the Answers: The P yra mid 775
Building the P yra mid Took Years 775
Building a S olid Founda tion for Success 775
The Firs t Corne rs tone : Indus trious ne s s 775
The Othe r Corne rs tone : Enthus ia s m 178
Be twee n the Corne rstone s: The Founda tion 180
Building on the S olid Founda tion: S e lf-Control,
Ale rtne s s , Initia tive , and Inte ntne s s 182
Thre e More S trong Blocks: Condition,
S kill, and Team S pirit 186
Ne a ring the Peak: Poise and Confide nce 189
Compe titive Greatness 190
The Morta r: Patience and Fa ith 191
The Apex: Success 192
The P yra mid and the Players 193
Mr. S hidler’s Que s tion 194
My Favorite Maxim s 197
P re fa ce
S teve Jam is on

An Uncom m on Man
Does any s ports figure in the twe ntie th ce ntury stand
a s tride the re cord books with more a uthe nticity and
a uthority than Coach J ohn Woode n, the le gendary teacher
of basketball at the Unive rs ity of Ca lifornia at Los Ange -
les? He is the a rchite ct of perhaps the gre a test cha mpi-
ons hip re cord in a ll of sports.
1964, 1965, 1967, 1968, 1969,
1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975

Each of those years, he produce d a nothe r Na tiona l

Colle giate Athle tic As s ocia tion (n c a a ) cha mpions hip for
the u c l a team he coached—a ltogethe r te n of them in
twe lve years, including seven na tional cha mpionships in a
row. In a row!

xxix
 Think for a mome nt a bout how tha t compa re s to wha t
ca me be fore a nd wha t has followe d. J ohn Woode n s ha t-
te re d a ll notions of wha t cons titute s s uprema cy in colle ge
ba s ke tba ll a nd, s ome would a rgue , s uprema cy in a ny s port.
Quite s imply, he we nt whe re no one ha d e ve r gone be fore
or s ince .
But the re is more : 88 cons e cutive victorie s (pre vious
re cord, 60), 38 s tra ight n c a a tourna me nt wins (pre vious
re cord, 13), a nd e ight undefe a ted P a c-8 (P a cific confe r-
e nce ) crowns . Unde fe ate d se a son a fte r unde fe a te d season
bringing coa ch of the ye a r a wa rd a fte r coa ch of the ye a r
a wa rd, including s e le ction as S ports Illus trate d's s ports ma n
of the ye a r in 1972. A life time winning pe rce nta ge of ove r
80 pe rce nt.
But the re is more . J ohn Woode n was a thre e -time All-
Ame rica n while pla ying ba s ke tba ll a t P urdue Unive rs ity
a nd is the only ma n e ve r e le cte d to colle ge ba s ke tba ll’s ha ll
of fa me as both pla ye r a nd coa ch. For ma ny, the ma gni-
tude of his a chieve me nts in ba s ke tba ll is ne a rly be yond
compre he ns ion.
So le t me te ll how this book ca me to be writte n,
be ca use it ha d little to do with tips on the te chnique of
s hooting a jump s hot or s pe cific de ta ils of Woode n’s e xtra -
ordina ry life .
In 1996 I inte rvie we d Coa ch Woode n in conjunction
with a book I was writing ca lle d In the Zone. Whe n I
re vie we d the tra ns cripts of wha t he ha d s a id, it be ca me
ve ry cle a r tha t Coach Woode n’s pe rs ona l philos ophy of

xxx
a chie ve me nt, success, and excellence has much gre a te r
a pplica tion to living one’s life tha n to pla ying or coach-
ing ba s ke tball. Ultima te ly wha t J ohn Wooden addresses is
how to achieve peace of mind.
His is a message, and he hims e lf a living example, that
goes to the ve ry core of old-fa s hioned Ame rica n ideals,
principle s , and virtue s . Much more tha n ba s ke tball titles ,
cha mpions hips , or re cords , this is wha t Coa ch J ohn
Woode n is a ll about.
This truth became even more e vide nt as I got to know
him. Coa ch Wooden is pure of he art, modes t, trus ting,
humble , unde rs ta ted, serene, without pretense or hidde n
agenda, since re, s tra ightforwa rd, inte llige nt, quick, confi-
de nt, and fille d with such a profound decency and treme n-
dous inne r s trength tha t it is humbling.
Only la te r did some other qua litie s also become e vi-
de nt. Coa ch is fe rocious ly de dica te d, me ticulous ly
de ta iled, and as principle d as a s a int. (This Preface is the
only pa rt of the book I have not pre se nte d for his re view.
He would have crossed out mos t of wha t I have jus t writ-
te n. “Too much,” he would say with a ge ntle s mile on his
face. “Don’t write a ll of this a bout me .”)
In J uly I ca lle d him and suggested we work on this
book idea toge the r. Coa ch Woode n re sponded, “I re a lly
can’t take on a nothe r proje ct at this time .”
It ha dn’t occurre d to me tha t this ma n, now in the
middle of his e ighth decade, is busy much of the time with
pe rs onal appearances and se mina rs a round the country,

xxxi
inte rvie ws , coa ching clinics , and fa mily re s pons ibilitie s
with his seven gra ndchildre n and te n gre a t-grandchildre n.
I sent him a le tte r e xplaining tha t the book would be
ne ithe r a conve ntional na rra tive , a biogra phy, nor a how-
to book on ba ske tba ll. It would s imply be a pres e ntation
in the mos t dire ct ma nne r of his philos ophy and lessons
of life as told in his own special s tyle , a philos ophy tha t
s ta rte d on the little fa mily fa rm back in India na.
It is a philos ophy tha t re sulte d in a life tha t has been
full and rich in e ve ry wa y and has dire ct a pplication to
each of us.
Mos t of a ll, I suggested tha t Wooden: A Lifetim e of
Observations and Reflections On and Off the Court would
a llow him ye t a nothe r opportunity to te a ch. And I
re minde d him tha t firs t and fore mos t he conside rs his
profe ss ion to be te aching.
While Coa ch Woode n has ne ve r e xpla ine d to me why
he cha nged his mind a bout doing this book, I suspect this
goes to the he a rt of it. It a llows him a nothe r opportunity
to do wha t he loves doing mos t—namely, te a ching life ’s
lessons.
Coa ch, P m gla d you changed your mind. Your mes-
sage, your e xa mple, and your philos ophy are gre a tly
needed in toda y’s Ame rica .
Reader, I believe you will share my s e ntime nts as you
absorb the words of a ve ry wise , ve ry s trong man.

xxxii
A True North
Our ships are tossed
Acros s the night,
Our compass cra cke d,
For wrong or right.
True North is the re,
Or ove r here?
Confus ion rule s
Our sea is fear.
The n s udde nly a be a con bright
Is s hining through
This s tormy night.
It’s pure a nd s tra ight
To his true course.
The coa ch is seen.
He is True North.

—S teve Jam is on
 Pa r t I

F a mil ie s ,
Va l u e s , Vir t u e s

I am jus t a common man who is true to his beliefs.

—J o h n Wo o d e n
My Roots Go De e p in Ame rica
I was born on a Frida y morning in a little place ca lled
Ha ll, India na. It was jus t a fte r the turn of the twe ntie th
ce ntury—Octobe r 14, 1910.
Da d and Mothe r ra ised my thre e brothe rs and me on
a s ma ll fa rm in the s outh-ce ntra l pa rt of the state, until
ha rd time s force d our fa mily to move into the ne a rby
town of Ma rtins ville .
Wha t I le a rne d back the re during those e a rly years in
India na —the tra ining I got from my fa the r and mothe r—
has stayed with me a ll my life. Tha t tra ining s ta rte d with
the kind of pe ople my pa re nts were.

Nothing Is S tronge r tha n

Ge ntle ne s s
My dad, Joshua Wooden, was a s trong man in one sense,
but a ge ntle ma n. While he could lift he a vy things men

3
ha lf his age couldn’t lift, he would also read poe try to us
each night a fte r a day working in the fie lds ra is ing corn,
hay, whe at, toma toe s , and wa te rme lons.
We had a team of mule s named Jack and Ka te on our
fa rm. Ka te would ofte n ge t s tubborn and lie down on me
whe n I was plowing. I couldn’t ge t he r up no ma tte r how
roughly I tre a te d her. Da d would see my pre dica me nt and
wa lk across the fie ld until he was close e nough to say
“Ka te .” The n she’d ge t up and s ta rt working again. He
ne ve r touche d he r in anger.
It took me a long time to unde rs ta nd tha t even a s tub-
born mule responds to gentleness.

My Mothe r’s Gre a t Exa mple

My mothe r, Roxie Anna , had a ha rd life living and work-
ing and ra is ing a fa mily in our little white fa rmhous e out-
side Ma rtins ville . She did the washing, s crubbing, ironing,
cooking, me nding, and ca nning with no e le ctricity and no
ins ide plumbing. She did it a ll he rs e lf without a ny mod-
e rn convenie nce s while he lping with the fa rming and
bringing up four ra mbunctious young sons: Ma urice , me,
Da nie l, and Willia m.
At night, during the heat of the India na ha rve s t sea-
son, Mothe r would offe r us cool slices of wa te rme lon as
we sat out on our front porch looking up into the stars.

4
 She gave me my firs t “ba s ke tba ll,” a wobbly thing
s e wed toge the r us ing rolle d-up ra gs she ha d s tuffe d into
s ome bla ck cotton hos e . Da d na ile d a n old toma to ba s ke t
with the bottom knocke d out to one e nd of the ha yloft in
the ba rn. Tha t’s how I got s ta rte d pla ying the ga me of
ba s ke tba ll.
Ea ch da y my mothe r de mons tra te d gre a t pa tie nce a nd
the a bility a nd e a ge rne s s to work ve ry ha rd without
compla int.
I le a rne d from he r wha t ha rd work re a lly me a ns a nd
tha t it’s pa rt of life . Ha rd work come s with the te rritory.
She a lwa ys kne w wha t ha d to be done a nd she did it.
Mothe r provide d a mode l for how to do my job
re gardle s s of the pa rticula r circums ta nce s .

The Re a l Coa che s a nd Te a che rs

A fa the r a nd mothe r mus t be the re to s e t a n e xa mple for
the ir childre n, s trong a nd pos itive models of wha t to be
a nd how to be ha ve whe n the youngs te rs grow up.
Be ing a role mode l is the mos t powe rful form of e du-
ca ting. Youngs ters ne e d good mode ls more tha n the y ne e d
critics . It is one of a pa re nt’s gre a te s t re s pons ibilitie s a nd
opportunitie s .
Too ofte n fa the rs ne glect it because the y ge t so ca ught
up in ma king a living the y forge t to ma ke a life .

5
S trong Ins ide
My fa the r ha d gre a t inne r s tre ngth. He wa s s trong in his
mora l principle s , va lue s , a nd ide a ls , a nd like a ny good
fa the r he wa nte d to ins till the m in his four sons.
He did tha t in the ma nne r by which he live d his life .

Life ’s Ga me P la n S ta rts Ea rly

Da d was one of the wis e s t pe ople I ha ve e ve r known, in
s pite of the fa ct tha t both he a nd Mothe r ha d only high-
s chool e duca tions . My fa the r cre a te d a de s ire in us to
le a rn to re a d (including s ome of the Bible e ve ry da y). He
was a ve ry re ligious ma n without be ing ove rt a bout it. Like
Mothe r, he be lie ve d in ha rd work.
He was a good ma n, s trong a nd pos itive , who wouldn’t
s pe a k ill of a nyone . Da d was quie t, but whe n he did say
s ome thing, he s aid s ome thing.
He was the kind of ma n I s e t out to be . He wa s the
mode l.

Two S ets of Thre e s

My fa the r ha d wha t he ca lle d his “two sets of thre e s .”
The y we re dire ct a nd s imple rule s a ime d a t how he fe lt
we s hould conduct ours e lves in life . The firs t s e t wa s
a bout hone s ty:

6
 Ne ve r lie.
Ne ve r che at.
Ne ve r s te a l.

It re quire d no e xpla na tion. My brothe rs a nd I kne w

wha t it me a nt a nd tha t he e xpe cte d us to a bide by it.
The s e cond s e t of thre e s wa s a bout de a ling with
a dve rs ity:

Don’t whine .
Don’t compla in.
Don’t ma ke excuses.

S ome pe ople toda y ma y think the s e a re na ive or kind

of corny. But think a mome nt a bout wha t the y me a n a nd
who you be come if you a bide by the m. Tha t is n’t na ive .
You don’t be come corny.
Da d’s two sets of thre e s we re a compa ss for me in try-
ing to do the right thing a nd be ha ving in a prope r ma nne r.

P ride or P unis hme nt

J os hua Woode n was a dis ciplina ria n, but not from a phys -
ica l point of vie w. I’d a lmos t ra the r ha ve ta ke n a whipping
tha n he a r him say he was dis appointe d in s ome thing I’d
done .
I wa nte d to plea s e him a nd not le t him down with my
be ha vior. It wa s n’t a fe a r of punis hme nt tha t motiva te d me.
It was my de sire to live up to his mode l a nd e xpe cta tions .

7
 La te r, as a te a che r, I wa nte d thos e unde r my own
s upe rvis ion to be motiva te d in the same wa y, to s trive to
be the ir be s t be ca use I be lie ve d in the m ra the r tha n from
a ny fe a r of punishme nt.

The Gift of a Life time

Whe n I gra dua te d from our little thre e -room gra de
s chool in Ce nte rton, India na , I got dre s s e d up in cle a n
ove ra lls for the big e ve nt. For my gra dua tion pre s e nt Da d
gave me a n old, wrinkle d two-dolla r bill tha t he proba bly
ha d be e n ha nging onto for s ome time .
He s a id, “J ohnny, as long as you ha ve this you’ll ne ver
be broke ,” a nd he was pre tty clos e to right. Eve ntua lly I
gave it to my own s on J im.
Da d a ls o gave me s ome thing tha t da y tha t would shape
my e ntire life : my work, my ma rria ge , my goa ls , my e ntire
philos ophy. It was a ca rd on which he ha d writte n a fe w
guide line s . I s till ca rry it with me . On one s ide was this
ve rs e by the Re ve re nd He nry Va n Dyke :

Four things a ma n mus t le arn to do

If he would ma ke his life more true :
To think without confus ion cle a rly,
To love his fe llow-ma n s ince re ly,
To a ct from hone s t motive s pure ly,
To trus t in God a nd Hea ve n securely.

8
 The little ve rs e wa s s tra ightforwa rd but profound:
think cle a rly, ha ve love in your he a rt, be hone s t, a nd trus t
in God.
On the othe r s ide of the pa pe r, Da d ha d writte n out
his cre e d. At the top of the pa pe r, it s a id “S e ven Things
to Do.” It re a d as follows :

1. Be true to yours e lf.

2. He lp othe rs .
3. Ma ke e a ch da y your ma s te rpie ce .
4. Drink de e ply from good books , e s pe cia lly
the Bible .
5. Ma ke frie nds hip a fine a rt.
6. Build a s he lte r a gains t a ra iny day.
7. P ra y for guida nce a nd count a nd give tha nks
for your ble s s ings e ve ry day.

All he s a id whe n he gave me the little note he ha d

writte n was , “S on, try a nd live up to the s e things .”
I wis h I could say I have live d up to the m. I have trie d.
Ove r the ye a rs , as I’ve a tte mpte d to follow his cre e d, I’ve
ga ine d a de e pe r unde rs ta nding of it. Le t me s ha re wha t it
me a ns to me a fte r a ll the s e ye a rs.

Be True to Yourse lf
If we a re not true to ours e lve s , we ca nnot be true to oth-
e rs —our wife or hus ba nd, our fa mily, our profe s s ion a nd
colle ague s .

9
 As P olonius s a id to his s on La e rte s in Willia m S ha ke -
s pe a re’s Ham le t, “This a bove a ll: to thine own s e lf be
true , a nd it mus t follow, as the night the day, thou ca ns t
not the n be fa lse to a ny ma n.”
This is so true , a nd I be lie ve it is the firs t point in
Da d’s cre e d for a re a s on. You mus t know who you a re a nd
be true to who you a re if you a re going to be who you
ca n a nd s hould be come .
You mus t ha ve the courage to be true to yours e lf.

He lp Othe rs
Oh, the gre a t joy the re is in he lping othe rs , pe rha ps the
gre a te s t joy! You ca nnot ha ve a pe rfe ct da y without he lp-
ing othe rs with no thought of ge tting s ome thing in
re turn. Whe n we a re he lping othe rs with the thought of
ge tting s ome thing ba ck, it’s not the same a t a ll.
S ha ring a nd giving of yours e lf is joyous . Ja me s Rus -
s e ll Lowe ll wrote :

It’s not wha t we give but wha t we share,

For the gift without the give r is ba re .
Who give s of hims e lf of his a lms feeds thre e,
Hims e lf, his hunge ring ne ighbor, a nd me.

The ba s ic pre ce pt of a ll the gre a t re ligions is the

Golde n Rule : Do unto othe rs as you would ha ve the m do
unto you. S imply s ta te d, it me a ns, “He lp othe rs .”

io
 Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give tha n to re ce ive .”
We say those words , but how ofte n do we re a lly believe
them? The y are always true .
You can never a cquire happiness without giving of
yours e lf to someone else without the e xpe cta tion of ge t-
ting s ome thing back.
Whe n it comes to giving, I re mind mys e lf wha t Ra lph
Wa ldo Eme rs on said: “Rings and jewels are not gifts , but
apologies for gifts . The only true gift is a portion of
thys e lf.”

Make Each Day Y our Mas te rpie ce

Whe n I was te aching basketball, I urge d my players to try
the ir hardest to improve on tha t ve ry day, to make that
practice a masterpiece.
Too ofte n we get dis tra cte d by wha t is outside our
control. You can’t do a nything a bout yesterday. The door
to the past has been shut and the key thrown away. You
can do nothing a bout tomorrow. It is ye t to come. How-
ever, tomorrow is in la rge pa rt de te rmine d by what you
do today. So make today a masterpiece. You have control
ove r that.
This rule is even more importa nt in life than basket-
ba ll. You have to a pply yours e lf each day to become a lit-
tle be tter. By a pplying yourse lf to the task of be coming a
little be tte r each and e ve ry day ove r a pe riod of time , you
will become a lot be tter. Only the n will you be able to

ii
a pproa ch be ing the be s t you ca n be . It be gins by trying
to ma ke e a ch da y count a nd knowing you ca n ne ve r ma ke
up for a los t day.
If a playe r a ppe a re d to be ta king it e a sy in pra ctice ,
I told him, “Don’t think you ca n ma ke up for it by work-
ing twice as ha rd tomorrow. If you have it within your
powe r to work twice as ha rd, why a re n’t you doing it
now?”
If you s ince re ly try to do your be s t to ma ke e a ch da y
a ma s te rpie ce , a nge ls ca n do no be tte r.

Drink De e ply front Good Books,

Including the Bible
P oe try, biogra phie s , a nd a ll the othe r gre a t books will
gre a tly e nrich your life . The re a re so ma ny tha t a re so
good, a nd the y a re a ll a va ila ble to you. The poe try Da d
re a d to us whe n we we re kids ins tille d a love of re a ding,
Englis h, books, a nd knowle dge .
It was a price les s gift a nd one tha t has e nha nce d my
own life so much. Drink de e ply from thos e gre a t books
of your own choos ing a nd you will e nrich yours e lf.

Make Frie nds hip a Fine Art

Don’t ta ke frie nds hip for gra nte d. Frie nds hip is giving a nd
s ha ring of yours e lf. If jus t one s ide works a t it, it is n’t
frie nds hip. You mus t work a t frie nds hip. Ma ke it a fine a rt.
Go more tha n ha lfwa y. It is two-s ide d, jus t like ma rria ge .

12
 S ome one is not a good frie nd be ca use he or she does
good things for you a ll the time . It’s frie nds hip whe n you
do good things for e a ch othe r. It’s s howing conce rn a nd
cons ide ra tion. Frie nds hip is so va lua ble a nd so powe rful.
We ta ke it for gra nte d, but we s houldn’t.

At time s whe n I a m fe e ling low,

I he a r from a frie nd a nd the n
My worrie s s ta rt to go away
And I a m on the me nd.

In s pite of a ll tha t doctors know,

And the ir s tudie s ne ve r end,
The be s t cure of a ll whe n s pirits fa ll
Is a kind note from a frie nd.

—John Wooden

The firs t a nd mos t importa nt s te p in frie nds hip is

be ing a frie nd.

Build a S he lte r Agains t a R ainy Day

This is not ne ce s s a rily a ma te ria l s he lte r. Your fa ith, wha t-
e ve r it ma y be , is the gre a te s t s he lte r of a ll. In ma ny wa ys
we ’ve be e n ta ke n in by ma te ria lis m. I’m not s a ying pos -
sessions a re unimporta nt, but we ofte n put the m out of
proportion, a hea d of fa mily, fa ith, a nd frie nds .

*5
Pray for Guidance and Count and Give Thanks
for Y our Bles s ings Eve ry Day
So ofte n we fa il to a cknowle dge wha t we have be ca use we ’re
so conce rne d a bout what we wa nt. We fa il to give re a l tha nks
for the ma ny bles s ings for which we did nothing: our life
its e lf, the flowe rs , the tre e s , our fa mily a nd frie nds . This
mome nt. All of our bles s ings we ta ke for gra nte d so much
of the time .
A wis e pe rs on once obs e rve d, “How much more ple as -
a nt this world would be if we ma gnifie d our ble s s ings the
wa y we ma gnify our dis a ppointme nts .”
And, of cours e , with tha t we mus t a ls o pra y for guid-
ance. One of my pla yers a t u c l a once told me he was e mba r-
ra s s e d to ha ve a nyone know tha t he pra ye d. The re ’s no
s ha me in pra ying for guida nce . It’s a s ign of s tre ngth.

Living Up to Da d’s Cre e d

I a m now in my e ighth decade a nd I would like to be able
to te ll you tha t I live d up to Da d’s cre e d, but I a m more like
the fe llow who sa id:

I a m not wha t I ought to be,

Not wha t I wa nt to be,
Not wha t I a m going to be,
But I a m tha nkful tha t
I a m be tte r tha n I used to be.

H
 It’s importa nt to ke e p trying to do wha t you think is
right no ma tte r how ha rd it is or how ofte n you fa il. You
ne ve r s top trying. I’m s till trying.

Give It Awa y to Ge t It Ba ck
The re is a wonde rful, a lmos t mys tica l, la w of na ture tha t
says thre e of the things we wa nt mos t—ha ppine s s , fre e -
dom, a nd pe a ce of mind—a re a lwa ys a tta ine d whe n we
give the m to othe rs .

S ix of Life ’s P uzzle rs
Why is it e a s ie r to criticize tha n to
complime nt?
Why is it e a s ie r to give othe rs bla me tha n to
give the m cre dit?
Why is it tha t so ma ny who a re quick to
ma ke s ugge s tions find it so difficult to ma ke
de cis ions ?
Why ca n’t we re a lize tha t it only we a ke ns
thos e we wa nt to he lp whe n we do things for
the m tha t the y s hould do for the ms e lve s ?
Why is it so much e a s ie r to a llow e motions
ra the r tha n re a s on to control our de cis ions ?
Why doe s the pe rs on with the le as t to say
us ua lly ta ke the longe s t to say it?
Trus ting Othe rs
It has be e n s a id tha t you will be hurt occa s iona lly if you
trus t too much. This ma y be true , but you will live in tor-
me nt if you do not trus t e nough.
Trus ting is pa rt of our highe r na ture . Doubting is a
lowe r ins tinct. The la tte r is e a sy to do, the forme r more
difficult—but so much more re wa rding.

P olite ne s s a nd Courte s y
You’ve he a rd the e xpre s s ion “P olite ne s s a nd courte s y are
a s ma ll price to pa y for the goodwill of othe rs .” In fa ct,
I’ve us e d it mys e lf from time to time e ve n though I don’t
re a lly a gree with it.
Be ing polite a nd courte ous is n’t pa ying a price a ny
more tha n s miling or be ing ha ppy is pa ying a price . You
ge t more tha n you give whe n you a re polite a nd courte -
ous . You don’t pay. You a re pa id.

Wha t You Are

A fa vorite obs e rva tion of my da d’s wa s the following:
“Ne ve r be lie ve you’re be tte r tha n a nybody e lse , but
reme mber tha t you’re jus t as good as e ve rybody e ls e .”
Tha t’s importa nt: No be tte r, but jus t as good!

16
 I a ttempte d to keep tha t in mind both whe n we
we ren’t winning na tiona l cha mpions hips and whe n we
we re . It he lpe d me avoid ge tting ca rried away with myse lf.
It goes back to the importa nce of ha ving s trong guid-
ance and role models in the home. Tha t’s whe re the s ta n-
dards are set.

Ne llie a nd I Agre e d to Be Agre e a ble

Ne llie Rile y ca ught my eye the firs t time I ever saw he r
back at Ma rtins ville High S chool in India na, It was on a
wa rm s ta r-fille d night at the ca rniva l during the s ummer
of my fre s hma n year. I think we probably fe ll in love right
away and didn’t even know it.
Folks think Ne llie and I had a pe rfe ct marria ge, but
it was because we worke d at it. The re are rough patches
in any ma rria ge . Ve ry e a rly we unde rs tood that there
would be time s whe n we disagreed but the re would never
be time s whe n we had to be disagreeable. We ke pt to that
rule for ove r ha lf a ce ntury.
Ne llie and I have a gre at love for one a nother, but we
unde rstood that even love takes some work.

P a s s ion Is n’t Love

Love is more tha n passion. Passion is te mpora ry It is n’t
la s ting. Love , re a l love, lasts.

J7
Love a nd Ma rria ge
Love me a ns ma ny things . It me a ns giving. It me a ns s ha r-
ing, It me a ns forgiving. It me a ns unde rs ta nding. It me a ns
be ing pa tie nt. It me a ns le a rning. And you mus t a lwa ys
cons ide r the othe r s ide , the othe r pe rs on. You ca n give
without loving, but you ca nnot love without giving.
And a ll thos e things you mus t not ta ke for gra nte d,
but continue to work at.
I a gree with Abra ha m Lincoln, He once s a id tha t the
be s t thing a ma n ca n do for his childre n is to love the ir
mother.

Ma rria ge Is Not Courts hip

Of cours e , love is the firs t cha ra cte ris tic of a good hus -
ba nd or a good wife . If you ha ve the love you s hould
ha ve , you’ll find e ve rything else is the re if you work a t it.
Young couple s ge t ma rrie d a nd don’t re a lize it’s dif-
fe re nt from courts hip. You ha ve to work a t your ma rria ge ;
it’s two-s ide d, a nd you’d be tte r re a lize tha t,
I ha d a s ucce ss ful ba s ke tba ll ca re e r, but I be lie ve I ha d
a n e ve n more s ucce s s ful ma rria ge . In both work a nd ma r-
ria ge you mus t be cons ide ra te a nd s ince re ly ca re a bout the
we lfa re of the othe r pe rs on.

18
Whe n Ma rria ge We a ke ns
Did your ma rria ge s ta rt from love? Of cours e it did. So,
look ba ck. We re you more cons ide ra te the n? Ha ve you los t
tha t for s ome re a s on? Ma rria ge re quire s tha t e a ch pa rt-
ne r lis te n to the othe r s ide . It’s like wha t I say a bout le a d-
e rs hip: “You mus t be inte re s te d in finding the be s t wa y,
not in ha ving your own wa y.”
The same is true in ma rria ge . Don’t be s tubborn a nd
ins is t on ha ving your own way. Look to find a wa y tha t
works for both of you.

Te a m Woode n
P e ople a s k if I ra is e d my own fa mily the wa y I ra n the
u c l a ba s ke tba ll te a m. I te ll the m, “No, I ra n the te a m
pre tty much like I ra n my fa mily.” Only with the fa mily
I ha d the gre a te s t co-coa ch working a longs ide me , by the
na me of Ne llie .

Fa mily Firs t
This ma y se e m like fa ls e mode s ty, but it is n’t inte nde d to
be . I a m ha ppy my te a ms a t u c l a a nd e ls e whe re did we ll
a nd we e a rne d a me a s ure of re cognition. But a ll of tha t is
nothing compa re d to my fa mily: Ne llie , our two childre n,

19
our s e ven gra ndchildre n, a nd a ll te n of our gre a t-gra nd-
childre n. All tha t love is imme a s ura ble .
My gre a t-gra ndda ughte r, Cori, asked me the othe r
day, “P a pa , how much longe r a re you going to live ?” I ha d
to chuckle be ca use whe n you’re my age, pe ople te nd to
be a little more diploma tic with que s tions like tha t.
“Cori, de a r,” I s a id, “why do you a s k me tha t? ”
“Be ca us e I will be a ble to drive a ca r in s ix more
ye a rs a nd I wa nt you to te a ch me how, P a pa .”
I thought, “Wha t a n honor she has give n me .”
Your fa mily is wha t counts , a nd you mus t a lwa ys
re me mbe r tha t as you ge t ca ught up in your own profe s -
s iona l re s pons ibilitie s .
P m ve ry proud of the fa ct tha t while a ll the re cords
we re be ing s e t a t u c l a by our ba s ke tba ll te a ms , I fe lt
e xa ctly the same wa y. Fa mily is firs t. Always . Alwa ys .

S ports , Books , a nd Kids

Mos t kids, e s pe cia lly boys , a re dra wn to s ports a nd would
ra the r pick up a ba s ke tba ll or ba s e ba ll tha n a book. This
is whe re pa re nts mus t guide the youngs te r’s thinking.
S ports a re fine , but childre n mus t be e xpos e d to othe r
things by the ir mothe rs a nd fa the rs , a nd tha t includes
books, re a ding, le a rning.
My own love of poe try ca me dire ctly from my da d’s
willingne s s to re a d to a ll his boys e a ch night ba ck on the

20
fa rm. I wa s e xpos ed to re a ding ve ry e a rly on a nd de ve l-
ope d a love for it be fore I e ve n re a lize d it. It has s ta ye d
with me —to my gre a t be ne fit—a ll of my life . All thre e of
my brothe rs be ca me te a che rs .
A child mus t de ve lop a love of a ca de mics e a rly, a nd it
us ua lly doe s n’t jus t ha ppe n. Mom a nd Da d have to pro-
vide the guida nce with how the y s pe nd the ir time .

P a re nts , Childre n, a nd Goa ls

A pa re nt ca n he lp dire ct a child whe n it come s to goa ls .
S how le a de rs hip. S how dis cipline . S how indus trious nes s .
Ha ve tra ditiona l va lue s . The pe rs on you a re is the pe rs on
your child will be come .

Me ntors
Me ntors , a dults who provide dire ction a nd a good e xa m-
ple, a re ve ry importa nt to youngs te rs . I know this because
I ha d thre e who we re so importa nt in my life .
Mr. Ea rl Wa rrine r was my country gra de -s chool prin-
cipa l, te a che r, a nd coa ch ba ck in Ce nte rton, India na . From
Mr. Wa rrine r I le a rne d tha t the re a re no “s ta rs ” or priv-
ile ge d individua ls .
He would not compromis e his principle s for the sake
of conve nie nce , a lthough he re cognize d the right of indi-
vidua ls to diffe r in the ir opinions on issues. And whe n he

21
wa s wrong, he de mons tra te d tha t he wa s ma n e nough to
a dmit it without ra tiona liza tion or a libi.
My Ma rtins ville high-s chool coa ch, Mr, Gle nn Cur-
tis , ha d a tre me ndous ta le nt for ge tting individua ls a nd
te a ms to ris e to gre a t he ights , to ne a r the ir uppe rmos t
le ve l of compe te ncy. He wa s a ls o a fine te a che r of funda -
me nta ls whom I trie d to e mula te in my own te a ching
la te r on.
And Mr, Wa rd (“P iggy’1) La mbe rt, my coa ch a t P ur-
due Unive rs ity, de mons tra te d e xtra ordina ry de votion to
his principle s a nd was willing to s uffe r wha te ve r cons e -
quence s tha t e nta ile d.
For e xa mple , Coa ch La mbe rt be lie ve d tha t a ll inte r-
collegia te ga me s s hould be playe d on or ne a r the ca mpus
of one of the pa rticipa ting s chools . This , of cours e , ra n
counte r to wha t wa s re quire d in the pla yoffs , whe re games
we re ofte n playe d on dis ta nt courts .
Coach fe lt this de prive d the s tude nts of the colle ge s
involved a nd impos ed a n unfa ir tra ve l burde n on the m. He
a ls o be lie ve d it wa s ina ppropria te to hold inte rcolle gia te
compe titions in comme rcia l ve nue s .
In 1940 P urdue Unive rs ity won the Big Te n title a nd
a long with it a trip to the pla yoffs in Ma dis on S qua re
Ga rde n. Coach La mbe rt s ubs eque ntly withdre w P urdue ’s
ba s ke tba ll te a m from the na tiona l tourna me nt. India na ,
the te a m tha t ha d finis he d jus t be hind P urdue in the
s ta ndings , wa s the re place me nt te a m a nd won the na tiona l

22
cha mpions hip tha t ye a r. Coach La mbe rt he ld to his prin-
ciple s . He wa s true to his be lie fs .
My goodne s s , how fortuna te I was as a youngs te r to
have be e n pos itive ly influe nce d by the s e a dults . I be lie ve
tha t we have a n obliga tion as a dults to he lp youngs te rs in
a s imila r ma nne r. Mr. La mbe rt, Mr. Curtis , a nd Mr. Wa r-
rine r: gre a t te a che rs , le ade rs , coa che s.

A Pare nt Talks to a Child

Be fore the Firs t Gam e

This is your firs t game, my child. I hope you win.

I hope you win for your sake, not mine.
Because winning’s nice .
It’s a good fe e ling.
Like the whole world is yours .
But, it passes, this fe e ling.
And wha t lasts is wha t you’ve le a rne d.

And wha t you le a rn a bout is life .

Tha t’s wha t s ports is a ll a bout. Life .
The whole thing is playe d out in an a fte rnoon.
The happiness of life .
The mis e rie s .
The joys.
The he a rtbre a ks .

23
The re ’s no te lling wha t 11 turn up.
The re ’s no te lling whe the r the y’ll toss you out in
the firs t five minute s or whe the r you’ll s ta y for
the long ha ul.

The re ’s no te lling how you’ll do.

You might be a he ro or you might be a bs olute ly
nothing.
The re ’s jus t no te lling.
Too much depends on chance.
On how the ba ll bounce s.

I’m not ta lking a bout the game, my child.

I’m ta lking a bout life .
But, it’s life tha t the game is a ll a bout.
J us t as I said.

Because e ve ry game is life .

And life is a game.
A s e rious game
De ad serious.

But, tha t’s wha t you do with s e rious things .

You do your best.
You ta ke wha t comes.
You ta ke wha t comes
And you run with it.

24
 Winning is fun.
Sure.
But winning is not the point.

Wa nting to win is the point.

Not giving up is the point.
Ne ve r being satisfied with wha t you’ve done
is the point.
Never le tting up is the point.
Ne ve r le tting anyone down is the point.

Play to win.
Sure.
But lose like a champion.
Because it’s not winning tha t counts.
Wha t counts is trying.
—Unknown

You Are More Influe ntia l

tha n You Think
Like it or not, we have influe nce of ma ny diffe re nt kinds
in ma ny diffe re nt places and should conduct ourselves in
an a ppropria te ma nne r. This verse is corre ct:
More often tha n we e’er suspect,
The lives of others we do affect.

25
 S upers ta rs who don’t wa nt the re s pons ibility tha t
come s with public a ccla im don’t have tha t choice. The y
a re role models whe the r the y like it or not; the y ca nnot
s imply a nnounce tha t the y inte nd to s hirk the ir re s pons i-
bility. The y a re role mode ls , e ithe r good or ba d.
So a re you. So a m I. I be lie ve we have a n obliga tion
to ma ke tha t mode l a pos itive one.

Comme nd, Don’t Criticize

Whe n a child doe s s ome thing we ll, comme nda tion is a
powe rful tool. One of the mos t powe rful motiva ting tools
you ca n use is the pa t on the ba ck. Yes, occa s iona lly the
pa t mus t be a little lowe r a nd a little ha rde r, but too ofte n
pa re nts ne gle ct the pra is e . The y a re quick to criticize a nd
s low to comme nd.

P a re nting a nd Coa ching

I think pa re nting a nd coa ching or te a ching a re the same
thing. And the y a re the two mos t importa nt profes s ions
in the world.
P a rents a re coaches , the firs t coa che s a child has. Too
ma ny pa re nts e xpe ct the coa che s a nd te a che rs a t s chool to
do wha t the y a re not doing a t home . The pa re nts mus t se t
the founda tion e a rly. It is ofte n too la te by the time a child
goe s to s chool.

26
My Fa vorite Four-Le tte r Words :
“Kids ” a nd “Love ”
The gre a te s t word in the whole dictiona ry is love. Love
your childre n. Lis te n to the m. S ha re with the m. Re me m-
be r tha t love is the mos t powe rful me dicine in the world.
Do not force the m or drive the m too ha rd. S e t the
e xa mple of wha t you wa nt the m to be . Try a lwa ys to be
a good mode l.
Childre n a re impa tie nt. The y wa nt to do right, but
ma ybe the y don’t know how. Ma ybe you ha ven’t ta ught
the m how. Be ing a good e xa mple is a powe rful te a ching
de vice . This ve rs e is a ccurate :

No writte n word
nor s poke n ple a
Ca n te a ch our youth
wha t the y s hould be.

Nor a ll the books

on a ll the shelves.
It’s wha t the te a chers
a re themselves.
—Unknown

I think tha t’s it. Thos e te a che rs a nd coa che s a re the

mothe rs a nd fa the rs , a nd the ir mos t powe rful tool is love .

27
Cha ra cte r
Be more conce rne d with your cha ra cte r tha n your re pu-
ta tion. Cha ra cte r is wha t you re a lly a re . Re puta tion is
wha t pe ople say you a re . Re puta tion is ofte n ba s e d on
cha ra cte r—but not a lwa ys .
Cha ra cte r is how you re a ct to things —s e ns ibly, with-
out ge tting ca rrie d a way by yours e lf or your circum-
s ta nce s . A pe rson of cha ra cte r is trus tworthy a nd hones t,
a nd for a dolla r he or she will give you a dolla r.
The othe r kind of pe rs on looks for the e a sy wa y out.
I like to think the playe rs I coa che d, howe ve r the y
ca me to u c l a , le ft as me n of cha ra cte r. But in truth, if
the y didn’t ha ve it whe n the y ca me, I couldn’t give it to
the m. By the n it wa s too la te. Tha t’s a job for a mothe r
a nd fa the r.

The Funda me nta l Goa l

The goa l in life is jus t the same as in ba s ke tba ll: ma ke the
e ffort to do the be s t you a re ca pable of doing—in ma r-
ria ge, a t your job, in the community, for your country.
Ma ke the e ffort to contribute in wha te ve r wa y you ca n.
You ma y do it ma te ria lly or with time , idea s, or work.
Ma king the e ffort to contribute is wha t counts. The e ffort
is wha t counts in e ve rything.

28
P e rfe ction
P e rfe ction is what you are s triving for, but pe rfe ction is
an impos s ibility. Howe ver, s triving for pe rfe ction is not an
impos s ibility. Do the best you can unde r the conditions
that exist. Tha t is what counts.
Our teams at u c l a had four pe rfe ct seasons, but we
never pla ye d a pe rfe ct game, never played as we ll as we
could. Tha t’s pe rfe ction. We didn’t reach pe rfe ction, but
we cons tantly s trove towa rd it.
I believe there is nothing wrong with the othe r fe l-
low be ing be tte r than you are if you’ve pre pare d and are
functioning in the wa y you’ve trie d to prepa re . Tha t’s a ll
you can do.
But the re is s ome thing wrong if you’ve fa ile d to mea-
sure up to your a bility because you haven’t prepa re d.

P rioritie s

My pa re nts and e a rly teachers trie d to ins till these prior-

itie s : fa mily, fa ith, and frie nds . I’ve live d my life va luing
those things mos t of a ll.
Fa mily? Obvious ly. Friends? Of course. And I te ll
pe ople I de finite ly be lieve in God. I jus t hope God
believes in me.

29
Le a rn Fore ve r, Die Tomorrow
Ea rly on I came to believe tha t you s hould le a rn as if you
were going to live foreve r, and live as if you were going
to die tomorrow. Wha t does this mean? In the s imple s t
way, I would e xpla in it like this .
Alwa ys be le arning, a cquiring knowle dge , and seek-
ing wis dom with a sense tha t you are immorta l and that
you will need much knowle dge and wis dom for that long
journe y ahead. Know that whe n you are through le a rn-
ing, you are through.
But I wa nt to live tha t life as if I were going to die
tomorrow: with re lis h, imme dia cy, and the right priorities .
I also will not waste even a minute .

Fa ults Are Fine

I proba bly have a ll the same fa ults anyone has, and so do
you. The re ’s nothing wrong with tha t. Ha ving fa ults
means you’re huma n; you’re alive and brea thing. The re ’s
nothing wrong with ha ving fa ults so long as you work
cons cientious ly to correct the m.
How ha rd you work at corre cting your fa ults reveals
your character.

Time le s s Tra its

Some say I believe in old-fa s hione d traits : courtesy, polite -
ness, and cons ide ra tion. I do believe in these qua litie s , but

30
the y aren’t old-fa s hione d. The y ne ve r go out of s tyle —
even whe n the y seem to be incre a s ingly scarce.
I be lie ve the y are s till common. We jus t see the ir
opposite s so much in the me dia tha t we think tha t’s a ll
there is.
People like to he lp, to be polite , to be considera te . I
be lie ve it’s basic huma n na ture. And it’s a funny thing:
whe n you s ta rt dis pla ying courte s y, polite ne ss, and con-
s ide ra tion, pe ople s ta rt dis pla ying them right back.

Giving a nd Re ce iving
I’m old e nough to re me mbe r whe n P re side nt Ca lvin
Coolidge observed, “No person was ever honore d for wha t
he received. Honor has been the re wa rd for wha t he gave.”
It was true ba ck the n and it’s s till true today.

Are You Looking for

the Right Things ?
The re ’s an old s tory a bout a fe llow who we nt to a s ma ll
town in India na with the thought of pos s ibly moving his
fa mily there . “Wha t kind of pe ople live a round here?” he
asked the a tte nda nt at the loca l filling s ta tion.
“We ll,” the a tte nda nt re plie d as he checked the oil,
“wha t kind of pe ople live ba ck whe re you’re from? ”
The vis itor took a s wa llow of his che rry soda and
re plie d, “The y’re orne ry, mean, and dis hone s t!”

31
 The a tte nda nt looke d up and answered, “Mis te r, you’ll
find them a bout like tha t a round here, too.”
A fe w weeks la te r, a nothe r ge ntle ma n s toppe d by the
gas s ta tion on a muggy J uly a fte rnoon with the same ques-
tion. “Excuse me ,” he said as he moppe d off his brow.
“I’m thinking of moving to your town with my fa mily.
Wha t kind of pe ople live a round these pa rts?”
Aga in the a tte nda nt asked, “We ll, what kind of people
live back whe re you’re from? ”
The s tra nge r thought for a mome nt and re plie d, “I
find the m to be kind, decent, and honest folks .”
The gas s ta tion a tte nda nt looke d up and said, “Mis -
te r, you’ll find them a bout like tha t a round here, too.”
It’s so true . You ofte n find wha t you’re looking for.

Apple s
Eve ry ye a r you hear a bout a fe w bad apples in one pro-
fession or a nothe r: law, re ligion, business, a nything. But
the pe rce ntage of bad apples is tiny, proba bly a bout the
same as it’s always been. The pe rce ntage of good apples
is la rge . We jus t don’t he a r a bout them.
People complain a bout a ll the bad politicia ns and it
does seem tha t so ma ny of the m running for office are
be ing dishone st (some perhaps without re a lizing it). The y
make promis e s the y know the y can’t keep and cast harsh
aspersions on one a nothe r.
 S till, it’s a bout the same in that re ga rd as it’s always
been: ple nty of good ones and a fe w who ge t a ll the
a tte ntion.
The vast ma jority of Ame rica ns are good: the moth-
ers and fa the rs , the working pe ople , the childre n, the vast
ove rwhe lming ma jority—millions and millions and mil-
lions . A s ma ll, s ma ll percentage are othe rwis e . The y get
the a ttention.
But we mus tn’t forge t the tre me ndous good we have
within us as a pe ople . I have a ve ry pos itive opinion of
Ame rica and our citize ns . My opinion of the me dia and
wha t the y try to te ll us a bout ourselves is perhaps not
quite as high (a lthough there , too, the ma jority of them
are good and mean we ll).
The me dia pla y up wha t’s wrong more than wha t’s
right, and mos t of wha t we have is right. As we work to
corre ct wha t is wrong, we mus t always keep in mind a ll
the things tha t are right with Ame rica and Americans .

Bringing Out the Be s t in P e ople

People wa nt to be lie ve you are s ince re ly inte re ste d in
them as persons, not jus t for wha t the y can do for you.
You can’t fake it. If you don’t mean it, the y know it—jus t
as you’d know if someone were pre tending to be inte re ste d
in you.

33
 In the workpla ce you’ll ge t be tte r coope ra tion a nd
res ults if you a re s ince re ly inte re s te d in pe ople’s fa milie s
a nd inte re s ts , not s imply how the y do the ir job. This will
bring productive re s ults . Mos t pe ople try to live up to
e xpe cta tions .
It a lwa ys come s ba ck to courte s y, polite ne s s , a nd
cons ide ra tion.

India na a nd Ba s ke tba ll
Wa y ba ck whe n I gre w up in India na in the twe ntie s ,
pe ople we re nuts for ba s ke tba ll, jus t like the y a re toda y.
I fe ll in love with it too, s ta rting with tha t toma to ba s ke t
na ile d to the ha yloft in our ba rn. He re ’s a little e xa mple
of how the pe ople in my home town fe lt a bout the ga me.
Whe n I we nt to high s chool in Ma rtins ville , the re was
a s ign pos te d outs ide town tha t re a d: Ma rtins ville , Indi-
ana, pop. 4,800. Howe ve r, our high-s chool gymna s ium
s e a te d 5,200 pe ople , 400 more tha n live d in the whole
town! And it wa s much like tha t a ll ove r the s ta te . Our
gym was a lways full for ga me s .
Whe n the s ta te ba s ke tba ll tourna me nt was pla ye d at
Butle r Fie ld Hous e , the s e a ting wa s a bout 18,000, but
the y could ha ve s old fa r more ticke ts for e ve ry ga me . I
gre w up in tha t hotbe d of ba s ke tba ll whe re pe ople we re
a bs olute ly nuts for it.
I didn’t think so a t the time , but in re fle ction ma ybe
we ha d it out of proportion.

34
Five More P uzzle rs
• Why is it so difficult to re alize tha t othe rs
are more like ly to lis ten to us if firs t we lis te n
to them?
• Why is it so much easier to be negative tha n
positive ?
• Why is it so difficult to motiva te ourselves
whe n we know tha t re sults come only
through motiva tion?
• Why is it so difficult to say tha nk you to
someone whe n those are two of our own
fa vorite words to hear?
• Why do we dread a dve rs ity whe n we know
tha t fa cing it is the only wa y to become
s tronge r, s marte r, be tte r?

The Fa mily Ha s Cha nge d

The fa mily unit has s uffe red since World Wa r II, perhaps
because so ma ny men and wome n le ft the home to go off
to wa r or to work in fa ctories re la te d to the wa r e ffort.
The y rea lize d a fte r the wa r tha t they could have more
ma te ria l things if they continued to work outs ide the
home .
This has increased more and more right up the pre s-
e nt day. The result? More and more la tchke y childre n,
kids whose pa re nts are both away too much.

35
 I am inclined to fe e l tha t our s ocie ty as a whole has
become so infatua ted with ma teria l things that we have
gotten away from the funda me nta l values and ideals. We
seek happiness in the wrong places and in the wrong form.
This is not to say pe ople we ren’t inte re s te d in mate -
ria l things be fore World Wa r II, but tha t’s whe n it re a lly
seemed to s ta rt.
Now pa re nts will say, “We ’re jus t trying to make ends
me et,” and they’re te lling the truth. But if you think too
much a bout the pursuit of ma teria l things , you’re going
to hurt those youngs ters you’re working so ha rd to buy
ma teria l things for.

The Gre a te s t J oy
Ha ppiness is in ma ny things . It’s in love. It’s in s ha ring.
But mos t of a ll, it’s in be ing at peace with yours e lf know-
ing that you are ma king the e ffort, the full e ffort, to do
wha t is right.
True happiness comes from the things that ca nnot be
ta ke n away from you. Ma king the full e ffort to do the
right thing can never be ta ke n away from you.
I believe the gre a te st joy one can have is doing some-
thing for someone else without any thought of ge tting
s omething in re turn.

36
P e e r P re s s ure
Youngsters toda y ofte n blame others for the ir own con-
duct. I te ll youngs te rs at ba s ketba ll clinics , “If you’re
bla ming these things on othe rs , doing it s imply because
the y are, tha t shows weakness on your pa rt. You’re ma k-
ing excuses. Giving yours e lf an a libi, trying to condone
wha t you’re doing. You’re bla ming s omebody else, and
tha t’s weakness.
“You know wha t’s right and wrong. I know you do.”
It’s the poore s t excuse in the world to say, “We ll,
s omebody else did it, so I have to do it.” Tha t’s no dif-
fe re nt from sa ying, “I’ve got to rob a ba nk because the
othe r fe llow did.”
It goes right back to the firs t point on Da d’s seven-
point creed: Be true to yours e lf. You know wha t’s right.
Don’t le t someone else decide for you.

Acce pting Our Re s pons ibility

The re have been ma ny wars fought and millions of lives
los t because leaders diffe re d with othe r leaders in re ga rd
to re ligion or race. You and I mus t accept some a ccount-
a bility for future bloodshed if each and e ve ry day we don’t
do s ome thing in our own way to alleviate pre judice in our-
selves or othe rs .

31
A Le s s on on Emotion a nd La ngua ge
My olde r brothe r, Ma urice , a nd I we re cle a ning out
a djoining s ta lls in the ba rn e a rly one S a turday morning
when he tos s e d a pitchfork’s worth of ma nure in my fa ce .
I wa s furious a nd we nt a fte r him. He wa s thre e ye a rs
olde r tha n me , so I couldn’t do much a ga ins t him a t the
time . But in the proce s s I ca lle d him a na me I s houldn’t
have.
My fa the r ove rhe a rd it a nd gave me the only re a l lick-
ing I e ve r got. I kne w I ha d it coming, so I a cce pte d it a
little be tte r tha n I might have othe rwis e . Ma urice got a
good s ma cking, too. I be lie ve it wa s e ve n ha rde r tha n
mine .
For wha teve r re a s ons , I le a rne d s ome thing tha t has
s ta ye d with me to this ve ry da y a nd has be e n ve ry impor-
ta nt to me throughout my life : control your te mpe r a nd
don’t use profa nity.
Of cours e , it’s a lot e a s ie r to a void the la tte r if you
reme mber the forme r.

A Re minde r: Be True to Yours e lf

In 1932, the ye a r I gra dua te d from college , the old pro-
fe s s iona l ba s ke tba ll le a gue out Ea s t broke up a nd a te a m
of pla ye rs from the origina l Ne w York Ce ltics was ge tting
re a dy to go a round the country on a ba rns torming tour.

3*
 I ha d be e n an All-Ame rica n for thre e ye a rs at P ur-
due Unive rs ity, as we ll as Colle ge P la ye r of the Ye ar, a nd
be ca us e of tha t ha d gotte n a lot of publicity. The Ce ltics
offe re d me $5,000 to join the m on the tour.
At the time , $5,000 was a huge s um. A job whe re I
would te a ch five Englis h classes a da y a nd coa ch four
s ports in a ddition to be ing a thle tic dire ctor would bring
in only $1,500 a ye a r.
While pla ying profe s s iona l ba s ke tba ll wa s ne ithe r
wha t I ha d pla nne d to do nor wha t I ha d s tudie d in class,
I was ve ry te mpte d to go ba rns torming.
I we nt to my colle ge coa ch, P iggy La mbe rt, a ma n of
e xtre me ly high principle s , a nd told him a bout the offe r. I
a ske d for his a dvice on wha t to do.
Coa ch La mbe rt thought for a mome nt as he s huffle d
s ome pa pe rs a round on his de sk. Fina lly he looke d up at
me a nd s a id, “Tha t’s a lot of mone y, is n’t it, J ohn? ”
I s mile d a nd chuckle d s e lf-cons cious ly. “Yes, it s ure is,
Coach. It’s a lot of mone y.”
Coa ch La mbe rt didn’t re s pond imme dia te ly. The n he
a s ke d, “Is tha t wha t you ca me to P urdue for? ”
I was puzzled. “Wha t do you me a n, Coa ch?” I re plie d.
“I me a n, did you come to this unive rs ity so you could
go out tra ve ling a round in profe s s iona l a thle tics ? ”
I blinke d, cle a red my throa t, a nd s ta re d down a t my
shoes. “No, I didn’t come he re to do tha t, s ir. I ca me to
ge t a n e duca tion.”

39
 “Le t me ask you s ome thing, J ohn. Did you ge t an
e duca tion? ”
“Yes, I believe I did, sir. A good one,” I re plie d.
“We ll,” he said, “the n maybe you s hould use it. But
tha t’s a decision you’ll have to make. I can’t decide for you.
You’ll have to decide for yours e lf.”
Coach La mbe rt had give n me my answer. He had got-
te n me back to Da d’s firs t creed: Be true to yours e lf.
De e p down I had known wha t the correct decision
was. Coa ch La mbe rt jus t he lpe d bring it out. I re a lly
wa nte d to teach and coach.
In life , we’re not always lucky enough to have some-
one he lp us with importa nt decisions. Mos t of the time
you have to figure it out for yours e lf and it may be con-
fus ing and difficult. You’ll us ually do a ll right, though, if
you have the coura ge to be true to yours e lf.

Ma ke Fa te Your Frie nd
Fate plays a pa rt in each of our lives. I was te aching and
coa ching at India na State Teachers Colle ge whe n I was
offere d coa ching pos itions at both the Unive rs ity of Min-
nesota and u c l a . I was incline d to go with Minne sota
because it was in the Midwe s t, but there was a little hitch
in the offer. The y wa nted me to keep Dave McMilla n, the
fe llow I would be re pla cing, as an assistant.

40
 I didn’t think tha t would be for the be s t, so the y
offe re d to conside r giving Mr. McMilla n a nothe r pos ition
a t the unive rs ity, one a cce pta ble to him. Howe ve r, this
would ta ke a fe w days for the boa rd to de te rmine .
The y promis e d the y would ca ll me S a turda y at 6:oo
p . m . with the ir de cis ion. I told the m if the y could ma ke
the cha nge a nd it wa s a cce pta ble to Mr. McMilla n, I would
come to Minne s ota a nd coa ch the ir ba s ke tba ll te a m.
Me a nwhile , u c l a wa s wa iting for a de cis ion. I told
the m to ca ll me on S a turda y night at 7:00. By the n I
would know wha t Minne s ota ha d de cide d. I informe d u c l a
tha t if Minne s ota ma de the offe r, I would be s ta ying in
the Midwe s t. But fa te s te pped in a nd cha nge d things .
On the da y the Unive rs ity of Minne s ota wa s s up-
pos e d to ca ll me , a blizza rd hit the Twin Citie s a nd knock-
e d out a ll phone s e rvice in a nd a round Minne a polis .
Una wa re of the s itua tion, I wa ite d pa tie ntly for the ca ll.
None ca me , not at 6:00, not at 6:30. My phone didn’t ring
at 6:45.
Howe ve r, right on the button at 7:00 p .m ., u c l a ca lle d.
I a s s ume d Minne s ota ha d de cide d a ga ins t offe ring me the
coa ching pos ition, so I a cce pte d u c l a ’s offe r.
Almos t imme dia te ly a fte r I finis he d ta lking with u c l a ,
the ca ll ca me through from Minne a polis . I wa s told a bout
the s torm. I wa s a ls o told tha t the a djus tme nt ha d be e n
a pprove d a nd the y we re offe ring me the pos ition of he a d

41
bas ketba ll coa ch a t the Unive rs ity of Minne s ota , the job
tha t I re a lly wa nte d.
Ha d I be e n a ble to te rmina te my a gre e me nt with u c l a
in a n honora ble fa s hion, I would ha ve done so imme di-
a te ly. But I ha d given my word jus t a fe w minute s be fore .
If fa te ha d not inte rve ne d, I would ne ver ha ve gone
to u c l a . But my da d’s little s e t of thre e s s e rve d me we ll:
“Don’t whine . Don’t compla in. Don’t ma ke e xcus e s .”
I re s olve d to work ha rd a nd do the be s t job I was
ca pa ble of—e ve n whe n I dis cove re d upon a rriving at u c l a
tha t I wa s n’t a ctua lly working for the unive rs ity but ra the r
for the a s s ocia te d s tude nts . The pre s ide nt of the s tude nt
body wa s a ctua lly my boss!
I be lie ve tha t things a re dire cte d in s ome s ort of wa y.
I’m not e xa ctly s ure how. I a ls o be lie ve tha t things turn
out be s t for thos e who ma ke the be s t of the wa y things
turn out.

Five More P uzzle rs

• Why is it so ha rd for so ma ny to re a lize tha t
winne rs a re us ua lly the one s who work
ha rder, work longe r, a nd as a re s ult, pe rform
be tte r?
• Why a re the re so ma ny who wa nt to build up
the we a k by te a ring down the s trong?

42
 • Why is it that so ma ny nona tta ine rs are quick
to criticize , ques tion, and be little the
attainers?
• Why is it so ha rd for us to unde rs ta nd tha t
we ca nnot a ntagonize and pos itive ly influe nce
at the same time ?
• Why is it so much easier to compla in a bout
the things we do not have than to make the
mos t of and appreciate the things we do
have?

Young Folks , Old Folks

Youth is a time of impa tience. Young pe ople can’t unde r-
stand why the proble ms of s ocie ty can’t be solved right
now. The y haven’t live d long e nough to fully unde rs ta nd
huma n na ture , and lack the patience that e ve ntually brings
an unde rsta nding of the re la tive ly slow na ture of change.
On the othe r hand, older pe ople ofte n become set in
the ir ways, fe a r change, and accept problems tha t s hould
be addressed and resolved.
The young mus t re membe r tha t a ll good and worth-
while things take time (and tha t is e xa ctly as it should be).
The ir elders mus t re me mbe r tha t a lthough not a ll change
is progres s , a ll progre ss is the re s ult of change (and to
res is t or fe a r change is ofte n to ge t in the wa y of
progres s ).

43
 The divide be twe e n the young a nd the old could be
gre a tly le s se ne d by more mutua l trus t a nd unde rs ta nding
of the othe r fe llow.
Of cours e , the re s pons ibility to initia te trus t fa lls on
thos e with more ma turity. It is importa nt because I be lie ve
whe n we a re out of s ympa thy with the young, our work
in this world is ove r.

S ix Wa ys to Bring Out
the Be s t in P e ople
1. Kee p courte s y a nd cons ide ra tion for othe rs
fore mos t in your mind, a t home a nd away.
2. Try to have fun without trying to be funny.
3. While you ca n’t control wha t ha ppe ns to
you, you ca n control how you re a ct. Ma ke
good ma nne rs a n a utoma tic re a ction,
4. S e ek individua l opportunitie s to offe r a
ge nuine complime nt.
5. Re membe r tha t s ince rity, optimis m, a nd
e nthusia s m a re more we lcome tha n s a rca s m,
pe s s imis m, a nd la zines s .
6. La ugh with othe rs , ne ve r a t the m.

Los ing Ne llie : P e a ce of Mind

Whe n S ocra te s wa s in pris on fa cing immine nt a nd unjus t
de a th, his ja ile rs , s ome of the crude s t me n in the la nd,

44
mocke d him and asked, “Why do you not prepa re your-
s e lf for death?”
He looke d at the ja ile rs and re plie d, “I have pre pa re d
for death a ll of my life by the life I live d.” Socrates was
at peace with hims e lf. My own fa ith gave me more peace
with myse lf.
The mos t difficult thing Fve ever e xpe rie nce d was
los ing Ne llie thirte e n years ago. We were swe ethea rts for
a lmos t s ixty years and ma rried for fifty-thre e years.
Ce rta in things happen, and you mus t have fa ith that
there is a reason for the m. My fa ith and my fa mily sus-
ta ine d me.
And now, like Socrates, I have no fe a r of death. Whe n
it comes I can be with he r again.
I a ppre cia te this poe m, “Lucy,” by Willia m
Words worth:
She dwe lt among the untrodde n ways
Beside the springs of Dove.
A maid of whom there were none to please,
And ve ry few to love.
A viole t by a mossy stone,
Ha lf hidden from the eye,
Fa ir as a star when only one
Was s hining in the sky.
She live d unknown, and few could know
Whe n Lucy ceased to be.

45
 But she is in he r gra ve ,
And, oh, the diffe re nce to me.

—W illiam W ords worth

De a th is s ome thing tha t holds no fe a r for me a ny

longe r. I’m a t pe a ce .

God’s Hall of Fam e

This crowd on e a rth
The y s oon forge t
The he roe s of the past.
The y che e r like ma d
Until you fa ll
And tha t’s how long you la st.

But God does not forge t

And in his Ha ll of Fame
By jus t be lie ving in his Son
Ins cribed you’ll find your name.

I te ll you, frie nds,

I would not tra de
My na me howe ve r s ma ll
Ins cribe d up the re
Be yond the stars
In tha t ce le s tia l ha ll.

46
For a ny fa mous na me on e a rth
Or glory tha t the y share
I’d ra the r be a n unknown he re
And have my na me up the re .

—Unknown

47
 Pa r t II

S u c c e s s , Ac h ie v e me n t ,
C o mp e t it io n

Try not to become a m an of success but rathe r try to

become a m an of value .

—Al b e r t E in s t e in
Mr. We bs te r’s De finition of Success
Mr. We bs te r defines success as the a ccumula tion of mate-
ria l possessions or the a tta inme nt of a pos ition of powe r,
pre stige , or perhaps fame. I ce rta inly think those things
can be indicative of success, but the y are not ne ces s a rily
success in themselves.
I know ma ny e mine ntly success ful pe ople who never
made a lot of money and never ga ine d any high pos ition
or re cognition. The y s imply and quie tly ra ised a fa mily,
worke d ha rd, and had a job tha t a llowe d them to take care
of the ir fa mily (though not us ually in a la vish s tyle ). The se
individua ls and the ir fa milie s are a big success by my
de finition.
Mr. We bs te r neglects to me ntion those folks in his
book.

51
J os hua Woode n’s De finition
of Success
My dad, Joshua, had gre at influe nce on my own pe rsona l
de finition of success, and it has little to do with fortune
or fame. Although I probably didn’t re a lly unde rs ta nd it
at the time , one of the things he trie d to ge t across to me
was that I should never try to be be tte r than someone else.
The n he always added, “But J ohnny, never cease trying to
be the best j'ow can be. Tha t is unde r your control. The
othe r is n’t.”
You have little say ove r how big or how s trong or how
s ma rt or rich someone else ma y be. You do have, at least
you should have, control of yours e lf and the e ffort you give
towa rd bringing out your best in whate ver you’re doing.
This e ffort mus t be tota l, and whe n it is, I believe you
have achieved pe rsona l success.
The conce pt tha t success is mine whe n I work my
ha rde s t to become my best, and tha t I alone de te rmine
whe the r I do so, became ce ntra l to my life and a ffe cte d
me in a mos t profound manner.
Try your ha rde s t in a ll ways and you are a success.
P e riod. Do less tha n tha t and you have fa ile d to one
degree or a nothe r.
I believe this so s trongly and I have pra ctice d it as best
I could throughout these ma ny years.

52
P re pa ra tion Is the P rize
Ce rva nte s wrote , “The journey is be tte r tha n the inn.” He
is right and tha t is why I de rive d my gre a te s t s a tis fa ction
out of the pre pa ra tion—the “journe y”—day a fter day,
we e k a fte r week, ye a r a fte r year.
Your journe y is the importa nt thing. A score, a tro-
phy, a ribbon is s imply the inn.
Thus , there were many, ma ny games tha t gave me as
much pleasure as any of the te n na tional cha mpions hip
games we won, s imply because we prepa re d fully and
played ne ar our highe s t le ve l of a bility.
The s o-called importa nce of a pa rticula r game didn’t
ne ce ssa rily add to the s a tis fa ction I fe lt in prepa ring for
the conte s t. It was the journe y I prize d above a ll else.

A S ucce s s ful J ourne y Is

the De s tina tion
You know whe re you’d like to go,whethe r it’s to a na tiona l
champions hip in ba s ke tball or a pa rticula r goa l in your
business or life . You mus t also re a lize tha t this goa l will
be s imply a by-product of a ll the ha rd work and good
thinking you do a long the wa y—your pre paration. The
prepa ra tion is whe re success is truly found.

53
 S e t your compa s s in a chos e n dire ction a nd the n focus
your a tte ntion a nd e fforts comple te ly on the journe y of
pre pa ra tion. A s ucces s ful journe y be come s your de s tina -
tion a nd is whe re your re a l a ccomplis hme nt lie s .
For e xa mple , le t’s say Mr. Grigs by owns a compa ny
tha t ma nufa cture s shoe s. I be lie ve shoes a re s imply a by-
product for his compa ny. The ir re a l product is the te a m-
work of pe ople within the compa ny, a long with the
ma nufa cturing pla nt a nd othe r e le me nts of the bus ine s s
tha t the le a de r, Mr. Grigs by, has brought toge the r.
How his compa ny’s pe ople work as a te a m is the prod-
uct. Shoe s a re a by-product.
Like wis e , in my coa ching I informe d e ve ry pla ye r
who ca me unde r my s upe rvis ion tha t the outcome of a
ga me wa s s imply a by-product of the e ffort we ma de to
pre pa re . The y unde rs tood our de s tina tion wa s a s ucce s s-
ful journe y—na me ly, tota l, comple te , a nd de ta ile d pre pa -
ra tion.
Too ofte n we ne gle ct our journe y in our e a ge rne s s or
a nxie ty a bout re a ching the goa l.
If Mr. Grigs by a nd his te a m do this the y will ma nu-
fa cture poorly ma de s hoe s . If we ha d done this , u c l a
would ne ver ha ve won na tiona l cha mpions hips . If you do
it in your life or profe s s ion, you will find yours e lf dis -
conte nt a nd ope ra ting we ll be low your le ve l of
compe te ncy.

54
Fa ilure s a nd Mis ta ke s
I ha d mis ta kes , ple nty, but I ha d no fa ilure s . We ma y not
ha ve won a cha mpions hip e ve ry ye a r. We ma y have los t
ga me s . But we ha d no fa ilure s . You ne ve r fa il if you know
in your he a rt tha t you did the be s t of which you a re ca pa-
ble . I did my be s t. Tha t is a ll I could do.
Are you going to ma ke mis ta ke s ? Of cours e . But it is
not fa ilure if you ma ke the full e ffort.
I told my playe rs ma ny time s , “Fa iling to pre pare is
pre pa ring to fa il.” If you pre pare prope rly, you ma y be
outs cored but you will ne ve r lose. I wa nte d our playe rs to
be lie ve tha t to the ir ve ry s ouls be ca use I know it is the
truth. You a lwa ys win whe n you ma ke the full e ffort to
do the be s t of which you’re ca pa ble .
I a ls o know tha t only one pe rs on on e a rth knows if
you ma de your be s t e ffort: not your coa ch, not your
e mploye r, not your hus ba nd or wife , boyfrie nd or girl-
frie nd, brothe r or s is te r. The only pe rs on who knows is
you. You ca n fool e ve ryone else.

Bla ming Othe rs

You ca n ma ke mista ke s, but you a re n’t a fa ilure until you
s ta rt bla ming othe rs for thos e mis ta kes . Whe n you bla me
othe rs you a re trying to e xcuse yours e lf. Whe n you ma ke

55
e xcuse s you ca n’t prope rly e va lua te yours e lf. Without
prope r s e lf-e va lua tion, fa ilure is ine vita ble .

The De s ire to Win

P la ye rs fifty ye a rs a go wa nte d to win jus t as much as pla y-
e rs toda y. Foot s oldie rs a thous a nd ye a rs a go wa nte d to
win the ba ttle as much as comba t troops toda y. Athle te s
toda y ha ve no gre a te r de s ire to win tha n a thle te s a t the
firs t Olympic Ga me s . The de s ire the n a nd now is the
same.
The diffe re nce is tha t e ve rybody worrie s a bout it
more toda y be ca use of the me dia a nd the a tte ntion the y
give to the que s tion of who’s winning a nd who’s los ing.
Did I win? Did I lose? Thos e a re the wrong que s tions .
The corre ct que s tion is: Did I ma ke my be s t e ffort? Tha t’s
wha t ma tters . The re s t of it jus t ge ts in the way.
In cla s s ica l time s , the coura ge ous s truggle for a noble
cause wa s cons ide re d success in its e lf. S a dly, tha t ide a l has
be e n forgotte n. But it is we ll worth re me mbe ring.

The Infe ction of S ucce s s

You be come infe cte d with success whe n you think tha t
your pa s t is going to ha ve a n impa ct on your future . Oh,
it might have a n e ffe ct on the oppos ition in tha t your s uc-
cess ma y a ffe ct the ir thinking. Fine , but do not le t it a ffe ct
wha t you do.

56
 Le a rn from the pa s t, don’t live in the pa s t. The infe c-
tion of success ca n le a d you to live in the pa s t, to be lie ve
tha t wha t ha ppene d be fore is autom atically going to ha p-
pe n a ga in. Whe n tha t occurs you have be e n infe cte d by
success.
You have control only ove r the pre s e nt, right now. Le t
me prove it to you. I ask you to do this : cha nge the pa s t.
Eve n the s ma lle s t, mos t incide nta l, le a s t importa nt thing
tha t ha ppe ne d in the pa s t. Go a he ad a nd s how tha t you
ca n cha nge it.
The future ? Aga in I a s k you, cha nge right now s ome -
thing in the future . Ca n you? Of cours e not. Your con-
trol e xis ts now, in the pre s e nt, right he re .
How you re s pond to pa s t success ca n be da ma ging if
you le t it infe ct your thinking, if you le t it diminis h your
pre pa ra tion in the pre s e nt for the future . The n you’ve
be e n infe cte d by success.

Unde rdogs
I ha ve ne ve r gone into a ga me thinking we we re going to
los e . Ne ve r. Eve n though the re ha ve be e n ga me s whe re
the e xpe rts s a id the re wa s no wa y we could win. Eve n if
we we re big unde rdogs I a lwa ys fe lt a nything could ha p-
pe n. Ofte n e nough, I was right.
Tha t’s a ls o why I ne ve r a s s ume d we we re going
to win.

57
The Opinion of Othe rs
Do not become too concerned a bout wha t others may
think of you. Be ve ry concerned a bout wha t you think of
yours e lf.
Too ofte n, we care more a bout a s tranger’s opinion of
us tha n our own.
Your opinion of yours e lf begins on the inside with
your character. Wha t do you believe in, and are you will-
ing to stand up for it despite wha t others may think or say?
It’s wha t my dad me a nt whe n he said, “Be true to
yours e lf.” This comes firs t, the n the opinion of others .

P re s s ure
The only pressure tha t a mounts to a hill of beans is the
pressure you put on yours e lf. If you’re trying to live up
to expectations put on you by the media, parents, fans,
your e mploye r, or wha teve r else the re may be, it’s going
to a ffect you adversely because it brings on worry and
a nxie ty. I think tha t is the te nde ncy of people who choke
unde r pressure. The y’re thinking a bout living up to the
expectations of e verybody else instead of jus t doing the ir
job the best they can.

Hinds ight
You can always look back and see whe re you might have
done s omething diffe re ntly, changed this or tha t. If you

5*
ca n le a rn s ome thing, fine , but ne ve r s e cond-gue s s your-
s e lf. It’s wa s te d e ffort.
If I put a s ubs titution in during a ga me a t u c l a a nd
he imme dia te ly ma ke s a mis ta ke , e ve n a s tupid mis ta ke ,
wa s my de cis ion wrong? Abs olute ly not.
It jus t didn’t work out. Tha t wa s the de cis ion I ma de
ba s ed on pa s t e xpe rie nce a nd without e motiona lis m. I
ma de it with re a s on, but it jus t didn’t work out. Things
don’t a lwa ys work out. It’s a ls o true in life .
Doe s worrying a bout it, compla ining a bout it, cha nge
it? Nope , it jus t wa s te s your time . And if you compla in
a bout it to othe r pe ople , you’re a ls o wa s ting the ir time .
Nothing is ga ine d by wa s ting a ll of tha t time .

The Re a lis tic Optimis t

I be lie ve one of my s tre ngths is my a bility to ke e p ne ga-
tive thoughts out. I a m a n optimis t. I be lie ve this re s ults
from the fa ct tha t I s e t re a lis tic goa ls —one s tha t a re dif-
ficult to a chie ve, but within re a ch. You might say I’m a
re a lis tic optimis t.
Goa ls s hould be difficult to a chie ve be ca use thos e
a chie ve d with little e ffort a re s e ldom a ppre cia te d, give
little pe rs ona l s a tis fa ction, a nd a re ofte n not ve ry
worthwhile .
Howe ve r, if you s e t goa ls tha t a re so ide a lis tic the re ’s
no pos s ibility of re a ching the m, you will e ve ntua lly

59
become dis coura ge d and quit. The y become counte r-
productive . Be a re a lis tic optimis t.

De ta ils Cre a te S ucce s s

Que s tion: How can I become an optimist?
Ans we r: P roper pre pa ra tion and a tte ntion to details.
I believe in the basics: a tte ntion to, and pe rfe ction of, tiny
de ta ils tha t might commonly be ove rlooke d. The y may
seem trivia l, perhaps even laughable to those who don’t
unde rsta nd, but the y aren’t. The y are funda me nta l to your
progress in basketball, business, and life . The y are the dif-
ference be twe e n champions and near champions.
For example, at the firs t squad me e ting each season,
held two weeks be fore our firs t a ctua l pra ctice , I pe rs on-
a lly de mons tra ted how I wa nted players to put on the ir
socks each and e ve ry time : Ca re fully roll the socks down
ove r the toes, ba ll of the foot, a rch, and a round the heel,
the n pull the sock up snug so the re will be no wrinkle s
of any kind.
I would the n have the players ca re fully check with
the ir finge rs for any folds or creases in the sock, s ta rting
at the toes and s liding the hand a long the side of and
unde r the foot, s moothing the sock out as the finge rs
passed ove r it. I pa id special a tte ntion to the heel because
tha t is whe re wrinkle s are mos t like ly.

60
 I would wa tch as the pla ye r s moothe d the s ock unde r
a nd a long the ba ck of the he e l. I wa nte d it done cons ci-
e ntious ly, not quickly or ca s ua lly. I wa nte d a bs olute ly no
folds , wrinkle s , or cre a se s of a ny kind on the s ock.
The n we would procee d to the othe r foot a nd do the
s a me . I would de mons tra te for the pla ye rs a nd the n have
the pla ye rs de mons tra te for me .
This ma y seem like a nuis a nce , trivia l, but I ha d a ve ry
pra ctica l re a s on for be ing me ticulous a bout this . Wrinkle s ,
folds , a nd creases ca n cause blis te rs . Blis te rs inte rfe re with
pe rforma nce during pra ctice a nd ga me s . S ince the re was
a wa y to re duce blis te rs , s ome thing the pla ye r a nd I could
control, it wa s our re s pons ibility to do it. Othe rwis e we
would not be doing e ve rything pos s ible to pre pa re in the
be s t wa y.
Whe n a pla ye r ca me to u c l a , I didn’t ask him wha t
s ize s hoe he wore . We me a s ure d his foot. Why? Be ca use
whe n childre n a re growing up, pa re nts buy shoes bigge r
tha n the ir fe e t, knowing the y a re growing fa s t. The
youngs te r might think he ’s a s ize 14 whe n he ’s a ctua lly a
s ize 13.
Shoes tha t a re a little too big le t the foot s lide a round.
This ca n cause a blis te r, e s pe cia lly if the re ’s a ls o a fold in
the pla ye r’s s ock. I wa nte d the s ocks to lie s mooth a nd the
shoes to fit corre ctly.
Ne xt I’d ins truct the pla ye r on how to la ce a nd tie his
shoes pre cis e ly: La ce s nugly, putting s ome pre s s ure on

61
each eyelet, and the n double -tie each shoe so it won’t
come undone during a pra ctice or a game.
An untie d shoe is never good, but it can be pa rticu-
la rly trouble s ome if it happens during pe rforma nce . It
was s ome thing unde r our control tha t we could pre ve nt,
and so we did.
I insisted tha t ha ir be s hort. Did it have a nything to
do with style? No. Long ha ir flie s a round and can inte r-
fe re with vis ion. And the pe rs piration on longe r ha ir may
ge t in eyes or on the hands. I wa nted no interfe re nce with
a pla ye r’s vis ion or ba ll ha ndling.
In a ddition, pra ctice s were ofte n held in the evening,
and whe n players we nt outside a fte r pra ctice the y were
susceptible to ca tching a cold if the ir ha ir was wet. S horte r
ha ir is easier to dry. I didn’t wa nt to have a pla ye r’s head
cold inte rfe re with his pra ctice .
Players unde rs tood my thinking, but tha t didn’t pre-
ve nt them from te sting me, sometimes in a kidding way.
“Coa ch,” one of the m asked, “how a bout a mustache?
Tha t won’t inte rfe re with my ba ll ha ndling or vis ion.”
We ll, of cours e, the playe r was corre ct. I kne w a mus-
tache, prope rly trimme d and of an a ppropria te le ngth,
would be no proble m. I also kne w huma n na ture , espe-
cia lly as it a pplie d to youngs ters . The s hort, trimme d
mustache would be followe d by the ha ndle bar mustache
or more . I had no desire to become a mustache ins pe ctor

62
as pa rt of my da ily re s pons ibility. Thus , no mustaches
at a ll.
The s e s e e mingly trivia l ma tte rs , taken toge the r and
added to many, ma ny othe r s o-ca lle d trivia l ma tte rs build
into s ome thing ve ry big: namely, your success.
You will find tha t success and a tte ntion to de ta ils, the
smallest details, us ually go hand in hand, in ba sketball and
elsewhere in your life .
Whe n you see a successful individua l, a cha mpion, a
“winne r,” you can be ve ry sure tha t you are looking at an
individua l who pays gre at a tte ntion to the pe rfe ction of
minor details.

Hope s a nd Dre a ms
Having a dre a m is often like hoping for s ome thing. It’s
easy to le t our dreams and our hopes ge t away from
re a lity.
Youngsters are told, “Think big. Anything is pos si-
ble .” I would ne ve r go tha t s trong. I wa nt the m to think
positive ly, but whe n you think big you ofte n s ta rt think-
ing too big, and I believe tha t can be ve ry dangerous.
Wa nting an una tta ina ble goa l will e ventua lly produce
a fe eling of “Wha t’s the use?” Tha t fe e ling can ca rry over
into othe r areas. This is bad.

6S
 A youngs te r may dre a m of be ing seven fe e t ta ll. Hop-
ing for s ome thing of tha t na ture is not productive . We
s hould keep our dreams within the re a lm of pos s ibility—
difficult but pos sible —and make e ve ry e ffort to achieve
the m.
I have often been asked whe n I firs t s ta rte d dre aming
a bout winning a na tional champions hip. Was it at India na
State Teachers Colle ge or a fte r I a rrive d at u c l a ? Perhaps
while I was a colle ge player? I ne ve r dre a me d a bout win-
ning a na tional cha mpions hip. It happened be fore I even
thought it was possible.
Wha t I was dre a ming a bout each year, if you wa nt to
ca ll it tha t, was trying to produce the best ba s ke tball team
we could be. My thoughts were dire cte d toward pre pa ra-
tion, our journe y, not the re s ults of the e ffort (such as
winning na tiona l cha mpionships). Tha t would s imply have
s hifte d my a tte ntion to the wrong area, hoping for some-
thing out of my control. Hoping doesn’t make it happen.
Mix ide a lis m with re a lis m and add ha rd work. This
will ofte n bring much more tha n you could ever hope for.

P a ying the P rice

People us ually know wha t the y s hould do to ge t wha t the y

wa nt. The y jus t won’t do it. The y won’t pay the price .

64
 Unde rs ta nd the re is a price to be paid for a chie ving
a nything of s ignifica nce . You mus t be willing to pay the
price .

The Worthy Oppone nt

Ca n the re be any gre a t e njoyme nt or s a tis fa ction in doing
wha t e ve rybody else can do? Wha t joy can be de rive d in
s ports from ove rcoming someone who is not as capable as
you are? But there is gre a t joy and s a tis fa ction in com-
pe ting a ga inst an oppone nt who forces you to dig deep
and produce your best.
Tha t is the only wa y to ge t re a l joy out of the com-
pe tition its e lf. The worthy opponent brings out the ve ry
best in you. This is thrilling.

Follow Your Blis s?

I he ar the sa ying, “Follow your blis s” now and then. It’s
proba bly good a dvice —unless you pick s ome thing tha t’s
not so good to be your bliss. I think Timothy Le a ry fol-
lowed his bliss. You’ve got to be ca re ful wha t your bliss is.

Compa ris ons

We te nd to compa re ourselves to othe rs . And in wha t
way? We compa re ourselves to others who have more
things in a ma te rial s ort of way.

65
 Don’t compa re yours e lf with s ome one e ls e in this
ma nne r. You ha ve no control ove r his or he r ma te ria l
things .

A Worthwhile Goa l
The goa l I be lie ve is importa nt is the goa l of ma king the
mos t of your a bilitie s . Tha t goa l is within your re ach.
If purs uing ma te ria l things be come s your only goa l,
you will fa il in so ma ny othe r wa ys . Be s ide s , in time a ll
ma te ria l things go away.

Ta ll Ve rs us “Ta ll”
I told my a thle te s in ba s ke tba ll, “I don’t ca re if you are
ta ll, but I do ca re if you play ta ll.” It’s jus t a nothe r wa y of
s a ying tha t I judge d the m by the le ve l of e ffort the y gave
to the te a m’s journe y.
Tha t’s the s ta nda rd of me a s ure me nt I us e d. I could
a ls o ha ve told the m, “S how me wha t you ca n do, don’t te ll
me wha t you ca n do.”
Too ofte n the big ta lke rs a re the little doe rs .

The Ma in Ingre die nt of S ta rdom

No u c l a ba s ke tba ll pla ye r’s numbe r wa s re tire d while I
wa s coa ch. La te r on, ce rta in numbe rs we re re tire d, s uch

66
as Ka re e m Abdul-J a bba r’s numbe r (33), a nd Bill Wa lton’s
numbe r (32).
I was a gains t it in both thos e cases (a nd a ny othe r
case) not be ca use Ka re e m a nd Bill we ren’t outs ta nding
pla ye rs , but because othe r fe llows who pla yed on our te a m
a ls o wore thos e numbe rs .
S ome of thos e othe r pla yers gave me clos e to e ve ry-
thing the y ha d, e ve n though the y a re n’t as fa mous a nd
pe rha ps didn’t have the na tura l gifts Ka re e m a nd Bill we re
ble s s e d with.
For e xa mple , Willie Na ulls wore numbe r 33 while he
was a me mbe r of our te a m. He worke d ha rd, he playe d
ha rd, he was a n All-Ame rica n. Doe s n’t he have s ome cla im
to the numbe r 33?
The je rs e y a nd the numbe r on it ne ver be long to jus t
one s ingle pla yer, no ma tte r how gre a t or how big a “s ta r”
tha t pa rticula r pla ye r is . It goe s a gains t the whole conce pt
of wha t a te a m is. The te a m is the s ta r, ne ve r a n individ-
ua l playe r.

P e ace of Mind
Without pe ace of mind, wha t do you have? Ma ny pe ople
go through life unha ppy with wha t the y have re ga rdle s s
of how much the y ha ve . No ma tte r how much the y a ccu-
mula te , the y ne ver a chie ve pe ace of mind be ca use the y
wa nt more . It ne ve r e nds for the m a nd the y a re fore ve r

67
unha ppy. Us ua lly it’s a re s ult of compa ring the ms e lve s to
othe rs , of trying to ke e p up with the Joneses.
Did I find pe a ce of mind by winning a na tiona l cha m-
pions hip in ba s ketba ll in 1964? The n a s e cond, a third, a
fourth, a nd so on? No. I ha d my pe ace of mind as a coa ch
long be fore a na tiona l cha mpions hip wa s e ve r won.

Circle Wha t You Are

Ta ke a mome nt a nd dra w a circle a round the following
pers ona l cha ra cte ris tics tha t you posse ss: confide nce ,
pois e , ima gina tion, initia tive , tole ra nce , humility, love ,
che e rfulne s s , fa ith, e nthus ia s m, courage , hone s ty, s e re nity.
I hope you circle d the m a ll be ca use a ll a re within
e a ch of us. It is s imply up to us to bring the m out.

The Bigge s t Cha nge of All

P e rha ps you fre t a nd think you ca n’t ma ke a diffe re nce in
the wa y things a re . Wrong. You ca n ma ke the bigge s t dif-
fe re nce of a ll. You ca n cha nge yours e lf. And whe n you do
tha t you be come a ve ry powe rful a nd importa nt force —
na me ly, a good role mode l.
I be lie ve you ca n do more good by be ing good tha n
in a ny othe r way.

68
P e rs ona l Glory Is S e conda ry
The re cognition I re ceive d a t u c l a wa s fine , but ma inly I
wa s ha ppy for the te a ms a nd the youngs te rs on thos e
te a ms . The re cognition I re ceive d was not a ll tha t impor-
ta nt. Re cognition a ppe als to the e go, but it is a s e conda ry
cons ide ra tion a nd is ofte n counte rproductive .
Don’t ge t me wrong. I e njoy a little a tte ntion as much
as the ne xt pe rs on, be caus e I re ca ll a time whe n the re was
ve ry little .
Whe n I was dis cha rge d from the s e rvice in J a nua ry
of 1946, I re s ume d a pos ition te a ching Englis h in S outh
Be nd, India na , whe re I ha d be e n be fore e nlis ting in 1942.
While te a ching a nd coa ching the re , I was invite d to
be the fe a ture d ke ynote s pe a ke r a t a ce re mony in ne ighor-
ing Elkha rt, India na , to honor thos e de s e rving s pe cia l
re cognition for tha t pa rticula r s chool ye a r a ca demica lly,
in s ports , a nd othe rwis e .
Ne e dle s s to say, I wa s gre a tly fla tte re d tha t the y con-
s ide re d me importa nt e nough to be the ma in s pe a ke r at
this big e ve nt. I gave wha t I cons ide re d to be a good a nd
ins pira tiona l s pe e ch.
In 1971, the y re me mbe re d my a ppe a ra nce with a brie f
ite m in the re tros pe ctive s e ction of the Elkhart Truth, the
loca l ne ws pa per. The ite m for “25 Ye a rs Ago Toda y” re a d
as follows :

69
 Elkha rt s chool officials a nnounce d toda y tha t
J ohn R. Woode n, Englis h te a che r-coa ch from
S outh Bend Ce ntra l High S chool, will be the
principa l speaker at the ir re cognition dinne r,
a lthough the y had hope d to ge t a promine nt
person.
So, a little re cognition for one’s e ffort is nice. It’s
whe n you s ta rt to le t it a ffect your behavior, and especially
your pre pa ra tion, tha t you have le t it go to your head.

Individua l Honors
From an individual s ta ndpoint, I am ve ry proud of the
medal I received whe n I gra dua ted from P urdue Unive r-
s ity as an a thle te with an e xce lle nt grade point average.
Tha t I did, not the team. Me .
I am proud of tha t and it is one of the reasons I have
always stressed e duca tion to young people, pa rticula rly
those who came unde r my s upe rvis ion as coach. I know
the importa nce of ge tting an e duca tion. I know tha t its
be nefits last a life time .
I am also ve ry proud of the fa ct tha t I received the
Be lla mine Me da l because no one in the s ports world had
ever been give n it be fore . And more so because Mothe r
Teresa, a woma n for whom I have the gre a te st re spe ct in
the world, had also been a re cipie nt of tha t medal. For me

7°
to receive tha t same me da l, good gra cious sakes! I am
proud of tha t.
Howeve r, individua l re cognition, praise, can be a da n-
gerous commodity. It is give n for wha t was done in the
past and can take your mind off wha t you mus t do to pre -
pare for the future .
It is best not to drink too de e ply from a cup full of
fame. It can be ve ry intoxica ting, and intoxica ted people
ofte n do foolis h things .

Quick to J udge
Why is it tha t thos e who are the quickes t to judge are
often those in possession of the fe west facts?

Ove ra chie ve rs
No one is an overachiever. How can you rise above your
le ve l of competency? We ’re a ll unde rachie ve rs to diffe r-
e nt degrees. You may he a r someone say tha t a ce rta in
individua l “gave no pe rce nt,” How can tha t be? You can
only give wha t you have, and you have only ioo pe rce nt,
I pre fe rre d to judge individua ls on the basis of how
close they came to giving ioo pe rce nt, knowing the y
would never reach pe rfe ction, and the y would ce rta inly
never reach no pe rce nt of pe rfe ction, but perhaps the y
would ope ra te ne a r the ir le ve l of compe te ncy whe n the ir
gre a te s t s kill was needed.

l1
Eight S ugge s tions for S ucce e ding
1. Fe ar no opponent. Respect e ve ry oppone nt.
2. Remember, it’s the pe rfe ction of the smallest
de ta ils tha t make big things happen.
3. Ke e p in mind tha t hustle makes up for ma ny
a mistake.
4. Be more inte re s ted in cha ra cte r tha n
re puta tion.
5. Be quick, but don’t hurry.
6. Unde rs ta nd tha t the ha rde r you work, the
more luck you will have.
7. Know tha t va lid self-analysis is crucia l for
improve me nt.
8. Re me mbe r tha t the re is no s ubs titute for
ha rd work and ca re ful pla nning. Fa iling to
pre pare is pre pa ring to fa il.

Be a ting Yours e lf
The ve ry wors t thing you can do is to beat yours e lf. By
tha t I mean not function to your le ve l of compe te ncy
because you didn’t put out your full e ffort in a ll ways.
Ma ybe you stayed out too late la s t night. Ma ybe you
were too concerned with individua l sta tistics. Ma ybe you
thought you could jus t “turn it on” without prope r prepa -
ra tion. Ma ybe you did some othe r things tha t were coun-
te rproductive , like be ing impa tie nt.

72
 In other words , you be a t yours e lf. The othe r guy
didn’t have to beat you. Now you’ve got s ome thing worth
be ing ashamed of.

Winne rs Ma ke the Mos t Mis ta ke s

My coach at P urdue , P iggy La mbe rt, cons tantly re minded
us: “The team tha t makes the mos t mistakes will proba -
bly win.”
Tha t may sound a bit odd, but the re is a gre at deal of
truth in it. The doer makes mista ke s. Coa ch La mbe rt
ta ught me tha t mistakes come from doing, but so does
success.
The individua l who is mis ta ke -fre e is also proba bly
s itting a round doing nothing. And tha t’s a ve ry big
mistake.

Ca s hing in on Fa me
Ma ny, ma ny pe ople a dvertis e products s imply because
the y are pa id to do so. I’m not critica l of those who are
ta king mone y for, say, promoting a pa rticula r bra nd of
a thletic shoe. Tha t’s the ir business. I jus t would not feel
comforta ble te lling someone to use s omething s imply
because I’m be ing paid to say it.
It doesn’t seem to be an a ppropria te wa y to use one’s
re cognition. If I don’t feel comforta ble doing it then I’m

13
not going to do it, re gardle s s of how much mone y the y
wa nt to pa y me . And I’ve be e n offe re d cons idera ble s ums
ove r the ye a rs to do jus t tha t.
I ma y not ha ve the ir mone y, but I do have my peace
of mind.

Cha ra cte ris tics of a Te a m P la ye r

We a ll fit into diffe re nt niches . Ea ch of us mus t ma ke the
e ffort to contribute to the be s t of our a bility a ccording
to our own individua l ta le nts . And the n we put a ll the
individua l ta le nts toge the r for the highe s t good of the
group.
Thus , I va lue d a pla ye r who ca re d for othe rs a nd
could los e hims e lf in the group for the good of the group.
I be lie ve tha t qua lity ma ke s for a n outs ta nding playe r. It
is a ls o why the be s t playe rs don’t a lwa ys ma ke the be s t
te a m. I me a n by this tha t a gifte d pla yer, or playe rs , who
a re not te am pla ye rs will ultima te ly hurt the te a m, whe the r
it re volve s a round ba s ke tba ll or bus ine s s .
Unde rs ta nding tha t the good of the group come s firs t
is funda me nta l to be ing a highly productive me mbe r of a
te am.

All-Time Be s t S ta rting Five

1. Indus trious ne s s
2. Enthus ia s m

74
 3. Condition (me nta l, mora l, a nd physica l)
4. Funda me nta ls
5. Te a m s pirit

A good s ixth pla ye r on the be nch is a tte ntion to

de tails .

Why Te a ms Fa il
No ma tte r how gre a t your product, if your sales de pa rt-
me nt doe s n’t produce , you won’t ge t the re s ults you wa nt.
Diffe re nt de pa rtme nts mus t a ll function we ll for the com-
pa ny to s ucce e d. Diffe re nt individua ls mus t a ls o function
we ll for the de pa rtme nts to s ucce e d. It ta ke s a ll doing
the ir be s t.
I told pla yers a t u c l a tha t we , as a te a m, a re like a
powe rful ca r. Ma ybe a Bill Wa lton or Ka re e m Abdul-J a b-
ba r or Micha e l J orda n is the big e ngine , but if one whe e l
is fla t, we ’re going no pla ce . And if we ha ve bra nd ne w
tire s but the lug nuts a re mis s ing, the whe e ls come off.
Wha t good is the powe rful e ngine now? It’s no good
a t a ll.
A lug nut ma y s e e m like a little thing, but it’s not.
The re ’s a role tha t e a ch a nd e ve ry one of us mus t play. We
ma y a s pire to wha t we cons ide r to be a la rge r role , or a
more importa nt role , but we ca nnot a chie ve tha t until we
s how tha t we a re a ble to fulfill the role we a re a s s igne d.
It’s the s e little things tha t ma ke the big things ha ppe n.

75
The big engine is not going to work unless the little things
are be ing done properly.
Re member tha t Michae l J orda n was with the Chica go
Bulls for several years be fore he ever played in a cha mpi-
ons hip game. Was he talented? Of course he was, but tha t
powe rful e ngine ca lled Air J orda n was in a ca r with some
pa rts tha t were not functioning properly.
Of course, whe n I told the players a bout the ir roles
and the car with the powe rful e ngine , ne w tires , and tight
lug nuts , I also re minded the m the car needed a drive r
be hind the whe el or it would jus t go a round in circle s or
smash into a tree .
I told the m the drive r was me.

Ora nge P e e ls , P ride ,

a nd P roductivity
I fre que ntly re ceive d le tte rs from cus todia ns a fte r we
pla ye d an away game te lling me our ba s ketba ll team had
le ft the locke r room neater and cleaner than anyone who
had vis ite d during the year. The towels were put in bins,
soap was picked up off the s hower floor, and so forth.
The locke r rooms we re clean whe n we de pa rte d
because I asked the players to pick up a fte r themselves. I
believe this is jus t common courte sy. S omebody’s going
to have to clean it up, and I see no reason why it s houldn’t
be the pe rson who messed it up. Are managers and cus-
todia ns the pla ye rs’ servants?

76
 In ba s ke tba ll we ofte n have orange slices or gum at
the ha lf. I see no reason why you s hould throw those
orange peels or gum wra ppe rs ca re le ssly on the floor.
The re are receptacles for tha t. Aga in, it’s jus t common
courte sy.
As with ma ny of the rule s I had, the re are other less
obvious but e qua lly importa nt reasons for ins isting on
them. In this case, it goes to the image of the te a m, both
our s e lf-ima ge and the ima ge others have of us.
I think neatness and courtes y make you fe e l good
a bout yours e lf. I be lie ve individuals who fe e l good a bout
themselves are more productive.
For this same re a son, I asked pla ye rs even during
practice to keep s hirts tucke d in and socks pulle d up.
I be lie ve this encourages te a mwork and te a m unity. It
establishes a s pirit of togethe rne s s tha t helps mold the
te a m into a solo unit. I re a lly be lie ve tha t. In fa ct, pe r-
haps I s hould say I know it. I’ve seen it work.

Ka re e m’s S e lfle s s ne s s
I wa nte d each pla yer to be inte ntly inte re s te d in de ve lop-
ing his own pe rs ona l a bilities as close to pe rfe ction as he
could (while knowing tha t pe rfe ction is impos s ible ).
Players like Bill Wa lton and Ka ree m Abdul-Ja bba r
ma y have more to give in some areas tha nks to the ir God-
give n gifts . My job was to ge t them to focus those indi-
vidua l a bilitie s on the we lfa re of the group as a whole .

77
This was ofte n a formida ble cha lle nge for me because the
pla ye r might have to s a crifice pe rs ona lly for the group as
a whole to do be tte r.
I be lieve , for example, I could have made Ka re e m the
grea tes t s corer in college his tory. I could have done tha t
by de ve loping the te am a round tha t a bility of his . Would
we have won thre e na tional cha mpions hips while he was
at u c l a ? Ne ve r. Besides, he wouldn’t have wa nte d tha t. He
was a ve ry unse lfis h pla ye r, the best kind of pla ye r, one
who put the we lfa re of the te a m ahead of his own pe r-
sonal glory.
Ka ree m took his grea t a bility to score and s ublimate d
it for the gre a te r good of the te a m. He was willing to do
tha t. But if e ithe r he or I had a llowe d tha t s coring a bility
to dominate , we would have cut down on the contribu-
tions of othe rs to the de trime nt of the team. Ka re e m put
the te a m ahead of hims e lf.
Mr. Cha rle s Ba rkle y is a tre me ndous a thle te , but he
ma y put s e lf be fore team. He wa nts to be with a te a m tha t
can win a cha mpions hip, but whe n he gets to tha t team
he seems more inte re s te d in how he does individua lly tha n
how the te a m does.
Mr. De nnis Rodma n seemed to share tha t a ttitude
until he found dire ction from Coa ch P hil Jackson. The
result? Whe n Mr. Rodma n dire cte d a ll his energies to the
good of the Chica go Bulls , he became pa rt of a gre a t
na tiona l cha mpions hip ba s ke tba ll te a m. Ka re e m didn’t

7*
need dire ction in this area. He was ins tinctive ly the best
kind of pla ye r: a te a m player.

Mira cle s
In looking forwa rd, I never expected mira cle s to happen.
Inste a d I expected the slow, steady progres s tha t comes
with indus try and patience.
Miracle s we re we lcome , of course. I jus t fe lt more
comforta ble focus ing on tha t ove r which I had some
degree of control.
Mira cle s we re under Someone Els e’s control.

Nine P romise s Tha t Ca n

Bring Ha ppine s s
1. P romis e yours e lf tha t you will ta lk he a lth,
happiness, and pros pe rity as ofte n as
possible.
2. P romis e yours e lf to make a ll your frie nds
know the re is s omething in them tha t is
special and tha t you value.
3. P romis e to think only of the best, to work
only for the best, and to e xpe ct only the best
in yours e lf and others .
4. P romis e to be jus t as e nthus ia s tic a bout the
success of others as you are a bout your own.

79
 5- P romis e yours e lf to be so s trong tha t
nothing ca n dis turb your pe a ce of mind.
6. P romis e to forge t the mis ta ke s of the pa s t
a nd pre s s on to gre a te r a chie ve me nts in the
future .
7‘ P romis e to we ar a che e rful a ppe a ra nce a t a ll
time s a nd give e ve ry pe rs on you me e t a
s mile .
8. P romis e to give so much time to improving
yours e lf tha t you ha ve no time to criticize
othe rs .
9- P romis e to be too la rge for worry, too noble
for a nge r, too s trong for fe a r, a nd too ha ppy
to pe rmit trouble to pre s s on you.

Los ing a nd Winning

Long be fore a ny cha mpions hips we re e ve r won a t u c l a , I
ca me to unde rs ta nd tha t los ing is only te mpora ry a nd not
a ll-e ncompas s ing. You mus t s imply s tudy it, le a rn from it,
a nd try ha rd not to los e the sa me wa y a ga in. The n you
mus t ha ve the s e lf-control to forge t a bout it.
Fve a ls o le a rne d tha t winning ga mes , title s , a nd cha m-
pions hips is n’t a ll it’s cra cke d up to be , a nd tha t ge tting
the re , the journe y, is a lot m ore tha n it’s cra cke d up to be .
Plea se unde rs ta nd tha t I wa nte d to win e ve ry s ingle
ga me I e ve r pla ye d in or coa che d. Abs olute ly. I wa nte d to
win. But, I unde rs tood tha t ultima te ly the winning or los -

8o
ing ma y not be unde r my control. Wha t wa s unde r my
control wa s how I pre pa re d mys e lf a nd our te a m. I judge d
my succe ss, my “winning,” on tha t. It jus t ma de more
sense.
I fe lt if we pre pa re d fully we would do jus t fine . If we
won, gre at; fros ting on the ca ke . But, a t no time did I con-
s ide r winning to be the ca ke .

S a ge Advice
Ma ny ye a rs a go, a frie nd told me tha t the be s t thing a
coa ch ca n do is to a lways come clos e . As s oon as you win
it a ll e ve rybody e xpe cts it a ga in, a nd whe n you don’t win
it a ll a ga in you’re cons ide re d a los e r.
If you jus t come clos e , e ve rybody ge ts to say, “J us t
wa it until ne xt ye a r.” Hope s s ta y high, but e xpe cta tions
don’t be come e xtre me .
My frie nd me a nt it in a kidding wa y, but the re is s ome
truth to his words .
In 1974 we got to the Fina l Four once a ga in a nd could
ha ve won our e ighth na tiona l cha mpions hip in a row.
Howe ve r, we los t to North Ca rolina S ta te , the e ve ntua l
cha mpion, in the s e mifina ls 80-77 *n a double ove rtime .
Our cha mpions hip s tre a k wa s s toppe d a t s e ve n in a row.
Twe lve months la te r, on Ma rch 29, 1975, we ca me
ba ck a nd won the na tiona l cha mpions hip, our te nth ove r-
a ll, by de fe a ting Ke ntucky 92-85 in the fina ls . As we
s tood wa iting for the a wa rds ce re mony to be gin in the San

81
Die go S ports Are na , a longtime u c l a boos te r rus he d up
to my s ide a nd gra bbe d my a rm. As he be ga n wildly s ha k-
ing my ha nd he s houte d in my e a r, “We did it! We did it!
You le t us down la s t ye a r, Coa ch, but we got ‘e m this
ye a r!”
A fe w minute s e a rlie r we ha d won the na tiona l cha m-
pions hip, a nd a ll he could think to say wa s tha t this was
a n improve me nt ove r how we ha d le t him down the pre -
vious ye a r whe n we ha d only gotte n to the s e mis . His
comme nts didn’t ups e t me . The y a ctua lly a mus e d me a lit-
tle bit be ca us e the y re fle cte d wha t my frie nd ha d s a id
a bout whe n you win it a ll.
The more “s ucce s sful” you a re , the highe r a nd highe r
the e xpe cta tions be come , the more s us picious pe ople a re
of you, a nd the more criticis m you re ce ive .
It goes ba ck to focus ing on the journe y ra the r tha n
the de s tina tion. I wa s jus t as s a tis fie d with my e fforts in
the fourte e n ye a rs be fore we won a na tiona l cha mpions hip
as I wa s the fina l twe lve ye a rs , whe n we ca pture d te n
cha mpions hips . In fa ct, a nd you ma y ha ve trouble a cce pt-
ing this , I be lie ve we we re m ore s ucce s s ful in s ome ye a rs
whe n we didn’t win a cha mpions hip tha n in s ome ye a rs
whe n we did.
Thos e on the outs ide ha d a highe r le ve l of s a tis fa c-
tion whe n we won cha mpionships, but I didn’t. I kne w tha t
e a ch of the firs t fourte e n ye a rs I ma de the ma ximum
e ffort to do the be s t I wa s ca pa ble of. My e ffort in the

82
“wors t” ye a r was e xa ctly the same as in a cha mpions hip
year.
How the me dia , a lumni, or fans vie we d the re s ults of
tha t e ffort was the ir conce rn, not mine .

Fa me
He re ’s wha t I found upon be coming we ll-known: you’re
not a nything diffe re nt from wha t you were be fore ; a t least,
you s houldn’t be.
Fame is jus t s omething othe r pe ople perceive you to
be. You’re no diffe re nt. You’re s till you. It’s the ir illus ion.
I didn’t wa nt it to become my illus ion.

On Ta le nt
Ma ny a thle te s have tre me ndous God-give n gifts , but the y
don’t focus on the de ve lopment of those gifts . Who are
these individuals ? You’ve never he a rd of them—and you
never will. It’s true in s ports and it’s true e ve rywhere
in life .
Ha rd work is the differe nce . Ve ry ha rd work.

Unha ppine s s Toda y

It is my obs ervation tha t the prima ry cause of unha ppi-
ness for mos t pe ople is s imply wa nting too much: e xpe ct-

*3
ing too much ma te ria lly, cha s ing the dolla r, ove re mpha-
s izing the ma te ria l things .
Whe n the y don’t a rrive , unha ppine s s doe s.

Ma ke the Mos t of Wha t You’ve Got

Whe n I ca me out to u c l a from India na S ta te Te a che rs
Colle ge in 1948,1 ha d be e n le d to be lie ve we ’d s oon ha ve
a n a de qua te place to pra ctice a nd pla y our ga me s. How-
e ve r, tha t did not occur for a lmos t s e ve nte e n ye a rs .
During tha t time I conducte d u c l a ba s ke tba ll pra c-
tice in a crowde d, poorly lit, a nd ba dly ve ntila te d gym on
the third floor of the Me n’s Gymna s ium building. Much
of the time the re wa s wre s tling pra ctice a t one e nd, a
tra mpoline on the s ide with a thle te s bouncing up a nd
down, a nd gymna s tics pra ctice on the othe r s ide . The
gym wa s known as the “B.O. Ba rn” be ca us e of the odor
whe n it wa s bus y.
In a ddition to a ll of this commotion, che e rle a de rs in
le ota rds ofte n pra ctice d a longs ide the court. Of cours e ,
tha t brought on s ome a dditiona l dis tra ctions .
We ha d no priva te locke r rooms a nd no priva te s how-
e rs . P laye rs climbe d thre e flights of s ta irs to a gym tha t
ha d jus t two ba s ke ts a mids t a ll of the hubbub.
For s ixte e n ye a rs , I he lpe d our ma na ge rs s we e p a nd
mop the floor e ve ry da y be fore pra ctice be ca us e of the
dus t s tirre d up from the othe r a ctivitie s . The s e we re ha rd-
s hip conditions , not only for the ba s ke tba ll te a m, but for

84
the wre s tling a nd gymna s tics te a m me mbe rs a nd coa che s
as we ll. You could ha ve writte n a long lis t of e xcuse s why
u c l a s houldn’t ha ve be e n a ble to de ve lop a good ba s ke t-
ba ll te a m the re .
Ne ve rthe le s s , the B.O. Ba rn was whe re we built te a ms
tha t won na tiona l cha mpions hips in 1964 a nd 1965.
You mus t ta ke wha t is a va ila ble a nd ma ke the ve ry
mos t of it.

Is My Ford Be tte r tha n

Your Ca dilla c?
P re pa ring u c l a for a ba s ke tba ll ga me with Louis ville or
Arizona or Duke or Michiga n, I would te ll my playe rs ,
“We ca n’t control wha t thos e othe r fe llows do to ge t re a dy.
We ca n only control wha t we do to ge t re a dy. S o le t’s do
our ve ry be s t in tha t re ga rd a nd hope tha t will be good
e nough, ye s , to outs core the m. But le t’s not worry a bout
tha t. Ins te ad, le t’s worry a bout our own pre pa ra tion.”
Le t’s s a y I wa nt to build a ca r—ma ybe a Ford or a
Che vrole t or a P lymouth. I wa nt to build it the be s t I ca n
pos s ibly build it. Will it be be tte r tha n a Ca dilla c or a
Me rcede s ? Tha t’s irre le va nt.
If I’m building a Ford, I s imply wa nt to build the ve ry
be s t Ford I ca n build. Tha t’s all I ca n do: to come clos e
to m y le ve l of compe te ncy, not s ome body e ls e’s. I ha ve
nothing to do with the irs , only mine .

*5
 To worry a bout whe the r wha t I’m building is going
to be be tte r tha n wha t s omebody else is building else-
whe re is to worry needlessly. I believe tha t if I’m worrie d
a bout wha t’s going on outs ide , it will de tra ct from my
prepa ra tion inside .
My conce rn, my focus , my tota l e ffort s hould be on
building the ve ry best Ford I can build. I did tha t in
coa ching high-s chool teams and in coa ching colle ge
teams. My focus was on ma king tha t team, tha t group of
individuals , the best they we re capable of be coming,
whe the r it was a Ford or a Ca dilla c.
Some years I unde rs tood we were building a Ford.
Othe r years I fe lt we were building a Ca dilla c. The e ffort
put forth in a ll years was the same: tota l.
And I was jus t as proud of our we ll-built Fords as of
our we ll-built Ca dilla cs .

Re cognizing a Cha mpion

You are in the presence of a true compe titor whe n you
observe tha t he or she is inde e d ge tting the mos t joy out
of the mos t difficult circums tance s . The re a l compe titors
love a tough s itua tion. Tha t’s whe n the y focus be tte r and
function be tte r. At moments of ma ximum pressure, the y
wa nt the ba ll.
You be gin to see it as time goes by. Not immedia te ly,
but gradua lly you see tha t re al compe titors re lis h the cha l-

86
lenge, the bigge r the be tte r. The more difficult the game,
the more the y improve .
True compe titors de rive the ir gre a te st pleasure out of
pla ying against the ve ry best opponents , even though the y
ma y be outs core d. The difficult cha lle nge provide s the
ra re opportunity to be the ir best.
Ofte n gre a t compe titors don’t quite have the physical
s kills of more gifte d pla ye rs, but the y ge t more out of
wha t the y have at moments of gre a t pressure.
Thus , I base my judgme nt on not jus t wha t they had
but how the y used it. To wha t e xtent did the y a tte mpt to
bring forth the ir a bilitie s? To wha t e xte nt did the y a ccom-
plis h tha t under ma ximum pressure?
This is how I ide ntified compe titors who had gre a t-
ness within.

Corpora te Compe titors

The qua litie s I observe in successful athletes are common
among people who e njoy success in business. Both love the
ba ttle , the journe y, the cha lle nge . Both of them cons ide r
the fina l outcome a by-product.
Both have wha t it takes to ge t the re and ge t fire d up
whe n the challe nge is formida ble. The y know it presents
the pote ntia l for greatness and provide s the gre ate s t
s a tis fa ction.

*7
Be ing Too Compe titive
Compe titivene s s mus t be focuse d e xclus ively on the pro-
cess of wha t you are doing ra the r than the re s ult of that
e ffort (the s o-called winning or los ing). Othe rwis e you
may lose s e lf-control and become tight e motiona lly, me n-
ta lly, and phys ically. I think someone who is too compe t-
itive as an individua l is ove rly worrie d a bout the fina l
score.
There fore, I never me ntione d winning or victory to
my players. I never re fe rre d to “be ating” an oppone nt.
Inste a d I cons ta ntly urge d the m to s trive for the s e lf-
s a tis fa ction tha t always comes from knowing you did the
best you could to become the best of which you are capa-
ble. Tha t’s wha t I wa nte d: the tota l e ffort. Tha t was the
me as ureme nt I used, never the fina l score.

Is Winning the Only Thing?

Mr. Vince Lomba rdi is supposed to have said, “Winning
is n’t e ve rything, it’s the only thing.” We ll, if he said tha t,
I disagree. I believe ma king the tota l e ffort is e ve rything.
And tha t’s a ll I ever wa nte d and a ll I ever asked from
mys elf or my players.
It’s a ll you s hould ever ask for or expect. Unders ta nd
tha t you won’t a ctua lly ever become the best of which you
are capable. Tha t’s pe rfe ction. We can’t obta in pe rfe ction
as I unde rs ta nd it. But we can work, and work hard, towa rd

88
obta ining it. If you do tha t, you will ne ve r los e , in s ports
or in life .

Ego a nd Arroga nce

Eve ryone has a ce rta in a mount of e go, but you mus t ke e p
tha t e go unde r control. Ego is fe e ling confide nt a nd
importa nt, knowing you ca n do the job. But if you ge t to
fe e ling tha t you a re too importa nt, tha t you’re indis pe ns-
a ble , or tha t you ca n do the job without re a l e ffort a nd
ha rd work, without the corre ct pre pa ra tion, tha t’s a rro-
ga nce . Arroga nce is we a kne s s. Tha t’s why I like this
poe m:

S ometime when you’re fe e ling importa nt,

S ometime when your e go’s in bloom,
S ometime when you ta ke it for gra nte d,
You’re the be s t qua lifie d in the room.

S ometime whe n you fe e l tha t your going

Would leave an unfilla ble hole ,
J ust follow this s imple ins truction
And see how it humble s your s oul.

Ta ke a bucke t a nd fill it with wa te r;

P ut your ha nd in it up to the wris t.
P ull it out, a nd the hole tha t’s re ma ining
Is the me a s ure of how you’ll be misse d.

89
 You ma y splash a ll you please when you e nte r;
You ca n s tir up the wa ter ga lore ;
But s top, and you’ll find in a minute ,
Tha t it looks quite the same as be fore .

The mora l in this qua int e xa mple

Is to do jus t the be s t tha t you can.
Be proud of yours e lf, but re me mbe r,
The re is no indis pe ns a ble ma n!

—Ogden Nas h

Work Cre a te s Luck

P e ople ha ve e xpre s s e d a ma ze me nt ove r the fa ct tha t
be twe e n 1967 a nd 1973 u c l a won s e ve n cons e cutive
na tiona l cha mpions hips . This cha mpions hip s tre a k be gan
s hortly a fte r we move d into mode rn P a ule y P a vilion.
More a ma zing to me is tha t e a rlie r u c l a won two
na tiona l cha mpionships, in 1964 a nd 1965, without a home
court a nd unde r the ha rds hip conditions I ha ve de s cribe d
in the Me n’s Gymna s ium building. To this da y I be lie ve
tha t wa s more difficult tha n winning s e ve n cha mpion-
s hips in a row a fte r we move d to P a ule y P a vilion.
But be ca us e of thos e firs t two ha rd-e a rne d na tiona l
title s , s ome thing une xpe cte d occurre d tha t ha d a s ignifi-
ca nt impa ct on the future of our ba s ke tba ll progra m.

9°
Ka re e m Abdul-J a bba r (who a t tha t time s till we nt by the
na me Le wis Alcindor) s a w us pla y in the fina ls of the
na tiona l cha mpions hips a nd de cide d to vis it our ca mpus
before de ciding which colle ge to a tte nd.
Be ca us e of Ka re e m’s inte re s t, a thle tic dire ctor J . D.
Morga n e xpe dite d the cons truction of P a ule y P a vilion so
tha t it would be re a dy if he chos e to a tte nd u c l a in the
fa ll of 1965.
With the a s s ura nce tha t he would be pra cticing a nd
pla ying in a good fa cility a nd the knowle dge tha t u c l a ha d
outs ta nding a ca de mics , Ka re e m chos e to join us.
But without the ha rd work unde r e xtre me ly difficult
conditions a t the B.O. Ba rn tha t le d to the firs t two
na tiona l cha mpions hips , Ka re e m Abdul-J a bba r would
ne ve r ha ve s e e n us pla y nor thought of coming to our
s chool. And without his inte re s t in joining us , P a ule y
P a vilion would ha ve ta ke n much longe r to comple te .
All of this “luck” did not come from out of the blue .
S ome ve ry ha rd work unde r ve ry tough conditions in the
pre ce ding ye a rs produce d this une xpe cted good fortune .
Ha ve you notice d in your life how ofte n tha t seems
to occur?

B.O. Ba rn’s Une xpe cte d Re wa rd

For my firs t thre e ye a rs a t u c l a , we pla ye d our home
ga me s in the B.O. Ba rn its e lf. Cus todia ns would s e t up

91
bleachers tha t seated a bout 2,100—until the fire de part-
me nt move d in and cut it down to 1,100. This force d us
to pla y our “home ” games elsewhere.
So for a lmos t fourte e n years, we tra ve le d a round pla y-
ing those games at Santa Monica City Colle ge, Ve nice
High S chool, Long Beach City College , Long Beach
Auditorium, Pan P a cific Auditorium, and elsewhere.
Because of our la ck of a re a l home court an unantic-
ipate d be ne fit occurre d. Our te am became a much
s tronge r road team because we were virtua lly on the roa d
a ll of the time.
I have little doubt this was of considera ble advantage
to us whe n we played oppone nts on the ir home courts . We
were used to the dis ruption of trave l and were more com-
forta ble in “fore ign” e nvironments . This was pa rticula rly
advantageous at tourname nt time.
Adve rs ity ofte n produces the unexpe cte d opportu-
nity. Look for it. Appre cia te and utilize it. This is diffi-
cult to do if you’re fe eling s orry for yours e lf because
you’re faced with the a dvers ity.

Cha ra cte r Ve rs us “Cha ra cte r”

A true a thle te s hould have cha ra cter, not be a cha ra cter.
A cha ra cte r trie s to a ttra ct a tte ntion to himse lf. He is too
inte re s te d in s howing off and trying to ge t notice d.

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 Be ing an individua l is diffe re nt. Bill Wa lton was an
individual, but he was as fine a team pla yer as you’d wa nt.
He put the we lfa re of the team ahead of pe rsona l glory.
Some be lie ve that s ports build cha ra cter. I believe
tha t s ports reveal character. I see too ma ny players who
are characters today. I like a pla ye r with character, a pla ye r
like Bill. Or Ka re e m.

Right from Wrong

Bill Wa lton came to my office one a fte rnoon at Pa uley
P a vilion with a serious ques tion for me. His knees had
been causing him incre as ing pa in ove r the last several
months , to a point whe re it was obvious to anyone wa tch-
ing him pla y tha t jus t running the le ngth of the court hurt
him badly.
“Coa ch,” he said, “I’ve he a rd tha t s moking ma rijua na
will reduce the pa in in my knees. Is it OK with you if I
use it? ”
I looke d up from my desk and re plied, “Bill, I haven’t
he a rd tha t it is a pa in re lie ve r, but I have he a rd tha t it is
illega l.”

Tricks of the Tra de

If you spend too much time le a rning the tricks of the
tra de , you ma y not le a rn the tra de .

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 The re are no s hortcuts . If you’re working on finding
a s hort cut, the easy way, you’re not working ha rd enough
on the funda me nta ls . You ma y get away with it for a spe ll,
but there is no s ubs titute for the basics. And the firs t
basic is good, old-fa s hioned ha rd work.

Act Quickly (But Don’t Hurry)

Whe n you hurry, you te nd to make mista ke s. On the
othe r hand, if you can’t execute quickly, you ma y be too
late to a ccomplis h your task. It’s a delicate but crucia l
balance.

Your Own S ta nda rd of Success

Don’t measure yours e lf by wha t you’ve a ccomplis he d, but
ra the r by wha t you s hould have a ccomplishe d with your
a bilitie s .
This goes right back to my de finition of success. Ma ke
the e ffort to do the best of which you are capable. Can
anyone pos s ibly do more than that?
Have you ever heard of Conra d Burke or Doug McIn-
tosh? P roba bly not, but the y we re as successful as any
players I ever coached at u c l a or a nywhe re else (includ-
ing those who we nt on to pla y profe s s iona l ba s ke tba ll).
The s e two players came close to fully ma ximizing the ir
a bilitie s .

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 Howe ve r, whe n the y firs t ca me in (during diffe re nt
ye a rs ), I looke d a t e a ch one to see wha t he ha d a nd the n
s a id to mys e lf, “Oh gra cious , if he ca n ma ke a re a l con-
tribution, a playing contribution, to our te a m the n we
mus t be pre tty lous y.” Howe ve r, wha t I couldn’t see wa s
wha t the s e me n ha d ins ide.
Both of the m worke d so ha rd to bring out the ir be s t.
The y ga ve me —a nd more importa ntly, the te a m—ve ry
clos e to e ve rything the y could pos s ibly give .
Conra d Burke be ca me a s ta rte r for two a nd a ha lf
ye a rs ; Doug McIntos h be ca me our s ta rting ce nte r a nd
pla ye d on a na tiona l cha mpions hip te a m.
You ma y not ha ve he ard of the m, but e a ch e pitomize s
wha t I de fine as success in a n individua l. The y ca me clos e
to ma king the mos t of the ir God-give n ta le nt.

P e rce ptions of Success

I’m pe rce ive d as a ve ry s ucce s s ful ba s ke tba ll coa ch because
of the te n na tiona l cha mpions hips u c l a won while I wa s
the re . But I know of coa che s I cons ide r e ve ry bit as ca pa -
ble as I a m—be tte r, in fa ct—who ne ve r won a na tiona l
cha mpions hip, ne ve r e ve n ca me clos e . Did the y fa il as
coaches?
In the firs t fourte e n ye a rs I coa che d a t u c l a we didn’t
win a na tiona l cha mpions hip, e ve n though I worke d e ve ry
bit as ha rd as in thos e ye a rs as whe n we won te n of the m.

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 Did I fa il as a coach during the firs t fourte e n years?
Was I a success only whe n I coached a te a m tha t won a
na tiona l cha mpionship?

Ze ro Na tiona l Cha mpions hips

If u c l a had never won a na tiona l cha mpions hip while I was
coa ching the re , I would s till have conside re d mys elf ve ry
successful because I was judging myse lf on othe r things ,
things I had some control over. For example, how ha rd am
I trying to produce the ve ry best team we can pos s ibly be?
Ha d we not won a ny cha mpions hips , I would have
been dis a ppointe d, yes, but s till a success in my own eyes.
I would have had peace of mind because of the e ffort I
put forth.
The te n na tional titles provide d no a dditiona l peace
of mind nor sense of va lidation of my e fforts as a coach.
Tha t I a lre a dy had. I had succeeded long be fore I was
ca lle d a success.

Fa ilure Is Not Fa ta l, But Fa ilure to

Cha nge Might Be
Fa ilure to change is ofte n jus t s tubbornne s s tha t comes
from an unwillingne s s to le a rn, an ina bility to re a lize that
you’re not pe rfe ct. The re ca nnot be progre s s without
change—even though not a ll change is progre ss.

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 My rule re ga rding u c l a ’s dress code for tra ve l
changed with the times . Initia lly I ins is te d on a coa t and
tie , dress slacks, and polishe d shoes for an ove ra ll cle a n-
cut appearance.
Eve ntua lly I came to unde rs ta nd tha t the culture had
changed. Ideas of wha t cons titute d a ppropria te dress had
changed, and the coa t and tie we re vie wed as only one
pos s ibility by ma ny pe ople I respected.
I re a lize d the funda menta l issue was not s pe cifica lly
a coa t or a tie , dress slacks, or polishe d shoes. The issue
was ove ra ll appearance. To me a cle a n-cut appearance was
importa nt for team ima ge and s e lf-ima ge . I told athletes
if the y could a ccomplis h tha t without a coa t and tie , fine .
Eve ntually my dress code re quire d only tha t the y have
a cle a n-cut appearance whe n we tra ve le d. Tha t re ma ine d
because it was importa nt. I came to believe a tie in its e lf
wasn’t the importa nt issue, and I changed my rule.

Big-Mone y P la ye rs a nd Coa che s

Coaches are pa id millions of dolla rs toda y and players
make tens of millions of dolla rs . It s ta rte d ha ppening soon
a fte r I le ft u c l a , s o I’m ofte n asked if I’m envious. Folks
say, “Coa ch Woode n, imagine wha t you could make
toda y!” /
It doesn’t conce rn me in the least. Wha t conce rns me
is tha t ove r which I have some measure of control and I

97
can’t control wha t othe rs make or e mploye rs pay the m.
Howeve r, I can control whe the r or not I worry a bout it.
And I don’t.
I have no say ove r how much s omebody chooses to
pay S ha quille O’Ne a l or anyone else. In fa ct, I’m ha ppy
if someone can earn that a mount of money. It’s comple te ly
out of hand, but the y have a right to take wha t is offe re d.
It’s s imple . Don’t compa re yours e lf to s omebody else,
e s pecia lly ma te ria lly. If I’m worrying a bout the othe r guy
and wha t he’s doing, a bout wha t he’s ma king, a bout a ll the
a tte ntion he’s ge tting, I’m not going to be able to do what
I’m capable of doing. It’s a guara nte ed wa y to make your-
s e lf mise rable .
Envy, jealousy, and criticis m can become cancerous.
The y hurt the pe rson who feels them ra the r tha n the pe r-
son they’re directe d towa rd.
If I’m envious of how much Mr. O’Ne a l or a coach is
paid, is that going to hurt him in any way? Of course not.
It’s going to hurt me.
He ma y know wha t it’s like to earn a million dolla rs ,
but I know wha t it was like to be able to ge t a good meal
for twe nty-five cents. Ne ithe r of us s hould e nvy the othe r
in this re ga rd.

Adve rs ity Ma ke s You S tronge r

Mos t a ll good things come through a dversity. The re ’s a
poe m that says:
 Looking ba ck it seems to me,
All the grie f tha t had to be
Le ft me when the pa in was o’er
S tronge r tha n I was be fore .
—Unknown

I be lie ve tha t. We ge t s tronge r whe n we te s t our-

selves. Adve rs ity ca n ma ke us be tte r. We mus t be cha l-
le nged to improve , a nd a dve rs ity is the cha lle nge r.

Cha ra cte r Cre a te s Longe vity

I be lie ve a bility ca n ge t you to the top, but it ta kes cha r-
a cte r to ke e p you the re . A big pa rt of cha ra cte r is the s e lf-
dis cipline ne e de d to a void compla ce ncy, re s is t te mpta tion,
a nd unders ta nd tha t pa s t success doe s n’t guara nte e future
success.
It’s so e a sy to re la x, to cut corne rs , to le t down a fte r
you’ve re a che d your goal, a nd be gin thinking you ca n jus t
“turn it on” a utoma tica lly, without prope r pre pa ra tion. It
ta ke s re a l cha ra cte r to ke e p working as ha rd or e ve n
ha rde r once you’re the re.
Whe n you re a d a bout a n a thle te or te a m tha t wins
ove r a nd ove r a nd ove r, re mind yours e lf, “More tha n a bil-
ity, the y ha ve cha racte r.”

Re me mber this your life time through—

Tomorrow, the re will be more to do.
And fa ilure waits for a ll who stay

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 With some success made ye s te rda y.
Tomorrow, you mus t try once more
And e ve n ha rder tha n be fore .

Ka re e m Le a rns from Adve rs ity

Whe n the rule s committe e outla we d the dunk a fte r the
1966-67 s e a son, I s upporte d it be caus e I didn’t think tha t
s hot wa s good for the ga me. I s till fe e l tha t wa y. How-
e ve r, Ka re e m dis a gre e d. He thought the rule cha nge was
a ime d dire ctly a t him.
In fa ct, though I don’t know if this wa s true , I fe lt the
cha nge wa s dire cte d a t the Hous ton playe rs . The y would
fre que ntly ha ng on the rim, a ctua lly be nd it, during the
wa rm-up. Whe n we pla ye d the m in ‘67, cre ws ha d to
come out with la dde rs to s tra ighte n it out be fore our ga me
got unde r wa y.
Wha te ve r the s ource of the rule s cha nge, Ka re e m
would no longe r a ble to s tuff the ba ll without be ing pe nal-
ize d, a nd he wa s unhappy.
I told him, “Le wis , this will ma ke you a be tte r pla ye r.
You’ll ha ve to work ha rde r de ve loping your hook s hot, the
little s hort s hots off the boa rds , a nd the s hots a round the
ba s ke t. The re is no wa y this will do a nything but ma ke
you a much be tte r ba llpla ye r.”
He nodde d. And the n I a dde d, “Le wis , re me mbe r
whe n you ge t to the pros , you won’t ha ve forgotte n how
to dunk.”

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 When Ka ree m became a profe s s ional, one of his mos t
feared shots was the s kyhook, a s hot he had developed and
pe rfecte d a fte r the rule change. He had faced a challenge
and used it to s trengthe n hims e lf. Advers ity can do that,
but it needs your assistance.

P e rs is te nce Is S tronge r
tha n Fa ilure
Abraha m Lincoln is a cknowledged as one of Ame rica ’s
gre a te st presidents. He re is a brie f s umma ry of his career:
Fa ile d in business 1831
De fea ted for le gis lature 1832
Fa ile d in business again 1833
Ele cte d to le gis la ture 1834
S we e the a rt died 1835
Ha d ne rvous bre a kdown 1836
De fea ted for speaker 1838
De fea ted for e le ctor 1840
De fea ted for congre s s iona l nomination 1843
Ele cte d to Congre ss 1846
De fe ate d for Congress 1848
De fe a te d for Senate i 855
De fea ted for Vice P re side nt 1856
De fe a te d for Senate i859
Ele cte d P re s ide nt of the Unite d States i860

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 Fe w people have s uffe red more pe rsona l, professional,
and politica l a dve rs ity than Abra ha m Lincoln. He pe r-
sisted in the face of fa ilure and emerged victorious .
Anothe r pre side nt, Ca lvin Coolidge , de s cribe d it ve ry
we ll:
Nothing in the world can take the place of pe r-
sistence. Ta le nt will not; nothing is more common
than unsucce ssful me n with ta le nt. Ge nius will
not; unre wa rde d genius is a lmos t a prove rb. Edu-
ca tion will not; the world is full of educated de re-
licts . Pe rsiste nce and de te rmina tion alone are
omnipote nt.
The model Mr. Lincoln gave us with his persistence
is one we can re membe r in the face of our own setbacks.
And wha t is mos t wondrous of a ll is tha t persistence is a
qua lity that we ourselves control. You, and only you, can
decide whe the r you will stay the course.

Alwa ys Be P rogre s s ing

You mus t never stand s till. You’re e ither moving upwa rd
a little bit or you’re going the othe r way. You can’t expect
to go upward too quickly, but you can sure go down ve ry
quickly.
The slide down happens in a hurry. P rogres s comes
s lowly but s te adily if you are pa tie nt and prepa re
dilige ntly.

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 Eve ry me mbe r of e ve ry u c l a ba s ke tba ll te a m who
ever pla ye d and practice d with us will te ll you tha t one of
my mos t common expressions was “Move, move, move !”
I me a nt it both phys ica lly and me nta lly.

The India Rubbe r Ma n

My nickna me whe n I was a ba s ke tball playe r at P urdue
was the India Rubbe r Ma n because whe n I was knocke d
down I would imme dia te ly bounce right back up and keep
pla ying. In the team photogra ph from 1931, I’m the only
pla yer with bandages on both knees.
I’ve always be lie ve d tha t hustle can make up for a lot
of mistakes.

Ba la nce in Ba s ke tba ll (a nd Life )

Balance is perhaps the mos t importa nt word for a pla yer
or coach to keep in mind. You have to have e motiona l ba l-
ance. You have to have phys ica l balance. You have to have
me nta l balance. As coach I had to teach pla ye rs individ-
ua l balance, and then the balance of los ing themselves in
the group for the grea ter good of the team.
Balance means ke e ping things in proper pe rs pe ctive ,
not pe rmitting e ithe r excessive exuberance or de je ction to
inte rfe re with pre paration, pe rforma nce, or subsequent
individua l or team behavior.

105
 Balance is importa nt in ma ny aspects of ba ske tba ll.
Besides physica l, e motiona l, and me nta l balance, we need
squad balance, re bounding balance, offe ns ive balance,
defensive balance, size balance. Balance. Balance. Balance.
The same thing is true in life . We mus t have phys i-
cal, e motional, and me ntal balance; balance be twe e n ma k-
ing a living and making a home . We mus t keep things in
pe rs pe ctive , both the good and the bad.
And we mus t lis te n to achieve that balance. Lis te n and
obse rve at home and work. Balance the work a ga inst
the play.
Achie ving balance in life (or ba s ke tba ll) re quire s
gre a t, gre at e ffort, desire, and alertness. Life is compli-
cated, and it’s easy to ge t things tota lly out of balance.
Tha t’s whe n you have a proble m.

The Importa nce of Ba s ke tba ll

Ba s ke tba ll is jus t a game, but if I was doing my job as a
coach tha t game of ba s ke tball would he lp our players by
pre pa ring them to do we ll in life , to reach the ir full pote n-
tia l as individua ls .
Whe n the y did tha t, I fe lt ve ry proud as a coach.
Tha t’s more re warding to me than a ll the cha mpionships
and titles and awards.
I’m asked, “Coa ch, aren’t you pa rticula rly proud of all
the players tha t we nt on to the pros a fte r the y le ft u c l a ,
fe llows like Bill Wa lton, Ka ree m Abdul-J a bba r, Sidney

104
Wicks , Ga il Goodrich, Da vid Me ye rs , Lucius Alle n, Mike
Wa rre n, Ke ith Ericks on, Wa lt Ha zza rd, He nry Bibby,
Ma rque s J ohnson, and the othe rs ?”
Yes, but I’m e qua lly proud of the fe llows who became
doctors, lawyers, de ntis ts , minis te rs , businessmen, te a ch-
ers, and coaches.
The coach whose philos ophy I have a dmire d as much
as a ny coa ch I’ve e ve r been associated with is Amos
Alonzo Stagg. He was coa ching football at the Unive rs ity
of Chicago whe n the y we re a na tiona l powe r. Afte r one
ve ry successful ye a r a re porte r said, “Coa ch Stagg, it was
a gre a t ye a r! A re a lly gre a t ye a r.”
Coa ch Stagg said, “I won’t know for a nothe r twe nty
years or so whe the r you’re corre ct.”
He me a nt tha t it would take tha t long to see how the
youngs ters unde r his s upervis ion turne d out in life .
Tha t’s how I feel. I’m mos t proud of the a thlete who
does we ll with his life . Tha t’s whe re success is. Ba ske tba ll
is jus t a ve ry s ma ll pa rt of it.

The Olympics : Good a nd

Not So Good
The re are two Olympics : the Special Olympics and the
Olympic Games.
I s upport the Special Olympics . My goodness, the re
you’ll witne s s wha t the s pirit of the game is a ll a bout.
You’ll see the thrill on the face of a compe titor who comes

io5
in last but gives it a bs olute ly e ve rything he or she has!
The y prepa re ha rd. The y compe te ha rd. The y succeed
even with a la st-pla ce finis h. This is a lesson with re al
de pth.
I no longe r fe e l tha t s upportive of the Olympic
Games, which have become a lmos t profe s sional. You’ll
see an a thle te compla ining a bout coming in second
because he knows it will cost him in endorsements. Going
for the gold has too ofte n become going for the gre e n.

The Fina l S core

The “fina l score” is not the final score. My fina l score is
how prepared you were to execute near your own pa rtic-
ula r level of compe te nce , both individua lly and as a team.
The re is nothing wrong with tha t othe r fe llow be ing
be tte r than you are, as long as you did e ve rything you
pos s ibly could to pre pare yours e lf for the compe tition.
Tha t is a ll you have control over. Tha t is a ll you s hould
concern yours e lf with. It may be tha t the othe r fe llow’s
level of compe te ncy is s imply highe r tha n yours . Tha t
doesn’t make you a loser.
In 1962 in the Fina l Four against Cincinnati (who
won the champions hip tha t ye a r), we los t in the last fe w
seconds of our s e mifina l game. Howe ve r, Wa lte r Ha zzard,
Ga ry Cunningham, P e te r Bla ckma n, J ohn Gre e n, Fre d

106
S la ughte r, a nd the othe r u c l a pla ye rs le ft the court as win-
ne rs in my eyes.
I was dis a ppointe d tha t we los t, of cours e , but I ha d
the gre a te s t pride in how the te a m ha d pe rforme d a nd
how the y ha d pre pa re d ha rd a nd progre s s e d during the
ye a r.
We we re a lmos t 20 points down in the firs t te n min-
ute s of the ga me a nd the n ca me from be hind to e ve n it
up a t the ha lf. We fought ve ry ha rd in the s e cond ha lf a nd
Cincinna ti pe rhaps ha d s upe rior pe rs onne l.
But wha t I saw out on the court during tha t ga me was
a u c l a te a m tha t ca me as clos e as we could come to be ing
the be s t tha t we could be . Tha t’s a wonde rful a ccom-
plis hme nt! Goodne s s gra cious sakes, a m I proud of tha t
e ffort. So proud, e ve n now.
Was I dis a ppointe d we we re outs core d? I a m s till dis -
a ppointe d we we re outs core d—but I wa s ne ve r de je cte d.
Mos tly wha t I wa s , a nd a m, is proud. Our te a m was
outs core d, but we we re winne rs . I ha d the gre a te s t pride
in how the pla ye rs pre pa re d, progre s s e d, a nd pe rforme d.
I fe lt this philos ophy would ha ve a much gre a te r pos -
itive impa ct on the outcome of e ve nts tha n a s tre ss on try-
ing to outs core oppone nts . It’s a focus on improving
yours e lf ra the r tha n compa ring yours e lf to the othe r te a m
as indica te d by a s core .
Furthe rmore , whe n you ge t too e ngros s e d in thos e
things ove r which you have no control, it will a dvers e ly

107
a ffe ct thos e things ove r which you do ha ve control—
na me ly, your pre pa ra tion.
You re s pe ct e ve ryone . The n you s imply ma ke the
s tronge s t e ffort to prepa re to the fulle s t e xte nt of your
a bilitie s . The re s ult will ta ke ca re of its e lf, a nd you s hould
be willing to a ccept it.

The Glory Is in Ge tting The re

Whe n pe ople ask me now if I mis s coa ching u c l a ba s-
ke tba ll games, the na tiona l cha mpions hips , the a tte ntion,
the trophie s , a nd e ve rything tha t goes with the m, I te ll
them this : I mis s the pra ctice s .
I don’t mis s the ga mes or the tourna me nts or a ll the
othe r folde rol. As Robe rt Louis S te ve ns on wrote , “It is
be tte r to tra ve l hope fully tha n a rrive .” I trie d to do tha t.
It’s the pra ctices I mis s mos t e ve n now.

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 Pa r t III

C o a c h in g , Te a c h in g ,
Le a d in g

In gre at atte mpts it is glorious even to fail.

—Wil f r e d A. P e t e r s o n
A S a cre d Trus t
A leader, pa rticula rly a te a che r or coach, has a mos t pow-
e rful influe nce on those he or she leads, perhaps more
tha n anyone outside of the fa mily. The re fore , it is the obli-
ga tion of tha t leader, teacher, or coach to tre a t such
re sponsibility as a grave conce rn.
I cons ide r it a sacred trus t: he lping to mold cha ra c-
te r, ins till productive principle s and values, and provide a
pos itive example to those under my s upe rvis ion.
Furthermore , it is a privilege to have tha t re s pons i-
bility, opportunity, and obliga tion, one tha t s hould never
be ta ke n lightly.

P hilos ophe rs a nd P ris on Gua rds

Mr. We bs te r indica te s that, a mong othe r things , a philos -
ophe r is a pe rs on who meets a ll events, whe the r fa vora ble
or unfa vora ble , with calmness and compos ure .
A philosophe r is also one who has a love of wis dom,
studies the ge ne ra l principle s of a field of knowle dge or

hi
a ctivity, and the processes gove rning thought, conduct,
cha racte r, mora ls , and behavior.
I believe these same traits are inhe re nt in a leader. A
re al le a de r is much more tha n s imply a pe rs on with
a uthority.
A pris on guard has a uthority, but he or she is not a
leader. A leader doesn’t need a gun to motivate individua ls .

Who Ca n Le a d?
Le a de rs hip is the a bility to ge t individua ls to work
toge the r for the common good and the best possible
re s ults while at the same time le tting them know they did
it themselves.
Some pe ople are a utoma tic leaders. Some can never
be leaders. But ma ny who don’t think of themselves as
leaders have the pote ntia l to become such if the y under-
sta nd the funda me nta ls of ge tting individua ls to work
toge the r.
Thos e funda me nta ls can be le a rne d. I le a rned the m.

“But, Coa ch Woode n, Time s

Ha ve Cha nge d!”
“The re was a time whe n the vast ma jority would follow
blindly, even into the shadow of death, but such is not the

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case now. Young pe ople of toda y a re fa r more a wa re,
incline d to be more ope nly critica l a nd more ge nuine ly
inquis itive tha n the y us e d to be . So le a de rs mus t work
with the m s ome wha t diffe re ntly.”
I wrote the pre ce ding obs e rva tion more tha n a qua r-
te r of a ce ntury a go.
Are pe ople re ally tha t diffe re nt toda y? Ha ve time s
cha nge d so much? I wonde r a bout tha t.

“Why Did Woode n Win? ”

The re is no a re a of ba s ketba ll in which I a m a ge nius .
None . Ta ctica lly a nd s tra te gica lly I’m jus t a ve ra ge , a nd
this is not offe ring fa ls e mode s ty.
We won na tiona l cha mpions hips while I was coa ching
a t u c l a be caus e I wa s a bove a ve ra ge in a na lyzing pla ye rs ,
ge tting the m to fill role s as pa rt of a te am , pa ying a tte n-
tion to funda me nta ls a nd de ta ils , a nd working we ll with
othe rs , both thos e unde r my s upe rvis ion a nd thos e whose
s upe rvis ion I was unde r. Additiona lly, I e njoye d ve ry ha rd
work.
The re is nothing fa ncy a bout the s e qua litie s . The y
have wide a pplica tion a nd e qua l e ffe ctive nes s in a ny te a m
e ndea vor a nywhe re . If the re is a ny mys te ry as to why
u c l a won te n na tiona l cha mpions hips while I wa s the
coa ch, tha t ma y cle a r it up.
A Le a de r’s Difficult Ta s k
A pe rson in a pos ition of leadership mus t make decisions.
Ma king decisions is a tough job. Thos e unde r a leader can
make suggestions. Ma king suggestions is an easy job.
Eve rybody has a suggestion. Not e ve rybody has a
decision.
Perhaps tha t’s why the re are so fe w leaders—at least,
good leaders.

Re s pe ct
The mos t essential thing for a leader to have is the respect
of those unde r his or he r s upe rvis ion. It s ta rts with giv-
ing them respect.
You mus t make it cle a r that you are working toge the r.
Thos e unde r your s upe rvis ion are not working for you but
with you, and you a ll have a common goal.
Remember, you can have respect for a pe rson with-
out necessarily liking that individua l. Coach Amos Alonzo
Stagg said, “I loved a ll my players. I didn’t like them a ll,
but I did love the m a ll.” Wha t does tha t mean?
You love your childre n, but you ma y not like some of
the things the y do. We are ins tructed, “Love thy ne igh-
bor as thys e lf.” Tha t doesn’t mean we have to like e ve ry-
thing our ne ighbor does. Tha t has nothing to do with our
love for the m.

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 You mus t have respect, which is a pa rt of love, for
those unde r your s upe rvis ion. The n the y will do wha t
you ask and more . The y’ll go the e xtra distance, make the
e xtra e ffort in trying to a ccomplish the mos t the y can
within the fra me work of the team.
If the y don’t respect the ir leader, pe ople jus t punch
the clock in and out. The re is no clock-wa tching whe n a
leader has respect.

A Le a de r Is Fa ir
Fairness is giving a ll pe ople the tre atme nt the y earn and
deserve. It doesn’t mean tre a ting everyone a like . Tha t’s
unfa ir, because everyone doesn’t earn the same tre a tme nt.
Tha t’s why I didn’t trea t a ll players alike. I didn’t tre at
Wa lte r Ha zza rd like I tre a te d Ga il Goodrich. I didn’t
trea t Bill Wa lton like I tre a te d Ke ith Wilke s . Contra ry to
what you might think, it enhanced te a mwork, because
a lmos t e ve ry pla ye r I coached kne w tha t he would be
tre a te d fairly, tha t he would be give n e xa ctly wha t he had
earned and deserved. The y worke d ha rde r as a re s ult. It’s
true in s ports and elsewhere in life .
In a ll circumsta nce s, whe the r as a coach, teacher, or
business leader, you mus t be gin by de te rmining e xa ctly
what is fa ir. Tha t means you mus t e limina te pre judice of
a ll type s . Can you do it ioo percent? P roba bly not, but
you can try.
 Thos e unde r you will re cognize tha t you a t le a s t are
ma king a s incere e ffort. The y will re a lize tha t you will be
wrong on occa s ion. The y mus t unde rs ta nd, as mus t you,
tha t you a re impe rfe ct. But as long as thos e unde r your
s upe rvis ion know tha t you a re trying ha rd to be fa ir,
you’ll do fine —whe the r it’s with your childre n, e mploye e s ,
or a thle te s.

Wa lk the Wa lk
A le a de r’s mos t powe rful a lly is his or he r own e xa mple .
Le a de rs don’t jus t ta lk a bout doing s ome thing; the y do it.
S wen Na te r, a forme r pla ye r a t u c l a , told me once ,
“Coa ch, you wa lke d the wa lk.” He me a nt tha t I le d by
e xa mple .

P ride as a Motiva tor

P ride is a be tte r motiva tor tha n fe ar. I ne ve r wa nte d to
te a ch through fe ar, punis hme nt, or intimida tion.
Fe a r ma y work in the s hort te rm to ge t pe ople to do
s ome thing, but ove r the long run I be lie ve pe rs ona l pride
is a much gre a te r motiva tor. It produce s fa r be tte r re s ults
tha t la s t for a much longe r time .
Who would I pre fe r to work with, a n individua l who
has gre a t pe rs ona l pride or one who is fe a rful of punis h-
me nt? Tha t’s a n e a sy choice for me .
Re membe r, pride come s whe n you give re s pe ct.

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Dicta tor Le a de rs
Abra ha m Lincoln said, “Mos t anyone can stand adversity,
but to te s t a pe rson’s cha ra cter give him power.”
I be lie ve the re was a diffe re nce be twe e n Ge nera l
Ge orge S. P a tton and Ge ne ra l Oma r Bradley. Ge nera l
Bra dle y had a gre a t concern for those unde r his s upe rvi-
sion. He knew wha t had to be done and he wasn’t look-
ing for s e lf-glory.
If you saw the movie Patton, you saw a man who acted
as a dicta tor. While I would wa nt him on my side in time
of war, I believe we s hould lead athletes and associates in
a diffe re nt manner.
The re are coaches out the re who have won cha mpi-
ons hips with a dicta tor a pproa ch, a mong the m Vince
Lomba rdi and Bobby Knight. I had a diffe re nt philosophy.
I didn’t wa nt to be a dicta tor to my players or assistant
coaches or managers. For me, conce rn, compassion, and
conside ra tion were always prioritie s of the highe st orde r.

Le a de rs Lis te n
Lis ten to thos e unde r your s upe rvis ion. Re a lly lis ten.
Don’t act as though you’re lis te ning and le t it go in one
ear and out the othe r. Fa king it is worse tha n not doing
it at a ll.
A good motto is “Othe rs , too, have bra ins .”

IX7
Anothe r Golde n Rule
Reward individuals for things we ll done. It doesn’t have
to be in a ma te ria l way. Sometimes a pat on the back is
more me a ningful in many ways tha n s ome thing ma te ria l.
A s mile . A nod.

Le a de rs hip a nd P unis hme nt

Leaders have to dis cipline . Thos e who dispense dis cipline
mus t re me mber tha t its purpos e is to he lp, to pre ve nt, to
corre ct, to improve , ra the r tha n to punis h. You are not
like ly to ge t productive re sults if you a nta gonize . P un-
is hme nt antagonizes.
Furthe rmore , it is importa nt to unde rs tand the pur-
pose of criticis m. Criticis m is not me ant to punis h, but
ra the r to corre ct s ome thing tha t is pre ve nting be tte r
results. The only goal of criticis m or dis cipline is improve -
me nt. You mus t keep tha t in mind and try to the best of
your a bility to use ta ct.

P ublic Emba rra s s me nt

I feel tha t ha rd public criticis m embarrasses people, antag-
onizes the m, and ma y discourage them from be ing rece p-
tive to your message. It is counterproductive, whe the r it’s
on a ba ske tba ll court or in a business establishment.
Occa s iona lly it can be a us e ful tool, however. One
playe r (and I will not embarrass him by us ing his name)

118
ne ede d to be goa ded publicly. I ha d to ma ke him ma d a t
me a t time s , until he wa s de te rmine d tha t he wa s re a lly
going to s how me . Howe ve r, s uch public e mbarra s s me nt
is ve ry ra re ly us e ful.

The Wors t P unis hme nt of All

The wors t punis hme nt I could give a te a m wa s to de ny

pa rticipa tion in wha t wa s ve ry ha rd work. I wa nte d my
pla ye rs to unders ta nd tha t pra cticing toge the r on our u c l a
ba s ke tball te a m wa s inde e d a privile ge , a privile ge tha t
could be ta ke n a way from the m.
If the y we re n’t working ha rd in pra ctice I would say,
“We ll, fe llows , le t’s ca ll it off for toda y. We ’re jus t not
with it.”
The va s t ma jority of the time the pla ye rs would
imme dia te ly say, “Coa ch, give us a nothe r cha nce. We ’ll ge t
going.” Us ua lly tha t wa s a ll it would ta ke , the thre a t of
ta king a way the ir privile ge of pra cticing. Ke e p in mind
tha t our pra ctice s we re phys ica lly a nd me nta lly grue ling.
On ra re occa s ions whe n tha t didn’t work, whe n the
pla yers continue d to coa s t, I would s imply te rmina te the
pra ctice se ssion, turn out the lights , a nd leave.
The privile ge of pra cticing ha d be e n ta ke n away. It
was the wors t punis hme nt of a ll: “Ge ntle me n, pra ctice is
ove r.”

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Fa ls e Expe cta tions
Whe n S ports Illus trate d ca me out with its poll e a ch ye a r
s a ying u c l a wa s going to be numbe r one in the na tion
a ga in, wha t did it me a n?
I told our playe rs to re me mbe r tha t tha t poll was jus t
s ome body e ls e’s opinion, the ir gue s s . S ports Illus trate d
doe s n’t know wha t’s going to ha ppe n in the future , a nd if
you le t yours e lf be lie ve it, you’re in trouble be ca use you
will ha ve fa ls e e xpe cta tions .
The s o-ca lle d e xpe rts a re ba s ing the ir opinion on the
pa s t, a nd if you try ge tting by on tha t, you’re in trouble .
Ye s te rda y’s gone . It’ll ne ve r cha nge . Wha t you do today
will de te rmine wha t’s going to ha ppen tomorrow, not wha t
you did ye s te rday; ce rta inly not a poll—s ome body e ls e ’s
guess a bout wha t’s going to ha ppe n tomorrow.
He re ’s the only e xpe cta tion it is us e ful to ha ve in your
mind, re ga rdle s s of your profe s s ion: “I will do the be s t I
a m ca pa ble of doing toda y to bring out my be s t tomor-
row.” Now you ha ve a n e xpe cta tion tha t is productive .

S couting
I s e ldom me ntione d the othe r te a m. I be lie ve it ta ke s a wa y
from the conce ntra tion on ours e lve s in the pre pa ra tion.
I did less s couting tha n a ny othe r coa ch I’ve e ve r
he a rd a bout. I wa nte d our te a m to conce ntra te on what
we could do—na me ly, try to e xe cute our s tyle of pla y to
the be s t of our a bilitie s .

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 Of course, I needed to know s ome thing a bout the
oppone nt in ge ne ra l te rms , but I could read tha t in a
newspaper.
I would know the ir ove ra ll cha ra cte ris tics, such as
who was the coach and wha t was the ir s tyle so we could
be pre pa re d to a ttack the ir 2-2-1, or the ir 1-2-2, or the ir
3-1-1, or wha te ve r the y had. Howe ve r, I didn’t wa nt to
talk much a bout tha t with my playe rs.
I fe lt we were be tte r off le tting our opponents try to
figure us out tha n s pe nding time trying to figure them
out. We focus ed on prepa ring for any e ve ntua lity ra the r
than a pa rticula r s tyle of pla y from a pa rticula r team.
Wha t if we pre pa re d for s omething specific and our oppo-
ne nt changed? Uh-oh.
Perhaps we ga ine d an advantage by ha ving so much
confide nce in our own a bility to pla y near our pote ntia l
(because of our de ta ile d and dis cipline d pre pa ra tion) that
it ke pt us from be coming fe a rful of a nother team.
It goes back to focus ing on wha t you can control. We
had no control ove r the ma ny possible va riations an oppo-
ne nt might use in a game. We did have control, tota l con-
trol, ove r pre pa ring to execute our game. To me, it made
more sense to concentra te on tha t.

P s ychologica l Wa rfa re
I was dis incline d to pla y s o-ca lle d mind games with oppo-
nents. Howe ve r, the re was one idea I used tha t was aimed

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dire ctly a t the oppone nts ’ phys iology as we ll as the ir
ps ychology.
Ne ve r did I wa nt to ca ll the firs t time -out during a
ga me . Ne ver. It was a lmos t a fe tis h with me be ca use I
s tre s s e d conditioning to s uch a de gre e . I wa nte d u c l a to
come out a nd run our oppone nts so ha rd tha t the y would
be force d to ca ll the firs t time -out jus t to ca tch the ir
bre a th. I wa nte d the m to ha ve to s top the running be fore
we did.
At tha t firs t time -out, the oppone nt would know, a nd
we would know the y kne w, who wa s in be tte r condition.
This has a ps ychologica l impa ct.

Le a de rs hip Is More tha n Fa cts

The re is ve ry little diffe re nce in te chnica l knowle dge
a bout the ga me of ba s ke tba ll a mong mos t e xpe rie nce d
coaches . S imila rly, in the bus ine s s world, thos e in cha rge
us ua lly unde rs ta nd the ba s ics : how to re a d a fina ncia l
s ta te me nt a nd so forth.
Howe ve r, the re is a va s t diffe re nce be twe e n le a de rs in
the ir a bility to te a ch a nd to motiva te thos e unde r the ir
s upervis ion.
Knowle dge a lone is not e nough to ge t de s ire d re s ults .
You mus t ha ve the more e lus ive a bility to te a ch a nd to
motiva te . This de fine s a le a de r; if you ca n’t te a ch a nd you
ca n’t motiva te , you ca n’t le ad.

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 *

Wilt Te a che s Me a Le s s on
Whe n Wilt Cha mbe rlain was trade d to the Los Angeles
La ke rs many years ago, I was invite d to the press confe r-
ence. One of the re porte rs asked him this que stion. “Wilt,
do you think Coa ch Van Breda Kolff (the La ke rs’ coach)
can handle you? It’s been said you’re ha rd to ha ndle .”
Wilt re plie d, “You ‘ha ndle’ fa rm a nima ls. You work
with people. I am a pe rs on. I can work with anyone.”
I re a lize d he was a bs olute ly right; the te rm “ha ndle”
was ina ppropria te. Furthe rmore , I re a lize d tha t two days
e a rlie r my book on te a ching and coa ching the te chnique s
of ba ske tba ll, Practical Mode rn Basketball, had been pub-
lishe d with a s e ction ca lle d “Ha ndling Your Players.” I
unde rs tood tha t needed to be corre cte d imme dia te ly.
I rushe d home and ca lle d the publis her tha t same day
and e xplaine d my desire to change the he a ding and te xt
as soon as possible from “ha ndling your players” to “work-
ing with your pla ye rs .”
Mr. Chambe rlain was corre ct. I believe tha t a leader
and thos e unde r his or he r s upe rvis ion are working
toge the r. The forme r doesn’t “ha ndle” the la tter. For that
reason I did not refe r to u c l a as “my te a m” or the a th-
letes as “my pla ye rs .” And a fte r he aring Wilt’s comment,
I never again re fe rre d to “ha ndling pla ye rs .” You may try
to handle a couple of mules like Jack and Ka te back on
Da d’s fa rm, but it’s the wrong a ttitude to a pply to those
you work with.
 It’s a s ubtle diffe re nce , but it a ll adds up in the big-
ge r picture of good leadership.

Emotiona lis m
I believe tha t for e very a rtificia l peak you create, there is
a va lle y. I don’t like va lle ys. Games are los t in valleys.
The re fore , I wasn’t much for giving speeches to s tir up
e motions be fore a game.
If you need e motiona lis m to make you pe rform be t-
ter, the n sooner or la te r you’ll be vulne ra ble , an e motiona l
wre ck, and unable to function to your level of a bility.
My ide a l is an e ve r-ris ing gra ph line tha t peaks with
your fina l pe rforma nce .
I pre fe r thorough pre pa ra tion ove r some device to
make us “rise to the occa sion.” Le t others try to rise sud-
de nly to a highe r level than the y had a ttaine d pre vious ly.
We would have a lre a dy a tta ined it in our pre para tion. We
would be the re to be gin with. A speech by me s houldn’t
be necessary.

Ha tre d
Ha tre d motiva te s only briefly. It is a va ria tion of rage or
anger and is a re s ult of e motiona lis m. Emotions aren’t
la s ting. Whe n e motions take over, reason flie s out the

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window and preve nts you from functioning ne a r your
le ve l of compe te ncy. Mis ta ke s occur whe n your thinking
is ta inte d by excessive e motion.
You ma y re fute tha t in a sense by s a ying tha t love is
an e motion and it is productive. But is n’t it true tha t whe n
you’re in love , re a lly in love, your a bility to reason may
be s ome wha t reduced? Of course, I can only speak for
mys elf on tha t issue.
Ge ne ra lly, to pe rform ne a r your level of compe te ncy
your mind mus t be cle ar and fre e of excessive e motions ,
such as ha tre d.
Unle ss you’re a ttempting to run through a brick wa ll,
excessive e motion is counte rproductive .

Whe n to Be De je cte d
You are e ntitle d to be de je cte d whe n you know you didn’t
do wha t you s hould have done in prepa ring yours e lf to
execute ne ar your own a bility le ve l. Yes, the n you have
reason to be dejected.
But if you have pre pa re d yours e lf prope rly, the re is
no reason to be downhea rte d. Dis a ppointe d perhaps, but
not excessively so.
The mos t dis a ppointing thing tha t happened to me in
ba s ketba ll was los ing the fina l game of the India na state
high s chool championship by one s ingle point. Tha t was

125
back in 1928 at Butle r Fie ld House in India na polis . We los t
to Muncie Ce ntra l 13-12 in the last seconds of the game
on a shot tha t seemed to cle ar the ra fters be fore it fina lly
we nt through the basket.
Whe n the buzze r signaled the end of that game, one
tha t is s till ta lked a bout by old-time India na ba sketball
fans, mos t of my teammates broke down and crie d. I did
not. I be lie ved I had done the best I could. I had pre pa re d
and pla ye d ha rd and kne w it.
The team had pre pa re d and pla ye d ha rd. I saw no re a-
son to be ove rly distressed because we had los t a game,
even a champions hip game. I wasn’t. Dis a ppointe d, of
course, but not ove rly de jecte d and downhe a rte d.
I fe lt even the n tha t the more importa nt ques tion was,
“Did I try to do a ll I could?” ra the r tha n “Did I win? ” If
the answer to the firs t que s tion was, yes, then the answer
to the second que s tion was also, yes, regardless of the
score.
The re is nothing to be ashamed of whe n you pre pa re d
to the best of your a bility. But you have ample cause to
be de je cte d whe n you know you didn’t pre pa re prope rly
whe n you had the a bility to do so.

J ubila tion
The re ’s nothing wrong with jubila tion. It’s excessive jubi-
la tion tha t I ca utioned against: s howboa ting, hotdogging,

126
conducting yours e lf in a fa s hion tha t is s imply a dis pla y
of a rroga nce , be ha ving in an e gotis tica l s ort of way.
The ye a r be fore we los t the cha mpions hip game to
Muncie Ce ntra l in the 1928 India na state high s chool
tourna me nt, we had won the title . The n, too, I saw no re a-
son to be ove rly jubila nt—though I was ve ry happy, of
course.
It’s importa nt to keep things in pe rs pe ctive . Whe n
the y get out of pe rs pe ctive , it a ffe cts your a bility to pre -
pare and pe rform. It ha rms your peace of mind.

S piking, Dunking,
Ta unting, Fla unting
Today’s s howboa ting runs contra ry to wha t the s pirit of
the game is a ll about. Excessive dunking, pointing at othe r
players, and ta unting the m, a ll be little your opponent and
show a la ck of respect.
I believe you s hould go out and work ha rd, pla y ha rd,
and compe te ha rd in s ports and in life without the e xtra
his trionics .
We played te n times for the na tiona l cha mpionship
while I was coa ching at u c l a . Each time we were fortu-
nate e nough to win. And each time ne a r the end of the
conte s t whe n I fe lt we had the game in hand, I told the
team during a time -out, “Now, re me mbe r whe n this game

127
is ove r to behave in an a ppropria te manner. Do not make
fools of yourse lve s. Le t the a lumni and s tude nt body do
tha t if they choose. Don’t you do it!”
Your re a ction to victory or defeat is an importa nt pa rt
of how you pla y the game. I wa nte d my players to dis play
s tyle and class in e ither s itua tion—to lose with grace, to
win with humility.

A Coa ch’s Be s t Frie nd

I used the bench to teach. Whe n future two-time All-
Ame rica n Wa lte r Ha zzard firs t came to us at u c l a , he had
a te nde ncy to ge t a little fancy. He didn’t continue be ing
fa ncy because he like d to play. Ea rly on we ma y have lost
a couple of games because I sat him on the bench for
be ing too fancy.
I te ll coaches at coa ching clinics , “The gre a test a lly
you have to ge t things working we ll and pla ye rs pe r-
forming as a team is the bench. Don’t be a fraid to use it,
whe the r for a s ta r pla yer or anyone else. In fa ct, the over-
a ll e ffe ct can be be tte r whe n you bench a star. The othe r
players see it and pla y ha rde r because of it.”
Even if the re is a price to be paid, don’t be a fraid to
use a ppropria te dis cipline . It ma y hurt in the s hort te rm,
but it will pay divide nds in the future .

128
S ports as Te a che r
S ports show us so cle a rly how to work toge ther with oth-
ers to get the best re s ults . The y show that you mus t think
of the group as a whole ra the r than jus t of yours e lf as an
individua l.
I often used the compa ris on of a movie or stage play.
One gre at a ctor or actress is n’t enough. You must have
s upporting players if it’s going to become a gre at motion
picture: not only othe r a ctors and actresses (some of
whom ma y not even have s pe a king roles ), but also light-
ing pe ople , s criptwrite rs , ma ke up a rtis ts , camera ope ra -
tors , grips , mus icia ns , and e ve ryone else. You need a
dire ctor and a produce r.
And the importa nt thing I wa nte d my pla ye rs to
unde rsta nd was that jus t as a movie needs a va riety of indi-
viduals all working ve ry ha rd for the good of the movie,
a ba s ke tball team needs a va rie ty of individua ls a ll work-
ing ve ry ha rd for the good of the group.
We ’ve seen ma ny motion picture s whe re the sta r did
a te rrific job but the movie was a fa ilure . I wa nte d e ve ry
me mbe r of our ba s ke tball team to unde rs ta nd that the
goa l was to make ourselves into the best team we could
pos s ibly be, not to create a star.
Of course, the one who has to unde rs ta nd tha t the
mos t is often the s o-called star.

I2p
Be ing P re pa re d
I used to say to an individua l pla yer who was unha ppy
because he wa nte d more pla ying time , “Young ma n, te ll
yours e lf, ‘I will be pre pa re d and then perhaps my chance
will come, because if it does come and I’m not ready,
a nothe r chance ma y not come my wa y ve ry soon again.
The time to pre pare is n’t a fte r you have been give n
the opportunity It’s long be fore tha t opportunity arises.
Once the opportunity a rrive s , it’s too late to pre pa re .

The Gua ra nte e d Divide nd

I believe one of the big lessons of s ports for dedicated
individuals and teams is tha t it shows us how ha rd work,
and I mean hard work, does pay divide nds .
The divide nd is not necessarily in outs coring an oppo-
ne nt. The guara nte ed divide nd is the comple te peace of
mind gained in knowing you did e ve rything within your
powe r, phys ica lly, me nta lly, and e motiona lly, to bring
forth your full pote ntia l.
I see the same s e lf-s a tis fa ction occurring in e ve ry area
of our live s whe n we s trive mightily to do our best,
whe the r it’s working in a business or community or ra is-
ing a fa mily.
The gre at s a tis fa ction that comes from trying to do
your best is the gua ra nte e d divide nd.

130
Te x S chra mm’s P oint
Forme r Da lla s Cowboys ge ne ra l ma na ge r Te x S chra mm
s a id, “S ports is not jus t a bout winning. It’s a bout winning
with s tyle a nd class. Tha t was the old Cowboys . It was the
old Ce ltics . The old Ya nke e s. The y we re s ome thing s pe -
cia l. Now a ll I see tha t ma tte rs is re s ults .”
I a gree with Mr. S chra mm. I wa s a gre a t Cowboy fa n
when Tom La ndry was the re . And Roge r S ta uba ch. I a m
not a gre a t Cowboy fa n now be ca use the e mpha s is s hifte d
to jus t winning a nd it didn’t seem to ma tte r how you won
or how you be have d in winning. It’s the s logan of the
Oa kla nd Ra ide rs : “J us t win, ba by.” The y’re more con-
ce rne d with the e nd tha n the me a ns . To me , the me a ns is
ve ry importa nt.

Owne rs a nd P rofits
Te a m owners nowa days will say, “This is a bus ines s . I
ne e d to turn a profit.” Howe ve r, for ma ny of the m own-
ing a te a m is re a lly jus t a hobby. If the y’re s ma rt e nough
to be come multimultimilliona ire s in bus ines s , the y’re
going to ma ke more mone y s ta ying in bus ine s s tha n ge t-
ting into profe s s iona l s ports .
Whe n s ports be come s jus t a bus ine s s , it lose s s ome -
thing intrins ic to its s pirit. The s pirit of the ga me is a
be a utiful thing.

*3*
Bringing Out Your Be s t
(Wha te ve r It Is )

As a playe r at P urdue Unive rs ity I had not been blessed

with he ight or size. Thos e we re things ove r which I had
no control. But the Good Lord had given me quickness
and speed, and thos e were things ove r which I had some
control. I focused on them with gre a t inte ns ity. I worke d
ve ry ha rd on conditioning for quickness and speed.
Whe n I gra dua te d, Coach P iggy La mbe rt said I was
the be s t-conditione d a thlete he had ever seen in any s port.
I had worke d at it—at wha t I had control over.
La te r, I a pplied the same philos ophy to our teams:
focus a ll your e ffort on what is within your powe r to con-
trol. Conditioning is one of those things. How your mind
functions is another.

The Gym Is a Cla s s room

I fe lt that running a pra ctice session was a lmos t like teach-

ing an Englis h class in tha t I wa nted to have a lesson
plan. I kne w the de ta ile d pla n was necessary in te aching
Englis h, but it took a while be fore I unde rs tood the same
thing was necessary in s ports . Otherwis e you waste an
e normous a mount of time , e ffort, and ta le nt.

152
 I would s pe nd a lmos t as much time pla nning a pra c-
tice as conducting it. Eve rything wa s lis te d on thre e -by-
five ca rds down to the ve ry la s t de ta il.
Eve rything wa s pla nne d out e a ch da y. In fa ct, in my
la te r ye a rs a t u c l a I would s pe nd two hours e ve ry morn-
ing with my a s s is tants orga nizing tha t da y’s pra ctice ses-
s ion (e ve n though the pra ctice its e lf might be less tha n
two hours long). I ke pt a re cord of e ve ry pra ctice s e s s ion
in a loos e le a f note book for future re fe re nce .
My coa che s a nd ma na ge rs a ls o ha d thre e -by-five ca rds
e a ch da y so the y kne w—to the e xa ct minute —whe n we
would ne e d two ba s ke tba lls a t one e nd of the court for a
drill, or five ba s ke tba lls a t midcourt for a diffe re nt drill,
or thre e pla ye rs a ga ins t two pla ye rs a t a ce rta in pla ce a nd
time , or the doze ns a nd doze ns of va ria tions I de vise d.
I ke pt note s with the s pe cifics of e ve ry minute of
e ve ry hour of e ve ry pra ctice we e ve r ha d a t u c l a . Whe n
I pla nne d a da y’s pra ctice , I looke d ba ck to see wha t we ’d
done on the corre s ponding da y the pre vious ye a r a nd the
ye a r be fore tha t.
By doing tha t I could tra ck the pra ctice routine s of
e ve ry s ingle pla ye r for e ve ry s ingle pra ctice session he pa r-
ticipa te d in while I wa s coa ching him. In thos e days fre s h-
me n we re ine ligible . Othe rwis e I would ha ve gone ba ck
thre e ye a rs in re vie wing the drills .
It was ve ry importa nt tha t I le a rn a bout e a ch pla ye r
a nd the n s tudy tha t pla ye r so I would know if he ne e ded

155
a little more time on this or tha t pa rticula r drill. I needed
to know which drill had grea ter a pplica tion to this pla ye r
or tha t player, because individua ls va ry.
So I devised drills for both individua ls and the group
and s tudie d and a na lyze d the m. Some drills would be
good for a ll and some drills would be good for jus t ce r-
ta in players.
I needed to unde rs ta nd how to a pply these drills in
practice. I le a rne d I mus t not continue them too long. I
mus t know as the season progre sse d how the y were going
to change and the n devise new ones to pre vent monotony,
a lthough the re would be some drills we mus t do e ve ry s in-
gle day of the year.
All those things I had a re sponsibility to do to the
utmos t of my a bility because the y were things ove r which
I had control.
The a ttention to de ta il me a nt pla ye rs would move
quickly from one drill to a nother. We didn’t achieve con-
ditioning by doing laps or running up and down s ta irs or
doing pus h-ups . We did it through the e fficie nt and
inte nse e xe cution of individua l funda me nta l drills .
A s hooting drill was a conditioning drill the wa y I ra n
it. The re was no s ta nding a round and jus t wa tching or
re s ting in be twe e n. The players were always working and
running and moving. “Move! Move ! Move! Up, back, up,
back, move. Quickly, hurry up!”

*34
 A pla yer who wasn’t running in a s crimma ge would
s hoot free throws until he had made te n in a row and the n
would go into the s crimma ge while someone else came out
to s hoot fre e throws . Eve ryone wa nte d to be s crimma g-
ing, so players put treme ndous pressure on themselves to
make free throws and worke d inte ns e ly while the y pa r-
ticipa te d in the s crimma ge . “Move ! Move! Move !” No
re s ting. No s ta nding a round. No idle cha tte r.
The pre ssure I cre a te d during practice s may have
exceeded tha t which opponents produce d. I be lie ve when
an individual cons tantly works unde r pressure, he or she
will re s pond a utoma tica lly whe n faced with it during
compe tition.
I engaged in very little discussion. I’d ta lk while drills
were going on, mos tly to individua ls ra the r than to the
group. I did more individua l coa ching in tha t sense.
Following the drills , I would make notes. Perhaps we
needed two more minute s on this drill or less time to
comple te tha t drill.
By re vie wing and a nalyzing e ve rything, we we re able
to ge t the ve ry mos t out of our practice time. Tha t was
necessary to reach our goa l: ge tting the ve ry mos t out of
our a bilities .
The n I would say, “Young men, you have a re s pons i-
bility for the a tta inment and ‘ma inta inme nt’ of a ll the lit-
tle de ta ils tha t we do in pra ctice . Your re s pons ibility

135
be gins e a ch a fte rnoon whe n pra ctice e nds , be caus e you
ca n te a r down more be twe e n pra ctice s tha n we ca n pos -
s ibly build up during pra ctice s . So plea s e pra ctice mod-
e ra tion in wha t you do.”
But it a ll be ga n with a tte ntion to, a nd pe rfe ction of,
de tails . De ta ils . De ta ils .
De ve lop a love for de ta ils . The y us ua lly a ccompa ny
success.

Love of the Routine

S ome pe ople wonde re d how I could e ndure working in
s uch a minute ly de ta ile d, pe rs is te nt, a nd a rduous ma nne r
da y a fte r day, we e k a fte r we e k, for ye a rs on e nd. I could
te ll the m only this : “I love it.” It wa s as Ce rva nte s
de s cribe d. For me the journe y was the inn.
The pra ctice a nd the pla nning a nd the drills we re my
journe y, a nd I love d it.

The Crowd Love s Blood

I worke d a t the India na polis 500 whe n I was te a ching a nd
coa ching in India na . P e ople us e d to cla mor for seats on
the s outh turn. The y would pa y a pre mium to s it the re .
Why? Tha t’s whe re mos t of the a ccide nts we re . No a cci-
de nts ? Dull ra ce .

136
 People go to a boxing ma tch and the bout is be auti-
fully and s cie ntifica lly fought but the re’s no knockout. No
blood. Afte rwa rd, fans will te ll you it was a dull fight.
Athle te s incre a s ingly pla y to this crowd ins tinct with
hotdogging and showmanship. It’s unnecessary and it loses
the s pirit of the game.

Fla s h Ve rsus Cla s s

Youngsters wa tch professionals and see tha t it’s OK to
s howboat and be little oppone nts . I be lie ve pe rforming
with s tyle and class is a firs t priority, e spe cia lly if you’re
in the public s potlight. If you’re in tha t pos ition, you do
have a re s pons ibility.
Tha t’s why it’s sad to he ar someone like Cha rle s
Ba rkle y say he’s not inte re s te d in be ing a role model for
anyone. Whe n you ge t into a profe s s ion tha t puts you in
the lime light you have accepted tha t re s ponsibility. It
comes with the job.
Ma ybe I’m old-fa s hione d, but tha t’s the way I look at
it. And I’m not like ly to change.

Role Mode ls : Good a nd Ba d

Tony Gwynn, Steve Young, J e rry Rice , Chris Eve rt,
Emme tt S mith, Ca l Ripke n J r., Jack Nickla us , Ja ckie

*3 7
J oyner-Ke rs ee , Pete Sampras, Wa yne Grets ky, J ohn
S tockton, Da vid Robins on, Ake e m Olajuwon, and Ke vin
J ohns on are outs ta nding examples for us of athletes with
gre at s tyle and class. P m s pe a king both of the ir pla ying
and conduct in the competitive arena and of wha t the y’re
doing with the ir lives and for the ir communities . The y are
wonde rful role models.
Michae l J orda n has s howma ns hip on the court, but it
seems to be a na tura l pa rt of his exuberance and e ne rgy
and love of the game. He avoids “in your face” s tuff.
As gre a t a pla ye r as De nnis Rodma n is, and he is a
gre at pla yer, I wouldn’t wa nt him on a team. He is an e go-
tis t with a gre a t desire to a ttra ct a tte ntion. I don’t think
he re alize s tha t his tre me ndous individua l a bilitie s will
a ttra ct a ll the a tte ntion that anyone could wa nt. And it will
be the right kind of a tte ntion.

S pirit Ve rs us Te mpe ra me nt
The re is a diffe re nce be twe e n s pirit and te rmpe ra me nt. It
is a s light diffe re nce , but it is an importa nt one. I valued
pla ye rs with s pirit and avoided those who we re
te mpe rame nta l.
Ke ith Ericks on had s pirit without be ing te mpe ra-
me nta l. At time s he would te s t me to the limit. He was
pla yful but not mean. He had fun without trying to be
funny.

*3*
 Ke ith would wa tch me out of the corne r of his eye and
whe n he thought I wasn’t looking engage in a bit of hors e-
play, such as seeing how fa r and how high he could throw
the ba ll from one end of the court to the othe r. He was
not dis ruptive , jus t s pirite d.
More importa nt, he brought tha t s pirit into the com-
pe titive s itua tion. The toughe r the job I assigned him in
a game, the more he gave of hims e lf. He had tre mendous
fight in him.
Ga il Goodrich was a nother pla yer who was s pirited,
a fighte r, but never te mpe ra mental. S pirit is good. Te m-
pe ra me nt is bad. A leader is cha rge d with re cognizing the
diffe rence .

The Va lue in Fe e ling Va lue d

The individua ls who a re n’t pla ying much have a ve ry
important role in the de ve lopme nt of those who are going
to pla y more . The y are needed, and you must le t the m
know it.
Eve ryone on the te a m, from the ma na ge r to the
coach, from a s e cre ta ry to an owne r, has a role to fulfill.
Tha t role is valuable if the team is to come close to re a ch-
ing its potential. The leader mus t unde rs ta nd this .
Eve ry s ingle me mbe r of your te a m needs to fe e l
wa nte d and appreciated. If the y are on the te a m, the y
deserve to be valued and to feel valued. Do you wa nt some-

*39
one on the team who doesn’t feel necessary and a ppre ci-
ated? How do the y find out unless you le t them know?
Right a fter each u c l a ba ske tball game, the re would be
a press conference with representatives from a ll the media.
I could pre dict wha t questions the y would ask and which
players the y wa nte d to inte rvie w.
I always trie d to use this opportunity to praise those
individua ls the media would ove rlook. I would say, “Whe n
I put s o-a nd-s o in jus t be fore the ha lf and he made that
steal, it quite pos s ibly could have been the turning point
in the game.” I wa nte d to le t other players know the y were
ve ry importa nt to the team.
The press would give ple nty of a tte ntion and praise
to s o-ca lle d stars: Bill Wa lton, Ka re e m Abdul-Ja bba r, Ga il
Goodrich, Wa lte r Ha zza rd, Sidney Wicks , Ma rque s J ohn-
son, Da vid Me ye rs , and othe rs . I would be more like ly to
praise these pa rticula r players priva te ly.
I wa nte d the public a cknowle dgment for players to be
balanced. The average ba sketball fa n may have been unfa -
milia r with names like Ne ville Saner, Bill Sweek, or Ga ry
Fra nklin, fe llows who we re an importa nt pa rt of u c l a
teams.
I trie d to le t them know the y were importa nt, tha t
the y were valued. All members of the team are important.
Each role is so crucial.
In Elegy W ritte n in a Country Churchyard, Thomas
Gray wrote ,

140
 Full ma ny a ge m of pure s t ra y serene,
The da rk unfa thome d caves of oce a n be a r:
Full ma ny a flowe r is born to blus h unseen,
And waste its sweetness on the de s e rt a ir.

The s ta r knows he ’s importa nt a nd he a rs it from a

va rie ty of s ource s. You mus t ma ke s ure tha t othe rs on the
te a m, thos e “born to blus h uns e e n,” unde rsta nd tha t the ir
role is a ls o ve ry, ve ry importa nt. The y s hould ne ve r fe e l
the ir e fforts a re wa s te d in the s ta r’s s ha dow.
It’s up to the le a de r to do tha t, in s ports a nd
e ls e whe re .

S we n Na te r Unde rs tood His Role

S we n Na te r was pla ying ba s ketba ll a t Cypre s s J unior Col-
le ge in S outhe rn Ca lifornia whe n I s poke to him a bout
coming to u c l a . He was ne a rly s e ven fe e t ta ll a nd ha d an
outs ta nding phys ique , a lthough his ba s ketba ll s kills we re
s ome wha t limite d be ca use he ha d s pe nt his e a rly ye a rs in
Holla nd.
I told him, “S we n, if you come to u c l a you will pla y
ve ry little in a ctua l ga me s , ma ybe not a t a ll be ca use I’ve
got s omeone coming in who is e xtre me ly ta le nte d.” The
pla ye r coming in was Bill Wa lton.
“Howe ve r,” I continue d, “if you work with us, pra c-
tice with a nd a ga ins t this pla yer, by the time you gra dua te

141
I fe e l ce rta in tha t you’ll ge t a pro contra ct. You’ll be tha t
good be caus e of the role you’ll pla y on our te a m.”
S we n lis te ned a nd joine d us. He unde rs tood his role .
The firs t ye a r he ha rdly cha lle nge d Bill. The s e cond ye a r
he ma de gre a t progre s s . The third ye a r he gave Bill Wa l-
ton a ll he could ha ndle .
S we n kne w his individua l role a nd his te a m role a nd
ne ve r once compla ine d. As a re s ult, e ve ryone be ne fite d:
the u c l a ba s ketba ll te a m as a group, Bill Wa lton as a n
individua l, a nd S we n Na te r, who, a fte r gra dua tion, joine d
San Die go in the a b a (the old Ame rica n Ba s ke tba ll As s o-
cia tion) a nd be ca me rookie of the ye a r.

110 P e rce nt Is n’t the Goa l

The playe rs we re cha rge d with trying to improve a little
each day, trying to ge t clos e r to be coming the ir be s t. I
trie d to be hone s t with the m in le tting the m know the y
wouldn’t re a ch pe rfe ction.
But I was a ls o hone s t in s a ying tha t I e xpe cte d the m
to give e ve rything the y ha d in trying to re a ch pe rfe ction.
Tha t’s wha t we worke d towa rd. Le t’s see how close we ca n
ge t. We won’t re a ch 120 pe rcent, or no pe rcent, but how
clos e to 100 pe rce nt of our pote ntia l ca n we get? Tha t was
my cha lle nge to the m: how clos e ca n we ge t to pe rfe ct?
Whe n individua ls a re s ince re ly motiva te d to ta ke up
tha t cha llenge, the re s ults a re a s tonis hing.

142
S low a nd S te a dy Ge ts You Re a dy
Whe n you improve a little each day, e ve ntua lly big things
occur. Whe n you improve conditioning a little each day,
e ventua lly you have a big improve ment in conditioning.
Not tomorrow, not the ne xt day, but e ventua lly a big ga in
is made.
Don’t look for the big, quick improve me nt. Seek the
s ma ll improve me nt one day at a time. Tha t’s the only way
it happens —and whe n it happens, it lasts.

Tough Toe s Bring Hidde n Re wa rds

In our firs t te a m me e ting two weeks be fore u c l a ’s a ctua l
pra ctice s began, I would ask players to s ta rt toughe ning
up the ir fe e t. Wa iting until pra ctice s began would gua r-
antee blis te rs .
I advised the m a ga inst s crimma ging. Ins tea d I urge d
them to s ta rt with ple nty of s liding side to side, s ta rting
and s topping, ma king quick changes of dire ction, and
s printing s hort distances ra the r tha n long. This would
gradually toughe n up the ir fe e t. Players unde rstood the
need for this . The y kne w they couldn’t hide bliste rs .
Wha t I didn’t te ll them was tha t by ge tting the ir fe e t
ready, they would also ge t the ir lungs ready. If they did
the drills I re comme nded, the ir wind would be in good

H3
shape whe n pra ctice s got unde rwa y. P la ye rs we re less
inclined to pay a tte ntion to the ir wind. The y ma y have fe lt
it was less de te cta ble.
On the firs t da y of practice I wa nte d u c l a to be able
to lite ra lly hit the floor running, a t full speed for two
hours without ge tting blis te rs or be coming winde d. Whe n
we addressed one issue, the othe r came as s ort of a hid-
den rewa rd.

The La ws of Le a rning
The four laws of le a rning are e xpla na tion, de mons tra tion,
imita tion, and re pe tition. The goa l is to create a corre ct
ha bit tha t can be produce d ins tinctive ly unde r grea t
pressure.
To make sure this goa l was achieved, I created e ight
laws of le a rning; namely, e xpla na tion, de monstration, imi-
ta tion, re pe tition, re pe tition, re pe tition, re pe tition, and
re pe tition.

Pla ye rs: P olitics a nd Re ligion

I wasn’t pa rticula rly conce rne d with wha t re ligious or
politica l be lie fs pla ye rs had, but I wa nte d them to believe
in s omething. “Ha ve a re ligion and be lie ve in it,” I told

144
them. “Ha ve reasons you be lie ve in it, but always be will-
ing to lis te n to othe rs . The n sta nd up for wha t you
be lie ve in.”
Ha ving be liefs and s ta nding up for them go to the
issue of cha racte r. Wha t kind of ma n has no cre e d, no
beliefs? Wha t kind has be liefs but won’t sta nd up for
the m? I wa nte d a thle te s who were s trong on the outside
and the ins ide.

A Le a de r Ca n Be Le d
Leaders are intere s ted in finding the best way ra the r tha n
ha ving the ir own way. “Because I said s o” is a poor e xpla-
na tion for doing s omething. It’s no reason.
S tubbornne s s , an ins iste nce on ha ving your own way,
na rrowmindednes s , a re fus a l to lis te n, an ina bility to see
both sides—a ll are a ntithe tica l to le a de rship. If you cling
to these traits , you and whate ver te a m you wis h to lead
will not progres s .
The leader mus t make the fina l de cis ion, but it s hould
be based on his or he r e va lua tion of the best way. The sug-
gestions and ideas of othe rs s hould pla y an importa nt pa rt
in tha t de cision. Tha t’s why a leader needs to re ta in an
ope n mind.
You might re mind yours e lf of this verse from time to
time :

H5
 Stubbornness we deprecate,
Firmness we condone.
The forme r is my ne ighbor’s tra it,
The la tte r is my own.

Criticis m a nd P ra is e
I took criticis m from outs ide rs with a gra in of salt. I told
my pla ye rs each year, “Fe llows , you’re going to receive
criticis m. Some of it will be deserved and some of it will
be undeserved. Eithe r way, deserved or undeserved, you’re
not going to like it.
“You’re also going to receive praise on occasion. Some
of it will be deserved and some of it will be undeserved.
Eithe r way, de se rve d or unde s e rve d, you’re going to
like it.
“Howe ver, your s trength as an individua l depends on
how you re spond to both criticis m and pra ise . If you le t
e ithe r one have a ny special e ffe ct on you, it’s going to hurt
us. Whe the r it’s criticis m or pra ise , deserved or unde-
s e rve d, makes no diffe re nce . If we le t it a ffe ct us, it
hurts us.”
It goes ba ck to wha t my dad used to say. “If you ge t
ca ught up in things ove r which you have no control, it will
adversely a ffe ct thos e things ove r which you have con-
trol.” You have little control ove r wha t criticis m or praise
outs ide rs send your way. Take it a ll with a gra in of salt.

146
Le t your opponent ge t a ll ca ught up in othe r pe ople’s
opinions . But don’t you do it.

His toric Los s ?

The me dia need a s tory and whe re the re is n’t one the y
ma y ge t a little cre a tive . The press ca lle d our loss to
Hous ton in 1968 “his toric.” The game was pla ye d in the
Hous ton As trodome be fore the la rge s t crowd ever to see
a ba s ke tba ll game until then, 55,000, with millions more
wa tching at home on te levis ion. The ba sketball court its e lf
was set out in the middle of the As trodome with the clos-
est fans ove r fifty fe et away.
Elvin Hayes, known as “the Big E,” was Hous ton’s
star. Of course, the press built up the ma tch-up he was
going to have with Le w Alcindor, or “the Big A,” as the y
s udde nly s ta rte d re fe rring to him. It became a spectacle.
Wha t was pla ye d down in a ll the hoopla was the fa ct
tha t Ka ree m had missed two-a nd-a -ha lf games with an
eye injury, hadn’t practiced for ove r a week, and had been
confine d to a da rk room for several days. He had wha t
doctors at the Jules S te in Eye Ins titute ca lle d double ve r-
tica l vis ion. Ka re e m pla ye d ha rd but s ta tis tica lly had his
wors t game ever.
But, to show you how a s tory can be inve nte d whe re
the re is n’t much of one, the media stressed the idea of this
gre at ba ttle be twe e n Elvin Hayes and Ka re em. It would

HI
ha ve be e n a gre a t ma tch-up, too, e xce pt for one thing.
Elvin Ha ye s didn’t gua rd Ka re e m a nd Ka re e m didn’t
gua rd Mr. Ha ye s . S ome how tha t got los t in the e ffort to
cre a te dra ma a nd ma ke this a his toric ga me .
La te r tha t ye a r, we de fe ate d Hous ton in the s e mifi-
na ls of the n c a a Cha mpions hips a t the Los Ange le s S ports
Are na , 101-69. Aga in the y didn’t gua rd one a nothe r, but
ne ve rthe le s s , Ka re e m ha d 19 points a nd 18 re bounds .
Elvin Ha ye s ha d 10 points a nd five re bounds .
For wha te ve r re a s ons , “his toric” wa s ne ve r us e d in
me dia de s criptions be fore , during, or a fte r tha t ga me . I
gue s s Hous ton a nd u c l a ha d us e d it up e a rlie r in the ye a r
a t the As trodome .
It wa s a nothe r e xa mple of why I ca utione d pla ye rs
a ga ins t be lie ving wha t othe rs s a id or wrote a bout the m.
Fiction ofte n ove rrule s fa ct.

Ba s ke tba ll in the Ye a r 2000

He re a re a fe w thoughts on wha t I’d like to see cons id-
e re d re ga rding the rule s of the ga me of ba s ke tba ll.
Ba ck in the 1940s P hog Alle n, the coa ch a t Ka ns a s ,
a dvoca te d a 12-foot-high ba s ke t be ca us e he s a id the time
would come whe n pla yers would be much ta lle r a nd the
hoop would be too low. P hog wa s right. The time has
come to try his idea .

148
 I would like to see the rules committe e raise the bas-
ke t to a t least n fe et and see how it works . Try it selec-
tive ly and the n judge. Dr. James Na is mith, the ma n who
inve nte d ba s ke tba ll, did not a nticipa te players who could
s tuff the ba ll without even jumping. How high would he
put the rim if he were a round today?
The thre e -point rule is good, a lthough it didn’t serve
the purpos e the rule s committee thought it would serve:
unclogging the middle . Howeve r, 19 fe et 9 inches is too
close for the thre e -point s hot. I’d like to see the m move
it back fa rther.
Abolis h the dunk, or have it count as only one point.
Afte r a ll, if the defense is not pe rmitte d to put a hand ove r
the basket to block a s hot, why s hould the offe nse be pe r-
mitte d to s tick his ha nd in the basket to make a shot? If
it’s worth thre e points to make a basket from 19 fe et 9
inches, how can it be worth the same from no dista nce at
a ll, whe n your hand a ctua lly goes into the basket?
Als o, add a nothe r thre e -point pla y whe n a te a m runs
a screen and roll, give and go, the n cuts in and makes a
nice basket. Tha t re quire s s kill from several players at the
same time . Ma ke it worth thre e points . (I wouldn’t re a lly
wa nt tha t la s t s ugge s tion to be used. I am me re ly e mpha-
s izing the importa nce I place on te amwork.)
I like te a mwork. The pros don’t intere s t me ge ne ra lly
because of a ll the fa ncy s tuff and the re duce d role of re a l

149
te a mwork generally. The pla ye rs ’ individual a bility is truly
a ma zing, but it has brought a bout too much one -on-one
and less te a mwork.
The colleges? Tha t’s a diffe re nt s tory, but are we see-
ing the m also move away from pla cing a pre mium on
te amwork? I be lie ve ba s ke tba ll is a te am s port and s hould
re main so.

De a ling with Big-He a de dne s s

If I saw a pla yer ge tting a little too big for his britches ,
too s e lf-importa nt, e s pecia lly if he was a s o-ca lled star, I
would say to some of the othe r pla ye rs in a s te rn voice
loud e nough for the s ta r to ove rhea r, “You fe llows are as
importa nt to the success of this te a m as a nybody. Eve ry-
one has to fill the ir role for this te am to reach its pote n-
tia l. Your role is jus t as importa nt as mine . My role is jus t
as importa nt as a nybody else’s.
“Eve ryone on this te a m is e qua lly importa nt to the
te a m. Nobody is bigge r tha n the te a m. Nobody! Re me m-
be r tha t.”
So without dire ctly e mba rra s s ing the a rroga nt pla yer,
I le t him know I va lue d a ll pla ye rs and the va rious role s
they pla ye d for the good of the team.
If the message didn’t ge t through, I would the n have
a conve rs a tion with the individua l priva te ly in my office
and would be more dire ct.

i5o
 I ha ve found, howe ve r, tha t ofte n pe ople do not e ve n
re a lize the y a re a cquiring this sense of infla te d impor-
ta nce . Othe rs see it, but the y ma y not. So I wa nte d to firs t
give the pla ye r a n opportunity to ma ke the a djus tme nt
without e mbarra s s ing him.
Of cours e , if the me ssa ge s till didn’t ge t a cros s , the re
was a lwa ys the be nch. Wha t a frie nd the be nch ca n be.

Ta le nt is God-give n: be humble .
Fa me is ma n-give n: be tha nkful.
Conce it is s e lf-give n: be ca re ful.

A Coa ch’s Highe s t Complime nt

One of the fine s t things a pla ye r could s a y a bout me a fte r
he le ft the te a m wa s tha t I ca re d e ve ry bit as much a bout
him as a n individua l as I ca re d a bout him as a n a thle te .
It wa s importa nt to me be ca us e I re a lly did ca re a bout
the m. I ofte n told the pla ye rs tha t, ne xt to my own fle s h
a nd blood, the y we re the clos es t to me . The y we re my
e xte nde d fa mily a nd I got wra ppe d up in the m, the ir live s .
The ir proble ms . The re wa s a gre a t de a l of love involve d
in my coa ching. Tha t’s wha t a te a m s hould be to a coa ch.

Ke e p P rioritie s S tra ight

I s tre s s e d thre e importa nt things to a thle te s be fore the y
joine d our te a m a nd while the y we re s tude nts a t u c l a .

151
 I told the m the y we re coming to u c l a to ge t a n e du-
ca tion, a de gre e . Tha t, I s tre s s e d, s hould a lways be firs t
a nd fore mos t in the ir minds . The ir e duca tion would s e rve
the m we ll throughout the ir live s . The ir phys ica l s kills
would s e rve the m only brie fly.
“S e cond on the priority lis t,” I told the m, “is ba s ke t-
ba ll. This is pa ying for your e duca tion, but it will be
me a ningful for only a s hort pe riod of your life now a nd
pe rha ps a fte r gra dua tion, e xce pt for a ve ry fe w.”
Third on the lis t of prioritie s wa s the ir s ocia l a ctivi-
ties . I wa nte d the m to be ve ry cle a r tha t s ocia l a ctivitie s
we re third.
I told the m, “If you le t s ocia l a ctivitie s ta ke pre ce -
de nce ove r your a ca de mic a ctivitie s , the n you will s oon
los e your ba s ke tba ll a ctivitie s . If you los e your ba s ke tba ll
a ctivitie s a nd you los e your a ca de mic a ctivitie s , the n you
will ha ve no s ocia l a ctivitie s he re be ca us e you will no
longe r be a s tude nt a t u c l a .”
Fm ve ry proud of the fa ct tha t a lmos t a ll of my pla y-
e rs —we ll ove r 90 pe rce nt—e a rne d the ir diploma s a nd
gra dua te d.
The y ke pt the ir prioritie s s tra ight.

Wa lton’s Whis ke rs
The re was a rule a ga ins t fa cia l ha ir for pla ye rs on u c l a
bas ketba ll te a ms . One da y Bill Wa lton ca me to pra ctice

152
a fte r a te n-da y brea k we a ring a be a rd. I asked him, “Bill,
have you forgotte n s ome thing?”
He re plied, “Coa ch, if you mean the be a rd, I think I
s hould be a llowe d to we a r it. It’s my right.”
I asked, “Do you be lie ve in tha t s trongly? ” He
answered, “Yes I do, coach. Ve ry much.”
I looke d at him and said polite ly, “Bill, I have a gre a t
re s pe ct for individua ls who stand up for those things in
which they believe. I re a lly do. And the te am is going to
miss you.”
Bill we nt to the locke r room and shaved the be a rd off
be fore practice began. The re we re no ha rd fe elings . I
wasn’t a ngry and he wasn’t mad. He unde rs tood the choice
was be twe e n his own desires and the good of the te a m,
and Bill was a te a m player.
I think if I had give n in to him I would have los t con-
trol not only of Bill but of his teammates.

Why Did P la ye rs Lis te n to My

Old-Fa s hione d Me s s a ge ?
S imple . The y wa nte d to play. Obvious ly the y saw tha t
others had gone on to success ful careers in ma ny areas
a fte r a tte nding u c l a , s o tha t a ttracte d the m. Our be a uti-
ful campus and fine we a the r were furthe r a ttra ctions .
But ba s ica lly it got down to one thing: they wa nte d
to play. If they lis te ne d, the y played.

153
A Ke y to Le a rning
Pe ople le a rn more e ffective ly if informa tion is give n in
bite -s ize a mounts ra the r tha n e ve rything a ll at once.
The re was a time whe n I gave a ll my pla ye rs a ra the r
extensive, bulky blue ha ndbook of de ta iled informa tion
re la ting to e ve rything we we re going to do as a team.
La te r I decided tha t too ma ny of them re a lly did not s tudy
and le a rn it. The re was a tre me ndous a mount of infor-
ma tion, and perhaps it was jus t ove rwhe lming. I decided
to change my a pproa ch.
Ins te a d, I began passing out informa tion a little at a
time . I found this me thod was productive , but it also
re quire d tha t I use good judgme nt in the freque ncy,
a mount, and type of informa tion I dis tributed.
Ins te a d of a gre a t big he a vy book of informa tion, I
gave the pla ye rs individua l ha ndouts pe rta ining to va rious
topics at wha t I conside re d to be a ppropria te time s . Whe n
I broke the big s ubject of ba s ke tba ll down into s ma ll bits
of informa tion, players were much be tte r able to le a rn
wha t the y needed to le a rn. The y were not ove rwhe lme d
by the tota l body of knowle dge .
The bite -s ize subjects of the ha ndouts include d goals,
ne w rule s , tra ining suggestions, practice re s pons ibilities ,
pla yer essentials, a ttitude and conduct, norma l e xpe cta-
tions, academic re s pons ibilitie s, criticis m, game compe ti-
tion, s hooting, push pass (both one- and two-ha nde d),
overhead pass, causes of fumbling, re ceiving, flip or ha nd-

1S 4
off, re bounding, tipping, stops and turns , pivoting, drib-
bling (high-s pee d and crossove r), ins ide turn, and much,
much more .
You can see why it would be less e ffective to put this
a ll in a thick note book, ha nd it to a player, and e xpe ct him
to fully comprehe nd it. Bre aking it down into s ma ll, eas-
ily cons ume d pa rts ins ure d it would be read, le a rne d, and
used mos t e fficie ntly and e ffective ly.
I suspect this is true any time a leader, teacher, or
coach is a ttempting to convey lots of informa tion.

Ne gotia ting a nd Giving Spe e che s

I fre que ntly give ta lks a round the country a bout my ideas
and philos ophy of coa ching and a bout life . Ma ny time s my
audiences are youngs te rs at coa ching clinics .
Howeve r, whe n companies ask me to make a pe rsona l
appearance, the y ask wha t my fee is. I re ply, “Wha t is your
offe r?”
I also te ll them I am not incline d to dicker. “Te ll me
wha t you wish to pay and if I say yes tha t’s final, and if I
say no tha t’s final. And if I say no, please don’t say, ‘We ll,
we can pay you more . > Yi
It saves a lot of time and ta lk.
I’ve give n hundre ds of ta lks ove r the years. One thing
I’ve le a rned is tha t the mos t popular speaker is ofte n the
pe rson who follows “Tha nk you for that nice introduc-
tion” by sa ying soon a fte rwa rd, “So in conclus ion. . . .”

155
On Ra ce
Da d he lpe d set my thinking in place on the issue of race.
He told me and my brothe rs ma ny time s , “You’re jus t as
good as anyone, but you’re no be tte r tha n a nybody.”
Because of him I’m be tte r tha n I might have been on
ma ny ma tte rs , even though I fa ll s hort of what I could and
s hould be.
One of our players said to a re porte r once, “Coa ch
Woode n doesn’t see race. He ’s jus t looking for players who
will pla y togethe r.” I’d have to say tha t gave me a bout as
good a fe eling as I could have.
My dad was a ve ry wise man.

Le a rning from Ka re e m
We le a rn from one a nother. Whe n Le wis Alcindor came
to u c l a (before he took the name Ka ree m Abdul-J abba r),
I had never de alt with anyone like him be fore in te rms of
size, his ba ckground, and other things .
I had no unde rsta nding of how tough it was for him
at time s . I le a rne d more from Ka ree m a bout ma n’s inhu-
ma nity to man tha n I ever le arned a nywhe re else.
The inse nsitive re ma rks he endured tha t I would occa-
s iona lly he a r were te rrible . I had never ima gine d tha t pe o-
ple could feel or ta lk like tha t.
He would sign a utogra phs and more a utogra phs and
more a utogra phs for kids outs ide our bus until I told him

156
it was time to le a ve . The n right in front of him a n a dult
would say, “He y, look a t tha t s o-a nd-s o, too much of a big
s hot to s ign a utogra phs .” The y kne w I was re s pons ible for
his le a ving, but the y bla me d him. I ne ve r s a w tha t ha ppe n
to othe r pla ye rs .
One pe rs on s a id right in front of us as she looke d a t
him, “Look a t tha t big bla ck fre a k! Ha ve you e ve r seen
a nything like tha t in a ll your life ? ” Ka re e m was criticize d
in unbe lie va ble wa ys . And through it a ll he conducte d
hims e lf like a ge ntle ma n.
I trie d to le t him know by my a ctions tha t I dis a p-
prove d of thos e who ma de unkind re ma rks . I le t him
know how wrong I fe lt the y we re .
I a ls o told him once , “Le wis , you a s tonis h pe ople a t
time s , a nd whe n pe ople a re a s tonis he d the y s ome time s say
things the y don’t re a lly me a n. Furthe rmore , e ve n if the y
me a nt it, plea s e don’t think a ll pe ople a re like tha t. Mos t
pe ople a re ba s ica lly good.”
I le a rne d so much from Ka re e m.

Athle te s as He roe s
Athle te s s hould be good role models , but not he roe s . A
role mode l is s ome one tha t thos e who love you would wa nt
you to be like . A he ro is jus t s omeone the ge ne ra l public
holds up to a ccla im. The y a re ofte n diffe re nt pe ople .

l57
Be Ca re ful Who You Follow
The s tory goes tha t a fe llow wa s wa lking pa s t a ce me te ry
whe n he notice d a tombs tone with the following in-
s cription:

As you a re now, so once was I.

As I a m now, you are s ure to be.
So ma y I say, as now I lie ,
P re pare yours e lf, to follow me.

The ge ntle ma n took out a pie ce of cha lk a nd wrote

unde rne a th the ins cription:

To follow you I’m not conte nt,

Until I know which way you we nt.

Choos e your role mode ls , your le a de rs , your te a che rs

a nd coa che s , with ca re .

S e ve n Na tiona l Cha mpions hips

in a Row
If a nyone ha d s a id in 1967 tha t s ome colle ge ba s ke tball
te a m was going to win s e ven cons e cutive na tiona l cha m-
pions hips , he would ha ve be e n locke d up. But it did ha p-
pe n while I was coa ching a t u c l a . And it’s jus t as like ly to
ha ppe n s omewhere a ga in—ma ybe e ve n more tha n se ve n.
And whe n it ha ppe ns a ga in I be lie ve it will be tre mendous !

158
 Of cours e , the re are some coaches out the re I
wouldn’t wa nt to brea k our re cord. But the re are othe rs
out the re Fd be re a l ha ppy for. I’m ke e ping both lis ts to
mys e lf.
Records are made to be broken. The y’re not yours to
keep but ra the r to e njoy a little while you have the m.

The P re s s ure to S e t Re cords

The re was pressure as we approached tying or s e tting
va rious re cords , but it was always the pressure I put on
mys e lf to ge t our te a m re ady to pla y an oppone nt. Tha t
was the pressure, not an obsesssion with winning.
The re a l pressure during the we e k was put on me by
me to make a bs olute ly sure I did e ve rything I could do to
make sure our te a m was prepa re d properly.
I like d to think tha t by game time my work was vir-
tua lly done, tha t I could a lmos t go up into the stands and
wa tch the game without s a ying a word because my te a m
was so we ll pre pa re d. I wouldn’t lite ra lly go into the
stands, of course, but I kne w tha t if I did wa tch a te am of
mine from up the re , I would be able to te ll by the ir e ffort
and pe rformance whe the r I had done my job in prepa ring
the m during the previous week.
I was so comforta ble be fore mos t games tha t I could
ta ke a nap if I wa nte d to.

I59
 Thus , whe n u c l a was e s ta blis hing va rious re cords , I
be lie ve the re s t of my fa mily got more e xcite d a bout it
tha n I did. Though I was plea s e d with the title s a nd cha m-
pions hips , I ma inly de rive d s a tis fa ction from the pre pa -
ra tion a nd knowing tha t I ha d done e ve rything I could do
to ge t the te a m re a dy. Tha t is wha t ple a s e d me mos t,
re gardle s s of wha t a nybody e ls e thought, be the y the
a lumni, the public, or the me dia. As P e a rl Me s ta s a id,
“Thos e tha t ma tte r don’t mind a nd thos e tha t mind don’t
ma tte r.” The pra is e or criticis m you re ce ive e ls e whe re
doe s n’t ma tte r. Thos e who know you, who re a lly know
you, tha t’s wha t ma tte rs . Thos e who don’t know you?
Doe sn’t ma tte r.

Re a cting to the Cha mpions hips

I wa s ve ry ha ppy whe n we won our firs t cha mpions hip on
Ma rch 21, 1964. Following the me e ting with the pre s s ,
Ne llie a nd I we nt out for a nice dinne r with the a s s is ta nt
coa che s a nd the ir wive s . The following da y Ne llie a nd I
we nt to Ea s ter S unda y s e rvice s in Ka ns a s City, whe re the
tourna me nt’s Fina l Four wa s pla ye d.
It ple a s e d me whe n we won our s e cond cha mpions hip
the following ye a r be ca us e a t tha t time only a fe w othe r
coa che s ha d won two in a row.

160
 Whe n we won our third cha mpions hip in 1967, did it
have any significance? Yes, because only one othe r coach,
Adolph Rupp, had won more tha n two.
The n the ne xt ye a r we won a fourth cha mpionship
and tha t was nice because there were only two coaches
who had ever won four of the m: Mr. Rupp and me.
In 1969 we won our fifth cha mpions hip, more tha n
anyone else had ever won. It was nice, but it was not
a goal.
The n we won a s ixth, but we a lre a dy had a ll the
records . And then we won a seventh, and an e ighth, and
a ninth.
Afte r los ing to North Ca rolina State in the fina ls in
1974 we won the na tiona l cha mpions hip again in 1975,
bringing the tota l to te n.
It was pleasing, a ll of it, but not a goal. My players
will te ll you I never said to the m, “He re ’s our goal: a
cha mpions hip! If you don’t do it, you haven’t succeeded.”
The y unde rstood ve ry we ll wha t I cons ide re d success.
The y unde rs tood the diffe re nce be twe e n the journe y and
the inn.

Knowing Whe n to Le a ve
As I walked across the court of the San Diego Sports
Are na a fte r the fina l buzze r on Ma rch 29, 1975, ma ny

161
things we nt through my mind. I was plea s e d we ha d jus t
won our s e mifina l ga me a ga ins t Louis ville a nd would
a dvance to the fina ls the following Monda y night. I
reca lled tha t it was in the s e mis jus t the pre vious ye a r tha t
North Ca rolina S ta te ha d e nde d our re cord of se ve n con-
s e cutive na tiona l cha mpions hips.
Now we ha d jus t outs core d Louis ville , which was
coa che d by my de a r frie nd a nd forme r a s s is ta nt coa ch,
De nny Crum, 75-74. It ha d be e n a te rrific ga me of two
te a ms with s imila r s tyle s pe rforming we ll. Eve n though I
re a lly ha te d to see him los e , I didn’t wa nt him to win tha t
pa rticula r ga me. We me t brie fly a nd told e a ch othe r wha t
a gre a t ba ll ga me it ha d be e n—a nd it re a lly was.
Howe ve r, as I he ade d a cros s the court through the
thous ands of s cre a ming we ll-wis he rs a nd fa ns , I found
mys e lf for the firs t time e ve r a fte r a ga me not wa nting to
go in a nd fa ce the hundre ds of lights a nd mike s a nd
re porte rs a s king the same ques tions ove r a nd ove r. I could
pre dict wha t the y would ask. S udde nly I dre ade d the
thought of doing it a ga in. I ha d ne ve r e xpe rie nce d tha t
fe e ling be fore .
While I was wa lking to the dre s s ing room, I thought,
“If this is bothe ring me now, a fte r a be a utiful ga me like
this , we ll, it’s time to ge t out.” I jus t kne w it a t tha t
ins ta nt.
If I ha d gone to the me dia room firs t, pe rha ps I
wouldn’t ha ve a nnounce d it the n. But ins te a d I turne d

162
and headed into the locke r room whe re a ll of our young-
sters were. Obviously, the re was a lot of e xcite me nt and
noise because of the outcome of the game, but I s lowly
quie te d things down until the y a ll had ga the re d a round
me. The n as the players, assistant coaches, tra ine r, and
managers listened I told the m the following. “I’m so proud
of you. This was a gre a t game. I don’t know wha t’s going
to happen Monday night in the cha mpions hip game
against Ke ntucky, a lthough I think we’ll be a ll right.
“But I wa nt you fe llows to know now tha t regardless
of how things turn out, I’ve never had a tea m of whom
I’ve been more proud tha n you young men. And tha t’s
importa nt to me because you are the last tea m I will ever
coach.” The n the re was silence. For a long time .
Nobody kne w I was going to say it. My assistants
didn’t know. My tra ine r didn’t know. Ne llie didn’t know.
I didn’t know it mys e lf until jus t be fore I said it. But I
kne w it was time .
La te r the re was s pe cula tion tha t I had announced my
re tire me nt at tha t pa rticula r time to ge t my team charged
up for the cha mpions hip game. It wasn’t true . I knew as
I wa lked off the court tha t night tha t it was time for me
to leave the game I loved so much. I kne w it so I said it.
It was time to ge t on with othe r things.

163
 Pa r t IV

P u t t in g It Al l
To g e t h e r : My
P y r a mid o f S u c c e s s

There is a choice you have to make, in everything you

do. And you must always keep in m ind the choice you
make, makes you.
—An o n y mo u s
The Ge ne s is
Uc l a won te n na tional cha mpions hips while I was the
ba s ketba ll coach, and Mr. La wrence S hidler pla ye d a role
in a ll of them. How big a role did he play? Le t me te ll
you a s tory and the n you can decide for yours e lf.
Mr. S hidle r was a math te a che r back at Ma rtins ville
High School in India na whe n I was a s ophomore . Occa-
s iona lly he discussed topics othe r than ma the ma tics . One
day in Ma rch he ins tructe d the class to write a paper
de fining success. Mr. S hidler wa nte d to ge t us thinking
a bout the conce pt of success and whe the r it jus t me a nt
ge tting rich or fa mous or be ating s ome body in a ba ll
game.
We ll, this got me thinking ha rd a bout the subject, and
I continue d thinking a bout it for a long time a fte r I com-
plete d Mr. S hidle r’s home work a s s ignme nt. In fa ct, I
re fle cte d on it for decades.
La te r, whe n I e nte re d the te aching and coaching pro-
fession a fte r graduating from P urdue , the ques tion con-

167
tinue d to intrigue me because I found mys elf a little bit
dis illus ione d with wha t seemed to be e xpe cte d from
youngs te rs under my s upe rvis ion in classrooms.

Are You a Fa ilure if

You Do Your Be s t?
Pa re nts wa nte d the ir childre n in my Englis h classes at
S outh Bend Ce ntra l to receive an A or a B even though
ma ny we re not capable of e a rning tha t. The pa re nts
judge d an A or B as success and a nything else as fa ilure .
Ke e p in mind tha t mos t of us are a bout average, and
C is an average grade. For pa re nts to think the ir young-
ster, a child who might have only average a bility in
Englis h, had faile d with an average grade a fte r pe rform-
ing to the best of his or he r a bility seemed unfa ir to me.
Appa re ntly the gra de of C was a ll right for the ir
ne ighbor’s child but not for the ir own. It brought to mind
Mr. S hidle r’s a s s ignment: wha t e xa ctly is success (and
fa ilure )?

Did You Re a lly Win if You Ga ve

a S e cond-Ra te Effort?
I didn’t like these pa re nts ’ way of me as uring success and
fa ilure because it was unfa ir. I fe lt a child who worke d ve ry

168
ha rd, trie d his or he r ve ry best, and re ce ive d a C grade
had a highe r le ve l of pe rs ona l success tha n a more gifte d
youngs te r who got a B but didn’t put forth a full e ffort.
I began s e a rching for some wa y tha t would not only
make me a be tte r te a che r but give the youngs te rs unde r
my s upe rvis ion s omething to aspire to tha t was more pro-
ductive , more fa ir, and more re warding.

Re ca lling Da d’s Words

In s truggling to find an answer to the ques tion Mr. S hid-
le r had posed years be fore , I re ca lle d wha t my dad had
cons tantly trie d to ge t across to us whe n we were grow-
ing up ba ck on the fa rm: don’t worry much a bout trying
to be be tter than someone else.
Now tha t ma y seem a little s trange to you. You might
not compre he nd its true me a ning if tha t was a ll he had
said. Howeve r, Da d always added the following. “Alwa ys
try to be the ve ry best tha t you can be. Le a rn from oth-
ers, yes. But don’t jus t try to be be tte r tha n the y are. You
have no control ove r that. Ins tea d try, and try ve ry ha rd,
to be the best tha t you can be. Tha t you have control over.
Ma ybe you’ll be be tter tha n someone else and maybe you
won’t. Tha t pa rt of it will take care of its e lf.”
Thos e were s trong words . I re me mbe re d the m in try-
ing to give my s tude nts s ome thing to which the y could
aspire othe r tha n jus t a highe r ma rk.

169
 I also wa nte d s ome thing more productive and re wa rd-
ing for the a thle tes I was coa ching in footba ll, te nnis ,
ba ske tba ll, and baseball. I didn’t wa nt points to be the fina l
me a s ure ment of the ir a chie veme nt or success.
It seemed to me tha t it was possible to win and be
outscored, or to lose even whe n you outs core d an oppo-
ne nt. I thought so the n and I s till do.

Cre a ting My De finition of S ucces s

I thought a bout wha t my fa the r had said, Mr. S hidle r’s
writing a s s ignment on success, and a verse I happened to
re a d a t a bout this time:
At God’s foots tool to confess,
A poor soul kne lt and bowed his head.
“I fa ile d.” he crie d. The Ma s te r said,
“Thou dids t thy best, that is success.”
Ke e ping a ll these in mind, I fina lly coine d my de fin-
ition in 1934.
Success is peace of mind tha t is the dire ct re s ult
of s e lf-s a tis fa ction in knowing you did your best
to be come the be s t tha t you are capable of
be coming.
Furthe rmore , only one pe rs on can ultima te ly judge
the le ve l of your success—you. Think a bout tha t for a
moment.

170
 I be lie ve tha t is wha t true success is . Anything s te m-
ming from that success is s imply a by-product, whe the r it
be the s core , the trophy, a na tiona l cha mpions hip, fa me ,
or fortune . The y a re a ll by-products of success ra the r
tha n success its e lf, indica tors tha t you pe rha ps s ucce e de d
in the more importa nt conte s t.
Tha t re a l conte st, of cours e , is s triving to re a ch your
pe rs ona l be s t, a nd tha t is tota lly unde r your control.
Whe n you a chie ve tha t, you have a chie ve d success. P e riod!
You a re a winne r a nd only you fully know if you won.

You Are Diffe re nt; I Am Diffe re nt

Obvious ly, the Good Lord in his infinite wis dom didn’t
ma ke e ve ryone a like or put e ve ryone in the same e nvi-
ronme nt. S ome of us a re s horte r or ta lle r, quicke r or
s lowe r, s ma rte r or othe rwis e . S itua tions va ry. S ome pe o-
ple ha ve more opportunitie s , s ome less.
We a re not the same in a ll the s e things , but we are
a ll the same in having the opportunity to m ake the m os t of
what we have, whate ver our s ituation.
The ultima te cha lle nge for you is to ma ke the a tte mpt
to improve fully a nd be your be st in the e xis ting
conditions .
I wa nte d to ge t this ide a a cros s to the youngs te rs I
was te a ching. I wa nte d the m to know tha t ma king the ve ry
mos t of wha t you ha ve is success a nd tha t it is s ome thing

I7I
you control. I wa nte d the a thlete s I was coa ching to
unde rs ta nd this as we ll.

The Ha rd P a rt Is S till Ahe a d

Ha ving de fine d wha t I believe success truly is, I re cog-
nize d there was an even gre ate r ta s k be fore me: to fully
unde rs ta nd and the n de scribe wha t was necessary to
achieve this success, both individua lly and as a me mbe r of
a ba s ke tba ll team or any othe r team in life . Without this
second pa rt, it would be like going on a trip in your car
if you kne w whe re you wa nte d to go but didn’t know how
to ge t the re. You might corre ctly be de s cribe d as going
nowhe re .
Wha t does it take to achieve success, to ge t whe re I
kne w I wa nte d to go? I began a long search for the
answers.

Te n Na tiona l Cha mpions hips

Wha t I e ve ntua lly dis ce rne d le d to s omething tha t got a
lot of a tte ntion—those records established by u c l a bas-
ke tba ll teams: te n na tional cha mpions hips , seven of them
in cons e cutive years, the undefe a te d seasons, and the 88-
game winning s tre a k. But, more than tha t, it provide d me
with a guide, a sta nda rd of pre pa ra tion and pe rformance ,
tha t brought me the gre a te s t peace of mind in a ll areas of
my life .

172
 I believe it provide d the same for ma ny of those whom
I ta ught.

Finding the Ans we rs : The P yra mid

One day I saw an illus tra tion tha t he lpe d lead me to the
answers I was looking for. It was ca lle d the la dde r of
achievement.
The a uthor had taken a la dde r with five rungs and had
give n each rung of tha t la dde r a name de s cribing some-
thing he thought was necessary to ge t to the top of the
ladder.
Na tura lly I could not use the la dder idea, and I had a
comple te ly diffe re nt notion of wha t the top consisted of.
But it gave me the idea for wha t became the P yra mid of
Success.
I decided tha t the individual blocks of the P yra mid
would consist of those pe rsona l qua litie s necessary for
a chie ving success a ccording to my de finitions : peace of
mind tha t is the dire ct re s ult of s e lf-s a tis fa ction in know-
ing you did your best to become the best you are capable
of be coming.

Building the P yra mid Took Ye a rs

Each block in the P yra mid was selected with me ticulous
care and cons ide ra tion ove r ma ny years and a fte r a va ri-
e ty of experiences in my life . Some of the blocks selected

*75
 S uccess
S uccess is peace of m ind that is a dire ct re s ult of
s e lf-s atis faction in knowing you did your best to become
the best you are capable of be coming.

COMPETITIVE
GREATNESS

POISE CONFIDENCE

CONDITION SKILL TEAM SPIRIT

SELF-CONTROL ALERTNESS INITIATIVE INTENTNESS

INDUSTRIOUSNESS FRIENDSHIP LOYALTY COOPERATION ENTHUSIASM

THE PYRAMID OF SUCCESS

A k

in the e a rly ye a rs we re dis ca rde d whe n I conclude d the y

we re less tha n e s s e ntia l. Othe r blocks we re put in diffe r-
e nt pos itions within the s tructure as I le a rne d more with
time .
The pos ition of e a ch block a nd the s pe cific orde r of
the tie rs of blocks in the P yra mid ha ve gre a t importa nce ,
s ta rting with the founda tion a nd corne rs tone s a nd build-
ing up to the a pe x: your own pe rs ona l success.

*7 4
Building a S olid Founda tion
for Success
In 1934 I chos e two blocks as the corne rs tone s of my
P yra mid of Success without a ny cle a r knowle dge of how
ma ny blocks it would e ve ntua lly ha ve or its e ve ntua l s ize .
Tha t would come only a fte r hundre ds of hours of re fle c-
tion ove r a pe riod of fourte e n ye a rs .
I did know tha t a t the top of the P yra mid, a t the a pe x,
wa s success as de fine d by ma ny of the te a chings Da d ha d
give n us ba ck on the fa rm. To thos e I a dded my own
idea s ga ine d from e xpe rie nce .
S o in 1934 I be gan by putting in pla ce two huge a nd
powe rful blocks as the corne rs tone s of the P yra mid, two
funda me nta l pe rs ona l qua litie s tha t I wouldn’t cha nge if I
ha d to do it ove r a gain toda y in 1997, be caus e without
the m you will not succeed. The s e a re the bigge s t a nd mos t
e s s e ntia l blocks in the P yra mid: indus trious ne s s a nd
e nthus ia s m. Le t me te ll you a little a bout both of the m.

The Firs t Corne rs tone :

Indus trious ne s s
Indus trious ne s s ? I me a n ve ry s imply tha t you have to work
a nd work hard. The re is no s ubs titute for work. Worth-
while things come only from work.

*7 5
 I cha lle nge you to show me one s ingle s olita ry indi-
vidual who achieved his or he r own pe rs ona l greatness
without lots of ha rd work.
Micha e l Jordan? More importa nt tha n his phys ica l
a bility is the wa y he has worke d ha rd to improve any
weaknesses he had. Jack Nickla us ? Mr. Nickla us is le g-
e nda ry for his ha rd work. Ca l Ripke n Jr.? The same. And
anyone else you might care to me ntion who has achieved
pe rs onal success and compe titive greatness. Businessper-
son, cle rgy, doctor, la wye r, plumbe r, a rtist, write r, coach
or pla yer, a ll share a funda me nta l tra it. The y work ve ry
ha rd. More tha n tha t, they love the ha rd work.
You may suggest tha t Babe Ruth achieved greatness
even though he broke tra ining in e very s ort of wa y ove r
and ove r a ga in. But jus t imagine wha t he might have done
if he had focus ed on bringing out the best tha t he had
within him.
He ma y have achieved greatness in the eyes of many,
but did he achieve his own pe rs onal greatness? Did he try
to be the best tha t he could be?

S hort Cuts
Ha rd work is essential, and only you re ally know if you’re
giving it e ve rything you’ve got. People who always try to
cut corne rs will ne ve r come close to re a lizing the ir full
pote ntia l.

ij 6
 Gra ntla nd Rice unde rs tood this whe n he wrote “How
To Be a Cha mpion.”

You wonde r how the y do it,

Y ou look to see the kna ck,
You wa tch the foot in a ction,
Or the s houde r or the ba ck.

But whe n you s pot the a ns we r

Whe re the highe r gla mours lurk,
You’ll find in moving highe r
Up the la ure l-cove re d s pire ,
Tha t mos t of it is pra ctice ,
And the re s t of it is work.

S o I chos e work as the firs t corne rs tone in the P yra -

mid of Success. I ca ll it indus trious ne s s to ma ke ve ry cle a r
it involve s more tha n me re ly s howing up a nd going
through the motions . Ma ny pe ople who te ll you the y
worke d a ll da y we re n’t re a lly working ve ry ha rd a t a ll, ce r-
ta inly not to the fulle s t e xte nt of the ir a bilitie s .
Indus trious ne s s is the mos t cons cie ntious , a s s iduous ,
a nd ins pire d type of work. A willingne s s to, a n a ppe tite
for, ha rd work mus t be pre s e nt for success. Without it you
ha ve nothing to build on.
You ca n work without be ing indus trious , but you ca n
not be indus trious without work.

177
The Othe r Corne rs tone : Enthus ia s m
On the othe r side of the P yra mid founda tion is my sec-
ond powe rful corne rs tone : e nthusiasm. By tha t I mean
s imply tha t you have to like wha t you’re doing; your he art
mus t be in it. Without e nthus ia s m you can’t work up to
your fulle s t a bility.
I have a little proble m with those who compla in a bout
the ir jobs —coaches who te ll me how ha rd the ir job is,
businesspeople who whine a bout this or tha t, teachers
who compla in a bout how tough they have it working with
youngs ters . Gra cious sakes a live ! The opportunity to
teach and coach and work with youngs te rs hard? I believe
othe rwis e .
And I believe it’s true in any profe s sion. If you’re
knocking it a ll the time , ge t out! Don’t whine , compla in,
or criticize . J us t leave. Ma ybe you can’t leave imme diate ly,
toda y, right now, but unde rs ta nd you mus t e ve ntua lly
do it.
Because if you don’t e njoy your endeavors, it is a lmos t
impos s ible to have e nthusiasm for the m. And you mus t
have e nthus ia s m to prepa re and pe rform with indus tri-
ousness. Enthus ia s m ignites pla in old work and tra ns -
forms it into indus trious nes s .
Enthus ia s m brushes off on those with whom you
come into conta ct, those you work with and for. You must
have e nthusiasm, e spe cia lly if you’re a leader or if you
wis h to become a leader.

ij 8
Le ade rs hip R e quire s Enthus ias m

People in positions of le ade rs hip have ma ny re s pons ibili-

tie s . The y have to influe nce thos e unde r the ir s upe rvis ion
in a pos itive way. The y mus t be inte re s te d in finding the
best wa y ra the r tha n ha ving the ir own way. Le a de rs mus t
make sure tha t thos e unde r the ir s upe rvis ion unde rs tand
tha t the y’re working with the leader, not for the leader.
But, mos t importa nt, leaders mus t always generate
enthusiasm if the y wis h to bring out the best in themselves
and those unde r the ir s upe rvis ion.
Regardless of whe the r you’re le a ding as a teacher,
coach, pa re nt, or businessperson, or you’re a me mbe r of
a le a de rs hip te a m, you mus t have e nthusia sm. Without it
you ca nnot be indus trious to the full le ve l of your a bil-
ity. With it you s timulate othe rs to highe r and highe r le v-
els of achievement.
So as the corne rs tones of the P yra mid of Success I
placed these two essential qualitie s : indus trious nes s and
e nthus ia s m. You mus t be willing to work ha rd, to be
indus trious . You mus t join tha t with e nthusia sm. Sepa-
ra tely each is powerful in its own pa rticula r way. J oine d
toge the r the y be come a force of a lmos t unima ginable
power.
You need those qua litie s within yours e lf. And if you
are a leader, you will soon ins till those qua litie s in those
unde r your s upe rvis ion by your example.

i79
Be twe e n the Corne rs tone s :
The Founda tion
No s tructure is going to be ve ry s trong and s olid unless
it has a s turdy founda tion. The blocks in be twe e n my two
corne rstones make a s trong and s olid founda tion because
the y include othe rs , and whe n we include others we’re
a dding tre me ndous s tre ngth.
Thos e a dditiona l blocks of the founda tion are frie nd-
s hip, loya lty, and coope ra tion. The ir gre at importa nce is
tha t the y bring toge the r and a mplify the qualitie s a t the
corne rstone s: indus triousne s s and e nthusiasm. The a ddi-
tiona l blocks show tha t it takes unite d e ffort to succeed.

Frie nds hip

For success, e ithe r individua lly or for your te a m, there
mus t be a le ve l of frie nds hip. It is a powe rful force tha t
comes from mutua l esteem, re spe ct, and de votion.
It isn’t frie nds hip whe n someone does s ome thing nice
for you. He or she is s imply be ing a nice pe rs on. Frie nd-
s hip is mutua l; doing good things for each other. The re ’s
no re al friends hip whe n only one side is working a t it.
Both mus t give for the re to be frie nds hip.
Frie nds hip takes time and unde rs tanding. Ra re ly will
you find in working towa rd a common goa l tha t others
will be able to res is t frie nds hip if you offe r it s incere ly and
ope nly. Howeve r, you may have to prime the pump firs t.
Be brave e nough to offe r frie nds hip.

180
 Toward the end of the Civil Wa r, re pa ra tions were
be ing discussed in the White Hous e. Abra ha m Lincoln
was told by one of his advisors who favored punis hing the
S outh, “Mr. P re s ide nt, you’re supposed to de s troy your
enemies, not make friends of the m!”
Mr. Lincoln re plie d, “Am I not de s troying an enemy
whe n I make a friend of him?” He unde rs tood the treme n-
dous force of frie nds hip. Frie nds hip include s othe rs and
adds s trength to your foundation.

Loyalty
My goodness, how can you work to the best of your a bil-
ity unless you have someone or s omething to whom you
are loyal? Only the n do you ga in peace and an incre a s ing
a bility to pe rform at your highe s t level.
Loya lty to and from those with whom you work is
a bs olute ly necessary for success. It means ke e ping your
s e lf-res pe ct, knowing who and wha t you have allegiance
to. It means giving re s pe ct to those you work with.
Respect helps produce loya lty.
Grea t loya lty was stressed on a ll my teams, from Indi-
ana State Teachers Colle ge to u c l a . Loya lty is a cohesive
force tha t forge s individuals into a team.
Loya lty is ve ry importa nt whe n things ge t a little
tough, as the y often do whe n the challenge is gre a t. Loy-
a lty is a powerful force in producing one’s individua l best
and even more so in producing a te am’s best.

181
Cooperation
In order to reach the full pote ntia l of the group, the re
mus t be coope ra tion at a ll levels. This means working
toge the r in a ll ways to a ccomplis h the common goa l. And
to ge t coope ra tion, you mus t give coope ra tion.
You are not the only pe rs on with good ideas. If you
wis h to be he a rd, lis ten. Alwa ys seek to find the best way
ra the r tha n ins isting on your own way.
All of this re quire s coope ra tion. It a llows individuals
to move forward togethe r, to move in the same direction
instead of going off in diffe re nt directions .
Te n s trong fie ld horses could not pull an e mpty baby
ca rria ge if the y worke d inde pe nde ntly of each othe r.
Regardless of how much e ffort the y e xe rte d individua lly,
the ca rriage wouldn’t budge without the ir mutua l
coope ra tion.

Building on the S olid Founda tion:

S e lf-Control, Ale rtne s s , Initia tive ,
a nd Inte ntne s s
No e difice is going to be be tte r than its s tructura l foun-
da tion, jus t as no individua l is be tte r than his or he r me n-
tal founda tion. Thos e five blocks —frie nds hip, loya lty,
coope ra tion, and the powerful corne rstones of indus tri-
ousness and e nthus ia s m—are the s trong and s turdy foun-
da tion upon which you build success.

182
 Once this had been cons tructed I put in place the sec-
ond tie r, four blocks tha t build on the s olid foundation:
s e lf-control, alertness, initia tive , and intentne ss.

S e lf-Control
S e lf-control is essential for dis cipline and ma s te ry of e mo-
tions , for dis cipline of s e lf and dis cipline of those under
your s upe rvision.
You ca nnot function phys ica lly or me nta lly unless
your e motions are unde r control. Tha t is why I did not
engage in pregame pep ta lks to s tir e motions to a sud-
den peak.
I pre fe rre d to ma intain a gra dua lly incre a s ing le ve l of
both a chie ve me nt and e motions ra the r tha n trying to cre -
ate a rtificia l e motiona l highs . For e ve ry contrive d peak
you create, there is a subsequent valley. I do not like va l-
leys. S e lf-control provide s e motiona l s ta bility and fe we r
valleys.
Remember, dis cipline of othe rs is n’t punis hment. You
dis cipline to he lp, to improve, to corre ct, to pre ve nt, not
to punis h, humilia te , or re ta lia te .
Whe n you punis h you a ntagonize . You ca nnot ge t the
mos t pos itive re sults whe n you a nta gonize . S e lf-control is
essential to avoid a nta gonizing.
Whe n you lose control of your e motions , whe n your
s e lf-dis cipline breaks down, your judgment and common
sense s uffe r. How can you pe rform at your best whe n you
are us ing poor judgme nt?

183
 In the ma ny years be fore we won a cha mpions hip I
overcame dis a ppointme nt by not living in the past. To do
be tte r in the future you have to work on the “right now”
Dwe lling in the past preve nts doing s ome thing in the
pre se nt.
Compla ining, whining, ma king excuses jus t keeps you
out of the present.
Tha t’s whe re s e lf-control comes in. S e lf-control keeps
you in the pre se nt.
S trive to maintain s e lf-control.

Ale rtne ss
Ale rtne s s is the ne xt building block in the P yra mid. There
is s omething going on a round us at a ll time s from which
we can a cquire knowle dge if we are a le rt. Too often we
ge t los t in our own tunne l vis ion and we don’t see the
things tha t are right in front of us for the ta king, for the
le a rning.
My fa vorite Ame rica n he ro is Abraha m Lincoln. He
had alertness. He once said tha t he ne ve r me t a pe rson
from whom he did not le a rn s ome thing, a lthough mos t of
the time it was s omething not to do. Tha t also is le a rn-
ing, and it comes from your alertness.
As you s trive to reach your pe rs ona l best, alertness
will make the ta s k much easier. Be obs erving cons ta ntly,
quick to s pot a weakness and corre ct it or use it, as the
case ma y wa rra nt.

184
Initiative
You mus t not be a fraid to fa il. Initia tive is ha ving the
courage to make decisions and take a ction. Ke e p in mind
tha t we a ll are going to fa il a t time s . This you mus t know.
None of us is pe rfe ct. But if you’re a fra id of fa ilure, you
will ne ve r do the things you are capable of doing.
I always ca utione d my teams, “Respect your oppo-
nents, but never fe ar the m. You have nothing to fe ar if you
have pre pa re d to the best of your a bility.”
Ne ve r fe a r fa ilure. It is s ome thing to le a rn from. You
have conque re d fe a r whe n you have initia tive .

Inte ntne s s
The fourth block in the second tie r of the P yra mid of Suc-
cess is inte ntne s s . I could say it means de te rmina tion. I
could say it means persistence. I could say it means te na c-
ity or perseverance.
I will say it is the a bility to re s is t te mpta tion and stay
the course, to conce ntra te on your obje ctive with de ter-
mina tion and resolve.
Impa tie nce is wa nting too much too soon. Inte ntne ss
doesn’t involve wa nting s ome thing. It involve s doing
s ome thing.
The roa d to re a l a chieve ment takes time , a long time ,
but you do not give up. You may have setbacks. You may
have to s ta rt over. You may have to change your me thod.
You may have to go a round, or over, or unde r. You may

*»5
have to back up and ge t a nothe r s ta rt. But you do not quit.
You stay the course. To do tha t, you must have intentne ss.
He re ’s a little example of wha t I mean. In 1948 I
began coa ching ba s ke tba ll a t u c l a . Each hour of pra ctice
we worke d ve ry ha rd. Each day we worke d ve ry ha rd.
Each we e k we worke d ve ry ha rd. Ea ch season we worke d
ve ry ha rd. For fourte e n years we worke d ve ry ha rd and
didn’t win a na tional cha mpions hip. Howeve r, a na tional
championship was won in the fifte e nth year. Anothe r in
the s ixte e nth. And e ight more in the following te n years.
Be pe rs is te nt. Be de te rmine d. Be tenacious. Be com-
ple te ly de te rmine d to reach your goa l. Tha t’s intentne ss.
If you stay intent and your a bility wa rra nts it, you will
e ve ntua lly reach the top of the mounta in.

Thre e More S trong Blocks :

Condition, S kill, a nd Te a m S pirit
In the third tie r I put what I think is the he a rt of the P yra-
mid. It may seem to a pply to a thle tics alone, but it doesn’t.
The pe rsona l cha ra cte ris tics in the third tie r a pply e qua lly
to individuals and teams a nywhe re .
The s e blocks are condition, s kill, and te a m s pirit.

Condition
You mus t be conditione d for wha te ve r you’re doing if
you’re going to do it to the best of your a bility. The re are

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diffe re nt type s of conditioning for diffe re nt professions.
A deep-sea dive r has diffe re nt conditioning re quire me nts
from a salesperson. A s urgeon has diffe re nt phys ica l con-
ditioning requireme nts from a cons truction worke r. A c e o
has diffe re nt conditioning re quireme nts from a food
server.
You mus t add to phys ica l conditioning me ntal and
mora l conditioning. I stressed a ll forms of conditioning
for my teams.
Some be lieve d my players were s imply in be tte r phys-
ica l condition than the compe tition. The y may have been,
but they also had tre me ndous me nta l and e motiona l
conditioning.
You mus t ide ntify your conditioning re quire me nts and
then a ttain the m. Without proper conditioning in a ll
areas, you will fa ll s hort of your pote ntia l.
It is impos s ible to a tta in and maintain desirable phys-
ica l condition without firs t a chie ving me nta l and mora l
condition.

S kill
At the ve ry ce nte r of the P yra mid is s kill. You have to
know wha t you’re doing and be able to do it quickly and
properly.
I had players at u c l a who were gre a t shooters. Unfor-
tuna te ly the y couldn’t ge t off any shots so the y didn’t he lp

1*7
us. I had players who could ge t off ple nty of shots but
couldn’t s hoot a lick. You need both; the a bility to do it
quickly and properly.
S kill means be ing able to execute a ll of your job, not
jus t pa rt of it.
It’s true whe the r you’re an a thle te or an a ttorne y, a
surge on or a sales re p, or a nything else. You’d be tte r be
able to execute prope rly and quickly. Tha t’s s kill. As much
as I value experience, and I value it gre a tly, I’d ra the r have
a lot of s kill and little experience than a lot of experience
and a little s kill.

Te am S pirit
The last block in the third tie r is team s pirit. This means
thinking of othe rs . It means los ing one se lf in the group
for the good of the group. It means be ing not jus t will-
ing but eager to s a crifice pe rsona l inte re s t or glory for the
we lfare of all.
The re is a profound diffe re nce be twe e n mere will-
ingness and eagerness. A pris one r on a cha in gang may be
willing to bre a k rocks to avoid punishme nt. But how eager
is he?
Of course, we a ll wa nt to do we ll and receive indi-
vidua l praise. Yes, tha t’s fine , if you put it to use for the
good of the te a m, whate ver your team is: s ports , business,
fa mily, or community.

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 Team s pirit means you are willing to sa crifice personal
cons idera tions for the we lfa re of a ll. Tha t defines a team
player.

Ne a ring the P e a k: P ois e

a nd Confide nce
Ne a r the apex of the P yra mid are poise and confidence . I
believe these two importa nt blocks of the s tructure are
the na tura l re s ult of the pe rs ona l qua litie s tha t we put in
place below. Poise and confide nce ensue from a ll the othe r
blocks.
Tha t is why the exact orde r of the tie rs and the blocks
in those tie rs is so importa nt. I don’t believe poise or con-
fide nce can come a bout until a ll the othe r blocks are in
place.

Poise
My de finition of pois e is ve ry s imple : be ing yours e lf.
You’re not a cting. You’re not pre te nding or trying to be
s omething you’re not. You are be ing who you are and are
tota lly comforta ble with that. The re fore , you’ll function
ne ar your own le ve l of compe te nce .
You unde rs ta nd tha t the goa l is to s a tis fy not e ve ry-
one else’s e xpe cta tions but your own. You give your tota l
e ffort to be coming the best you are capable of be ing.
It takes poise to a ccomplis h this .

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Confidence
You mus t have confide nce . You mus t believe in yours e lf if
you e xpe ct others to believe in you.
Howe ve r, you can’t have poise and confidence unless
you’ve prepa re d corre ctly. (Re me mbe r tha t fa iling to pre -
pare is prepa ring to fa il.) Eve ry block is built on the oth-
ers. Whe n a ll are in place, poise and confide nce res ult.
You don’t force them to happen. The y happen na tura lly
from prope r pre pa ra tion.

Compe titive Gre a tne s s

Ultima te ly, a ll fourte e n building blocks in the P yra mid of
Success are necessary for compe titive greatness.
Wha t is compe titive greatness? It’s be ing at your best
whe n your best is needed. It’s e njoying the challenge whe n
things become difficult, even ve ry difficult.
True compe titors know it’s e xhila ra ting to be involve d
in s ome thing tha t’s ve ry challe nging. The y don’t fe ar it.
The y seek it. Is it fun to do tha t which is ordina ry, easy,
s imple, s ome thing anyone can do? Not a t a ll.
Yet mos t of the tasks we do in our e ve ryda y lives are
ve ry s imple. Anybody could do the m. The y will not pro-
duce the joy tha t comes from be ing involve d with some-
thing tha t challenges your body, mind, and s pirit.
Compe titors love tha t challenge. The y know it offe rs
the chance to produce the ir ve ry fines t. It brings forth
the ir compe titive greatness.

igo
The Morta r: P a tie nce a nd Fa ith
J us t above compe titive greatness I have placed patience
and fa ith, two essential qua litie s tha t are like morta r keep-
ing the individua l blocks firmly in place. Pa tience and
fa ith are re a lly pre s e nt throughout the P yra mid, holding
e ve rything toge the r.

Patie nce
Mos t of us are impatie nt. As we ge t a bit olde r, we think
we know more and things s hould ha ppe n fa ste r. But
pa tie nce is a virtue in prepa ring for any ta s k of s ignifi-
cance. It takes time to create excellence. If it could be
done quickly, more pe ople would do it.
A meal you order a t a drive -though window may be
cheap, it may be quick, it may even be ta s ty. But is it a
grea t dining experience? Tha t takes time . Good things
always take time , and tha t re quire s patience.
Compe titive greatness re quire s pa tie nce . Exce lle nce
re quire s pa tie nce . Mos t of a ll, success re quire s patience.

Faith
Of course, I believe we mus t also have fa ith tha t things
will work out as the y s hould. Please keep in mind tha t I’m
not s a ying things will ne ces s a rily work out as we wa nt
them to.

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 Howe ve r, we mus t be lie ve the y will work as the y
s hould as long as we do wha t we s hould do. And we mus t
le t tha t s uit us. Tha t s hould be s a tis fa ctory.

The Ape x: Success

The highe s t point of a pyra mid is ca lle d the a pe x. In our
P yra mid, it is success. Above the block of compe titive
gre a tne s s a nd a bove pa tie nce a nd fa ith, a t the ve ry pin-
na cle , re pre s e nting the culmina tion of a ll the qua litie s
working toge the r be low, thos e powe rful blocks we put in
pla ce , is success.
True success is a tta ine d only through the s a tis fa ction
of knowing you did e ve rything within the limits of your
a bility to be come the ve ry be s t tha t you a re ca pa ble of
be ing.
Success is not pe rfe ction. You ca n ne ver a tta in pe r-
fe ction as I unders ta nd it. Ne ve rthe le s s , it is the goa l.
Success is giving ioo pe rce nt of your e ffort, body,
mind, a nd s oul, to the s truggle . Tha t you ca n a tta in. Tha t
is success.
As a coa ch, le a de r, a nd te a che r you’re trying to bring
individua ls up to the ir gre ate s t le ve l of compe te nce , a nd
the n me e t the re a l cha lle nge of putting the m toge the r as
a group. Tha t ca n be e xtre me ly difficult. The P yra mid
s hows the wa y.

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 As an individua l you s trive to bring forth your best.
The P yra mid has a llowe d me to a ccomplish tha t, and with
it, to achieve a ve ry pre cious commodity: peace of mind.
Wha t is so importa nt to recognize is tha t you are
tota lly in control of your success—not your oppone nt, not
the judges, critics , media, or anyone else. It’s up to you.
Tha t’s a ll you can ask for; the chance to de te rmine your
success by yours e lf.

The P yra mid a nd the P la ye rs

Ove r the years since completing the P yra mid of Success,
I would ask players to come in a couple of weeks be fore
practice s ta rte d to re view it with me, to go ove r wha t it
me a nt and how it a pplie d to the te a m and themselves. I
did this pa rticula rly a t u c l a a t the be ginning of each ne w
season.
Wha t’s s urpris ing is tha t ne a rly e very pla yer told me
la te r tha t a lthough the y didn’t unde rs ta nd it a ll while the y
we re s tudents , the P yra mid of Success has been ve ry
me a ningful to them as a dults . I’m ve ry pleased by that.
Ka re e m Abdul-J a bba r told a re porte r he a ctually
thought the P yra mid was kind of corny whe n he firs t saw
it (you ma y also think this ). But by the time he gradu-
ated, it had be gun to make a little more sense to him. It
was only later, he said, years a fte r he had le ft u c l a , tha t
it had its grea tes t e ffe ct on him.

m
 P e rha ps tha t’s as it s hould be , be ca us e the P yra mid of
Success is a bout life more tha n a bout ba s ke tba ll.

Mr. S hidle r’s Que s tion

S o, as you ca n see, I’ve s pe nt mos t of my life time purs u-
ing the is s ue pos e d in Mr. S hidle r’s cla s s room ba ck in
India na : Wha t is success? It was a que s tion tha t my fa the r
ha d a lre a dy be gun to a ns wer for me with his wis dom on
our little fa rm.
Wha t is succes s? How do you a chie ve it? Who has it?
The s e ques tions re a lly go to wha t life is a ll a bout.
I do be lie ve this : A ma n or woma n who s trive s con-
s cie ntious ly to be come the be s t tha t he or she is ca pable
of be coming ca n s ta nd ta ll on J udgme nt Da y. Tha t pe r-
s on will be judge d a big success re gardles s of whe the r he
or she has a ccumula te d riche s, glory, or trophie s .
The va lue s , idea ls , a nd principle s of the P yra mid of
Success a re the qua litie s tha t I be lie ve will a llow you to
s ta nd ta ll, now a nd throughout your da ys .
Furthe rmore , I be lie ve tha t a ll of us ha ve within us
the building blocks of success. The pote ntia l is within
e a ch of us wa iting to come forth. Tha t’s wha t you mus t
a lwa ys ke e p in mind. You ha ve success within. It’s up to
you to bring it out.
I’ve be e n trying to do tha t in my own life for ove r
e ighty ye a rs . I will continue e a ch da y to s trive for tha t

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until the mome nt the Good Lord ca lls me to be with my
de a r Ne llie a ga in.

The Gre at Com pe titor

Be yond the winning a nd the goa l, be yond the

glory a nd the fla me,
He fe e ls the fla me within his s oul, born of the
s pirit of the game.
And whe re the ba rrie rs ma y wa it, built up by the
oppos ing Gods ,
He finds a thrill in bucking fa te a nd riding down
the endless odds .
Whe re othe rs withe r in the fire or fa ll be low some
ra w mis ha p,
Whe re othe rs la g be hind or tire a nd bre a k
be ne a th the ha ndica p,
He finds a ne w a nd de e pe r thrill to ta ke him on
the uphill s pin,
Because the te s t is gre ate r s till, a nd s ome thing he
ca n re ve l in.

—Grantland Rice

m
My Fa vorite Ma xims
Ha ppiness be gins whe re selfishness ends.
Ea rn the right to be proud and confide nt.
The best wa y to improve the team is to improve ours e lf.
Big things are a ccomplished only through the pe rfe ction
of minor de ta ils.
Dis cipline yours e lf and othe rs won’t need to.
Ability may ge t you to the top, but it takes cha ra cte r to
keep you the re .
I will ge t re a dy and the n, perhaps, my chance will come.
If I am through le a rning, I am through.
If you do not have the time to do it right, whe n will you
find the time to do it over?
The smallest good deed is be tte r tha n the best inte ntion.

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The ma n who is a fra id to ris k fa ilure s e ldom has to fa ce
success.
Don’t le t ye s te rday ta ke up too much of toda y.
Time s pe nt ge tting e ve n would be be tte r s pe nt trying to
ge t a he a d.
It is wha t you le a rn a fte r you know it a ll tha t counts.
Cons ide r the rights of othe rs be fore your own fe e lings ,
a nd the fe e lings of othe rs be fore your own rights .
The re is nothing s tronge r tha n ge ntle ne s s .
You dis cipline thos e unde r your s upe rvis ion to corre ct, to
he lp, to improve —not to punis h.
Goa ls a chie ve d with little e ffort a re s e ldom worthwhile or
la s ting.
Ma ke s ure the te a m me mbe rs know the y’re working with
you, not for you.
Be mos t inte re s te d in finding the be s t way, not in ha ving
your own way.
Wha t is right is more importa nt tha n who is right.
You ha ndle things . You work with pe ople .
As long as you try your be s t, you a re ne ve r a fa ilure . Tha t
is , unle s s you bla me othe rs .
Te ll the truth. Tha t wa y you don’t have to re me mbe r a
s tory.

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Don’t le t ma king a living preve nt you from making a life .
If I were ever pros ecute d for my re ligion, I truly hope
the re would be enough evidence to convict me.
Although the re is no progres s without change, not a ll
change is progre ss.
If we ma gnified blessings as much as we ma gnify dis a p-
pointme nts , we would a ll be much happier.
The best thing a fa the r can do for his childre n is to love
the ir mother.
The worst thing you can do for those you love is the
things they could and s hould do for themselves.
(Abraha m Lincoln)
It is one of the mos t be a utiful compe nsa tions of this life
tha t no man can s ince re ly he lp a nother without he lp-
ing hims e lf. (Ralph Wa ldo Eme rs on)
Do not pe rmit wha t you ca nnot do to inte rfe re with wha t
you can do.
Be more conce rne d with your cha ra cte r than with your
re puta tion. Cha ra cte r is wha t you re a lly are; re puta -
tion is me rely wha t you are pe rce ive d to be.
Love is the gre a te s t of a ll words in our language.
Much can be a ccomplishe d by te a mwork whe n no one is
concerne d a bout who gets cre dit.

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Ne ve r make excuses. Your friends don’t need the m and
your foes won’t believe the m.
Ne ve r be disagreeable jus t because you disagree.
Be slow to criticize and quick to comme nd.
Be more conce rne d with wha t you can do for others tha n
wha t others can do for you. You’ll be s urpris ed at the
res ults.
The more conce rne d we become ove r the things we can’t
control, the less we will do with the things we can
control.
Don’t pe rpiit fe ar of fa ilure to preve nt e ffort. We are a ll
imperfect and will fa il on occasions, but fe ar of fa il-
ure is the gre a te s t fa ilure of a ll.
Be ing average means you are as close to the bottom as you
are to the top.
The time to make frie nds is be fore you need the m.
We are many, but are we much?
Nothing can give you grea ter joy than doing s ome thing
for a nothe r.
Ma te ria l things are not gifts but apologies for gifts . The
only true gift is a portion of thys e lf. (Ra lph Wa ldo
Eme rs on)
You ca nnot live a pe rfe ct day without doing s ome thing for
a nother without thought of s omething in re turn.

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Do not mistake a ctivity for achievement.
You can do more good by be ing good tha n any othe r way.
Forge t favors give n; re membe r those received.
Ma ke each day your masterpiece.
Ma ke frie ndship a fine a rt.
Tre at a ll pe ople with dignity and respect.
Acquire peace of mind by ma king the e ffort to become
the best of which you are capable.

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