What I Learned From Coach Wooden

Anyone who's followed me for even a short time would know that I'm a big time fan and supporter of the lifetime work of the former UCLA coach, John Wooden.  His on court achievements of coaching milestones and records will probably never be reached by anyone ever again, let alone broken.  He was heralded as "The Wizard of Westwood" and while his remarkable accomplishments still leave many in awe until this day, I'm a much bigger fan of  his work off the court and the things he did to help grow the basketball players charged in his care into responsible high character individuals.

Coach Wooden was a wonderful writer who shared his life's work through the written word and had authored several books in relation to coaching, leadership and character development.  While I can't profess to have read all of his books, his very last one written just before he passed away in 2012 was probably the most impactful to me.  The book was dedicated to the art of mentoring and entitled, "A Game Plan for Life".  It spoke to me so much that it ended up being the inspiration and central theme for my own motivational quote book, "Gifts From Others".

"A Game Plan For Life" highlighted an important point in relation to the words and actions of others. You see, Coach Wooden spoke fondly of quotations from people like Abraham Lincoln, Mother Teresa and others who's words served as an inspiration to himself.  Essentially proving that a mentor can be anyone who's words of encouragement or message of hope inspire you to be better. Quite simply, the words they've left behind are precious gifts to be cherished.

While I never had the opportunity to meet "The Wizard of Westwood" myself, I feel fortunate to have interacted with individuals like Don Yaeger, Steve Jamison, Pat Williams and Andy Hill.  All of them have had personal and dealings and connections to Coach Wooden and continue to keep his legacy alive through their own work.  On that note I thought that it was fitting that I share a collection of 16 lessons I learned from my mentor, Coach Wooden:

1) Self improving never stops and can span our entire lifetime;
2) There's much power and influence in the written word;
3) Our daily lives can serve as motivation to others;
4) You don't have to have physical contact to touch people;
5) Wholesome knowledge doesn't have an expiry date;
6) Never discount the value of putting in a good effort;
7) Take responsibilty for those charged in your care;
8) Character character character;
9) The final score is the least important part of the game;
10) Anyone in life can serve as your mentor;
11) True love never dies;
12) Good character is at the heart of a good person;
13)Your approach to life remains constant;
14) Learning never stops regardless of your age;
15) Never ignore the fine details;
16) Always take responsibility for your actions.

See you on the court!

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Andy Hill on Coach Wooden

Andy Hill is a motivational speaker and author who experienced a great deal of success as president of two media companies, CBS Productions and Channel One Network. While there, he was responsible for producing shows such as Touched By Angel, Dr. Quinn: Medicine Woman and Walker Texas Ranger.

These shows were based on lessons he learned from Coach John Wooden as a member of three NCAA basketball teams.


An interesting note - Andy was one of the 13 players in NCAA history to do this.

It was fitting to have Andy back on the program as we continued to pay tribute to the life of Coach Wooden and his philosophies that made him special to so many people.

Their relationship was a unique one because Andy didn't develop an appreciation for his coach's teachings while he played for him. This was primarily because he didn't receive very much playing time and as a result, Andy became bitter and resentful and didn't speak with Coach Wooden for over 25 years after he left UCLA.

They later re-connected and Andy dedicated his professional speaking career to sharing Coach Wooden's philosophy and the power and wisdom of The Pyramid of Success.

Click below to listen to my conversation with Andy as he reflects on his personal memories between he and the coach.

See you on the court!

Coach John Wooden Tribute with Steve Jamison

As we continue to pay tribute to John Wooden, we hear from a gentleman who's had the distinction of being his business partner, co-author and friend for over 15 years.

Steve Jamison is a best-selling author and America’s preeminent authority on the leadership philosophy of Coach John Wooden and joins me on the program to help reflect on Coach.


Steve has collaborated with Coach Wooden on projects including several best-selling books, an award-winning PBS television special, WOODEN: Values, Victory, and Peace of Mind,and numerous personal appearances.

Steve reflects on Coach Wooden's life and discusses the impact he's had on others, the significance of the Pyramid of Success and Steve will describe their final meeting.


Click below to listen to the interview.

See you on the court!

Coach John Wooden Tribute with Orlando Magic's Pat Williams

What's going on y'all!

It's been one year since the passing of legendary UCLA Coach John Wooden, so we take a moment to reflect by speaking with a gentleman who had the privilege of not only knowing him personally but wrote about him as well.

That's right!

Senior VP of the Orlando Magic, Pat Williams takes time out of his very busy the schedule and returns to the program to not only chat about the man named greatest coach of all time but also to fill us in on a book written in dedication of John Wooden.

It's called Coach Wooden: The 7 Principles That Shaped His Life and Will Change Yours.

When Coach Wooden graduated from the eighth grade his father gave him a hand written card and said, "Son, try and live up to this." On the card, his father had written seven simple yet profound life principles:

• Be True To Yourself
  
• Help Others
  
• Make Friendship a Fine Art
  
• Drink Deeply From Good Books, especially the Bible
  
• Make Each Day Your Masterpiece
  
• Build A Shelter Against A Rainy Day By The Life You Live
  
• Give Thanks For Your Blessings and Pray For Guidance Everyday
  

These principles were the key to Coach Wooden's greatness and his goodness. Through powerful stories and advice, this book shares the wisdom that made Coach Wooden happy and successful, not just in his career but in life.

Pat and I had a great chat and it was a wonderful opportunity to gain a better understanding of Coach Wooden and the principles he used to impact so many people.

Click here to listen to the interview.

"Coach Wooden didn't just teach basketball ---he taught life"

TONY DUNGY

See you on the court!

Hard Court Lesson #8

It's Not About You

When you look at the job of a coach, it goes well beyond drawing up game winning plays.

A coach plays an important role in helping their players grow and develop to reach their full potential.

They do this by motivating, encouraging, guiding and supporting. So to new and old leaders, I encourage you to keep in mind that It's Not About You.


See you on the court!

A Tribute to the Greatest Coach of All Time

With the recent news of the passing of UCLA's Coach John Wooden, I felt that it was only fitting that the next edition of HCL Radio was dedicated to the man voted by a panel of coaches as the greatest coach of all time!

Why you ask?

• He won 10 NCAA National Championships in 12 years while at UCLA
• Seven championships wins in a row
• Four undefeated seasons
• In his 40 years of coaching, he only had one losing season, his first year.
  

He's translated his success off the court in the form several business books focused on leadership and a corporate leadership program at UCLA.

But more important than all the on court accolades was the things he did off the court to grow to young men into responsible and contributing leaders to society.

Andy Hill was one of those individuals and you'll hear a bit from him as he reflects on their turbulent relationship at UCLA and how it grew and blossomed.

As well, Steve Jamison will also provide some insights into the man known as the Wizard of Westwood!

All on the next HCL Radio!

See you on the court!

A Game Plan For Life

The topic of mentorship has always been important to me. While working with the federal government, I was a project manager of a student recruitment program that hired post secondary students for the summer to help them gain valuable work experience.

I was in role for approximately five years and took it very seriously. With a large number of the students hired never having worked before, it was important to me to ensure that their first experience was a positive one.

It may not have been included as part of my job description but I knew that I was their mentor.



Several months back I was contacted by a writer who was doing a piece on mentorship and was asked for my thoughts on the topic.

In my view, the role of a mentor is very similar to that of a teacher but with a slight wrinkle.

The traditional model of a mentorship relationship has a more experienced and perhaps wiser individual imparting knowledge to a less experienced person.

The thing with mentoring that many don`t realize is that it can happen anytime or anyplace and isn`t designated to a monthly time slot or a discussion over lunch.

Our actions or how we live our lives can serve as mentors to others.

As we learn in John Wooden`s book, A Game Plan for Life, it`s even possible for us to have mentors who we`ve never met.

The book is broken down into two parts. Coach Wooden identifies the seven mentors who had a profound impact on his life in the first half.

In the second half, he then shares stories about seven people whose lives he helped shaped. One of those seven is Bob Vigars, an elementary school teacher from Canada who life was profoundly impacted by Coach Wooden.



Oh yeah, they`ve never met before.

My good friend, Don Yaeger co-authored A Game Plan for Life and joins me on the next episode of HCL Radio to talk about this very special project.

Listen as Don describes how this book came to be.

In addition, I`ll also be joined by Bob Vigars who shares exactly what Coach Wooden has meant to him.

Here part of what Bob had to say.


Thanks for reading!

Happy Birthday Coach!

On Oct 14, 2009, the Greatest Coach of All Time, John Wooden turns 99 years young.



Not only was he the most successful coach in UCLA history but he also spent an entire lifetime developing players into respectable and responsible contributors to our society.

His invaluable lessons as a teacher and a coach have touched and inspired many.

HERE'S WHAT YOU CAN DO

My good friend Don Yaeger has asked that I help commemorate Coach Wooden's birthday by signing his on-line card on a website in his honour.

This site isn't just to celebrate his birthday but to celebrate a life well lived.

Don has asked me to do three things:

1. Log on to www.HappyBirthdayCoachWooden.com and send Coach a birthday message

2. Forward this link to friends and colleagues who might also appreciate his amazing teachings on leadership!

3. Post this message on my Facebook and Twitter page.

I've done my part and I'm now asking that you to help us reach the goal of having at least 9,999 people to send Coach their very best by doing the same!!

Thanks in advance!

Thanks for reading!

1st Annual John Wooden Pyramid of Success Awards

On September 12, 2009, the basketball courts at The Hangar Athletic Xchange(HAX) training facility in Hawthorne, CA, was transformed into an elegant backdrop for the gala reception of the 1st Annual John Wooden Pyramid of Success Awards.

The event was created by the HAX Foundation to honor successful community leaders and raise money to provide scholarships to student athletes in need so they could attend HAX athletic and educational programs.

Boston Celtics Forward /Inglewood native Paul Pierce and World Champion Boxer, Health & Body correspondent and mom Laila Ali received the first ever Competitive Greatness Awards.




Other honorees included ESPN’s Dick Vitale, CEO of McDonald’s Jim Skinner and “Say No Classic” Founder Rod Smith.

Jayson Barry, a recipient of a HAX Foundation scholarship was also on hand and said, “When you have a team behind you it makes you want to work harder not only for yourself but for them.”

If that wasn't enough, the awards also paid homage to the legendary UCLA Coach John Wooden with the Lifetime Achievement Award who was named by Sporting News as the "Greatest Coach of All Time."




HAX CEO, Jeff Herdman was a guest on HCL Radio and provided some insights on HAX, the HAX Foundation and the 1st Annual John Wooden Pyramid of Success Awards.


Click here to listen to the interview.


Thanks for reading!

Where developing leaders in more than just a game.

HCL Radio Hits the Airwaves

Hard Court Lessons Radio makes its debut appearance on Monday July 20, 2009.

The blog has expanded into a talk radio program and will feature expert guests and discussion on the topic of leadership and leadership development.

The first episode is entitled, "The Wooden Way" and best selling author Steve Jamison will join the program.

Steve is America’s preeminent authority on the leadership philosophy of UCLA’s legendary Coach John Wooden whose basketball dynasty won ten March Madness national championships in a 12 year span.

But it just wasn't the championships that made him successful. Coach Wooden took young men and developed them into more than just winning players.

He built leaders.

The two have worked together for more than 15 years and Steve now shares what made this extraordinary man so successful.

Tune in to HCL Radio on Monday July, 20 2009 and hear about a man who believed that if you take care of the process, "everything else will take care of itself".

Hard Court Lessons Radio - where developing leaders is more than just a game!

Note: Free show reminders are available by visiting the show page and clicking on the "Remind Me" button.

Click here to listen to the episode.

Thanks for reading!

Audley

Put Your Socks on Right

There's a video on John Wooden's website in which NBA great Bill Walton retells a story about the importance of paying attention to detail involving his legendary UCLA college coach.

In case you didn't know.

Coach Wooden is considered by many to be one of the most successful coaches across all professional sports.

Why you ask?

• He won 10 NCAA National Championships in 12 years while at UCLA
• Seven championships wins in a row
• Four undefeated seasons
• In his 40 years of coaching, he only had one losing season, his first year.
  

He's translated his success off the court in the form several business books focussed on leadership and a corporate leadership program at UCLA.

Anyhow, Coach Wooden gathered a young Bill Walton and several of his teammates and explained the importance of paying attention to detail through the example of socks.

The man known as the Wizard of Westwood believed that success came from paying attention to all the fine details.

You see, to John Wooden's rationale was pretty simple.

If you don't put your socks on properly:

they could lead to blisters;
blisters could lead to irritation;
irritation could lead to distraction;
distraction could lead to turnovers.

And in the closing seconds of a championship game, a turnover could be catastrophic.

The key is understanding the things that fall within the scope of your control regardless how minor, still can make a difference.

Listen to the Fast Break Podcast by clicking here.

Thanks for reading!

Audley