Chapter 106 - Wooden: A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections on and Off the Court
Today’s Chapter is based on the book “Wooden: A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections on and Off the Court” by John Wooden.
John Wooden was a legendary American basketball coach, best known for his tenure at UCLA, where he led the Bruins to 10 NCAA championships, including seven consecutive titles from 1967 to 1973. His legacy endures as one of the greatest coaches in sports history.
Here’s what I learned:
Foundation of Character
“It’s easy to have principles when you’re rich. The important thing is to have principles when you’re poor.”
— Ray Kroc
At the heart of Wooden’s philosophy is the belief that true success comes from character. In fact, he believes in building one’s character over one’s reputation. He encourages us to focus on who we are rather than how others perceive us. He writes, “Be more concerned with your character than your reputation. Character is what you really are. Reputation is what people say you are. Reputation is often based on character—but not always.”
In Wooden’s case, his upbringing instilled in him fundamental values that he carried throughout his life and coaching career. He believed that character building starts at home, where role models play a crucial role in shaping a child’s future. As a matter of fact, Wooden’s view of character was shaped by his father, a man of great moral strength who instilled in him simple but profound principles for living. Wooden mentions that his father had ‘two sets of threes’ rules to follow in life. He explains that “The first set was about honesty: Never lie. Never cheat. Never steal. The second set of threes was about dealing with adversity: Don’t whine. Don’t complain. Don’t make excuses.”
"A father and mother must be there to set an example for their children, strong and positive models of what to be and how to behave when the youngsters grow up."
— John Wooden
For Wooden, character is revealed not in grand gestures but in small, consistent actions. He once said, “I believe in the basics: attention to, and perfection of, tiny details that might commonly be overlooked. They may seem trivial, perhaps even laughable to those who don’t understand, but they aren’t. They are fundamental to your progress in basketball, business, and life. They are the difference between champions and near champions.” This focus on the little things—whether it’s keeping your word, showing up on time, or treating others with respect—demonstrates the depth of Wooden’s commitment to integrity.
Furthermore, Wooden recognized that character is about actively cultivating one’s positive qualities. He encouraged individuals to focus on developing their inner strengths emphasizing that these are within everyone’s reach. He once said, “Take a moment and draw a circle around the following personal characteristics that you possess: confidence, poise, imagination, initiative, tolerance, humility, love, cheerfulness, faith, enthusiasm, courage, honesty, serenity. I hope you circled them all because all are within each of us. It is simply up to us to bring them out.”
"There's nothing wrong with having faults so long as you work conscientiously to correct them. How hard you work at correcting your faults reveals your character."
— John Wooden
This importance on one’s character reminds me of the importance of credibility in business that we have previously learned from Chung Ju-Yung, the founder of Hyundai. As a matter of fact, his experience at Hyundai is a perfect example of how important reputation is for a businessman. He once mentioned that “a man’s trustworthiness, sincerity and honest are his capital.” In fact, he explains that while it would be ideal for a company to have enough internal capital to run on its own, it is still possible to run a business without any capital, as long as it has a good reputation.
As a matter of fact, Chung first success started when he was running a rice shop which he was entrusted by his boss due to his diligence and honesty. He was also able to get capital to start his business because of his reputation for being trustworthy.
“In my life, many business people claiming to have the next “big thing" have asked me for money. They professed that they didn't have anyone else to ask. In those situations, I always said, "What you lack is credibility, not capital. It's not because your character is flawed. It's just that you haven't established trust that would allow a stranger or a third person to lend you money. That's why it's so hard for you to get it. If you can convince the other person that you are trustworthy, money will naturally flow in.”
— Chung Ju-Yung
By consequence, whenever he ran Hyundai, Chung always made sure that his credibility would remain intact. In fact, even whenever he got into a project that would certainly amount to significant loss, he made sure to complete the project in time to make sure that his company held their words. He fully understood the meaning behind’s Warren Buffett’s saying that “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you'll do things differently.”
When he was once advised his brother to give up on a project, he responded with: “Trust is everything to a businessman. The moment you lose trust, it's all over. It's my dream to create the best construction company in the Republic of Korea, and you're telling me to abandon it all? Whatever happens, we're going to finish this job. We have to.”
More importantly, Chung Ju-Yung’s understood that in international projects, it wasn’t just his reputation on the line, but the credibility of the entire country that laid on his shoulders. He once mentioned that “if Hyundai were to have quit after becoming the first Korean company to take an overseas project, we would have been kicking away the ladder for other Korean construction companies trying to enter foreign markets.”
“A contract is a contract. Even if we are in dire monetary straits, we have to build Thailand the high-quality expressway they are expecting within the time we have. That's why we are here. We cannot and will not just cut and run. We have to finish what we started for the good of the Hyundai brand and for the good of the country."
— Chung Ju-Yung
Preparation
“Luck favors the prepared mind.”
— Louis Pasteur
One of the biggest cornerstone of John Wooden’s philosophy is the value of hard work and thorough preparation. He understood that success in basketball, as in life, is achieved not through luck but through diligent practice and preparation. As he once said, "Failing to prepare is preparing to fail."
As a matter of fact, Wooden was known to teach his players that the outcome of a game was merely a by-product of the preparation they put in. Wooden’s practices were designed to instil a work ethic in his players that would not only make them better athletes but also better individuals. As he mentions, “Hard work is the difference. Very hard work.” For Wooden, the process of preparation was as important—if not more so—than the outcome itself.
“The preparation is where success is truly found. Too often we neglect our journey in our eagerness or anxiety about reaching the goal.”
— John Wooden
Wooden’s philosophy of preparation extended beyond basketball. He believed in striving for excellence in all aspects of life, as he explains: “The goal in life is just the same as in basketball: make the effort to do the best you are capable of doing—in marriage, at your job, in the community, for your country. Make the effort to contribute in whatever way you can.”
Another critical aspect of Wooden’s philosophy is the pursuit of incremental progress. He advises, “You have to apply yourself each day to become a little better. By applying yourself to the task of becoming a little better each and every day over a period of time, you will become a lot better. Only then will you be able to approach being the best you can be.”
Wooden also recognized that striving for perfection, though unattainable, is a worthwhile endeavor. He writes, “Perfection is what you are striving for, but perfection is an impossibility. However, striving for perfection is not an impossibility. Do the best you can under the conditions that exist. That is what counts.” Wooden’s emphasis on effort over results reflects his belief that success lies in the pursuit, not the destination.
“Understand that the harder you work, the more luck you will have.”
— John Wooden
This importance set on preparation reminds me of how Alex Ferguson managed Manchester United over the years. In fact, in terms of gameplay, Ferguson also understood the significance of preparation. In fact, he explains that “Part of the pursuit of excellence involves eliminating as many surprises as possible because life is full of the unexpected.“
As such, the most important aspect of the entire Manchester United system was the training: anything that happened during games often occurred during preparation on the training ground. As Ferguson once said, “our training ground was where the real work was done.” And this all starts with the players, they had to take preparation seriously in order for good things to happen.
It is not surprising that the best players on Manchester United were the ones who practiced the most. Ferguson mentions that “David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney would all stay after training to perfect their free kicks. They would not disappear for a long bath, or a massage, or be straight out the door because they had to run down to a car dealership. They would be religious about spending an extra 30 minutes trying to bend balls around a row of mannequins and past the goalkeeper.”
Finally, Ferguson believed that good preparation is the best way to encounter risk. As a matter of fact, he explains that “The way to win battles, wars and games is by attacking and overrunning the opposing side.”, but to do so, one must wait patiently for the opportunities to present themselves.
While Ferguson’s Manchester United teams were well known for scoring late minute equaliser or winner, hence the term “Fergie Time”, he explains that in truth, it all came down “to careful preparation and having a deliberate and thoughtful approach to risk.” He would often ask his players to leave nothing to chance and to wait patiently for opportunities before attacking.
Put The Team First
“I think team first. It allows me to succeed, it allows my team to succeed.”
— Lebron James
One of the foundation of Wooden’s leadership philosophy was mutual respect and trust. As he mentions, “It has been said that you will be hurt occasionally if you trust too much. This may be true, but you will live in torment if you do not trust enough.” Wooden understood that trust was essential for building strong, cohesive teams, whether on the basketball court or in life.
As a matter of fact, Wooden placed great importance on teamwork and selflessness among his players. He believes that “Understanding that the good of the group comes first is fundamental to being a highly productive member of a team.” This principle guided his coaching, as he sought to align individual talents with the collective goal of the team. He reflects on this with an example of one of his star players, “Kareem took his great ability to score and sublimated it for the greater good of the team. He was willing to do that. But if either he or I had allowed that scoring ability to dominate, we would have cut down on the contributions of others to the detriment of the team.”
“We all fit into different niches. Each of us must make the effort to contribute to the best of our ability according to our own individual talents. And then we put all the individual talents together for the highest good of the group.”
— John Wooden
This philosophy of Wooden worked greatly because he had incredible leadership and an ability to foster strong relationships with his players and to lead them by example. In fact, Wooden believed that leadership was less about authority and more about serving as a role model. He states, “Being a role model is the most powerful form of educating. Youngsters need good models more than they need critics. It is one of a parent’s greatest responsibilities and opportunities.” This principle applies not just to parenting but to any leadership role, emphasizing the importance of setting an example through one’s actions.
Finally, Wooden’s approach to leadership also emphasized encouragement and positive reinforcement. He writes, “When a child does something well, commendation is a powerful tool. One of the most powerful motivating tools you can use is the pat on the back. Yes, occasionally the pat must be a little lower and a little harder, but too often parents neglect the praise. They are quick to criticize and slow to commend.” By focusing on encouragement rather than criticism, Wooden inspired his players to give their best for the greater good of the team.
This concept of putting the team first reminds me of what Kobe Bryant learned from Bill Russell. As we have previously learned, no matter who he was with, whether it was a coach, a hall of famer or a teammate, Kobe would always ask them question after question in order to learn and improve. Notably, Kobe learned a lot from all-time greats such as Muhammad Ali and Bill Russell. As Kobe once said, “After all, why reinvent the wheel when you can just talk to the wheels that were created before?”
In his book “The Mamba Mentality: How I Play”, Kobe has a great anecdote from Bill Russell that reiterates this concept of understanding that the good of the group comes first is primordial in order to become a highly productive member of a team.
“There’s one anecdote Bill shared that stuck with me. He recounts how people always said he wasn’t a good ball handler, just didn’t know how to handle and shoot the ball. He said sure, he could do all of those things, but why would he lead the fastbreak when Bob Cousy was playing with him? Why would he shoot jumpers when Sam Jones was on his wing? The message was that if you want to win championships, you have to let people focus on what they do best while you focus on what you do best. For him, that was rebounding, running the floor, and blocking shots.”
— Kobe Bryant
Beyond the Book
Read "Warren Buffett: The Three Things I Look For in a Person" by Farnam Street
Read "How to Do Great Things" by Farnam Street
Read "Working Together: Why Great Partnerships Succeed" by Farnam Street
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Great article.
I am wondering, what is your favourite biography you've read? I don't read enough of them, would appreciate a good place to start!
Very very motivating article. Sports coaches can be very inspirational and instill a sense of discipline in us.