Chapter 113 - Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success
Today’s Chapter is based on the book “Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success” by Phil Jackson.
Phil Jackson is a former professional basketball player, coach, and executive. He played over 12 seasons in the NBA, winning championships with the New York Knicks in 1970 and 1973. As a coach, he led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA titles and the Los Angeles Lakers to five more, earning him a total of 11 coaching championships and making him one of the most successful coaches in NBA history.
Here’s what I learned:
Circle of Love
“It is about people working together for the good of all of us.”
— Alan Mulally
Phil Jackson’s coaching legacy can be summarized by his unique ability to transform groups of star athletes into cohesive units driven by mutual respect and shared purpose. The secret for his success is a simple yet profoundly powerful concept: love. As he once said, “It takes a number of critical factors to win an NBA championship, including the right mix of talent, creativity, intelligence, toughness, and, of course, luck. But if a team doesn’t have the most essential ingredient—love—none of those other factors matter.”
As a matter of fact, he emphasizes that talent and strategy alone aren't enough to achieve true greatness. A team must be bound together by a shared sense of purpose and a genuine love for one another in what he often referred to as the “circle of love”.
“The ring. That was the motto. It’s not just the band of gold. It’s the circle that’s made a bond between all these players. A great love for one another.”
— Phil Jackson
Jackson cultivated this "circle of love" by creating a supportive and inclusive environment where players could be themselves, express their emotions, and develop meaningful relationships. This fostered trust, encouraged open communication, and allowed players to push each other to be their best.
Furthermore, he recognized that a team is, in many ways, like a tribe, progressing through different stages of development from disjointed groups to unified collectives. This tribal mentality—moving from “I’m great” to “We’re great”—was the cornerstone of Jackson’s leadership. He created environments that encouraged players to embrace one another’s strengths and weaknesses, transforming disconnected individuals into a harmonious whole.
“Although basketball teams are not officially tribes, they share many of the same characteristics and develop along much the same lines:
STAGE 1—shared by most street gangs and characterized by despair, hostility, and the collective belief that “life sucks.”
STAGE 2—filled primarily with apathetic people who perceive themselves as victims and who are passively antagonistic, with the mind-set that “my life sucks.” Think The Office on TV or the Dilbert comic strip.
STAGE 3—focused primarily on individual achievement and driven by the motto “I’m great (and you’re not).” According to the authors, people in organizations at this stage “have to win, and for them winning is personal. They’ll outwork and outthink their competitors on an individual basis. The mood that results is a collection of ‘lone warriors.’”
STAGE 4—dedicated to tribal pride and the overriding conviction that “we’re great (and they’re not).” This kind of team requires a strong adversary, and the bigger the foe, the more powerful the tribe.
STAGE 5—a rare stage characterized by a sense of innocent wonder and the strong belief that “life is great.””
— Phil Jackson
This purpose of finding love and connection among a group of individuals is what drives Phil Jackson as a coach. As he explains, “What moves me is watching young men bond together and tap into the magic that arises when they focus—with their whole heart and soul—on something greater than themselves. Once you’ve experienced that, it’s something you never forget.”
Phil Jackson’s concept of “circle of love” reminds me of what we have previously learned from Joe Montana. Montana believed that to have a successful organisation, every team member should be willing to take on their own responsibility in order to help out the team which sometimes means sacrificing individual stats for the greater good of the team. As he explains, “On the 49ers, our success was directly attributed to the way we prepared as individuals first, then as an organization. Each one of us needed to be responsible for ourselves. Even in football, the most team-oriented sport, it often comes down to individual effort. It is how each of us prepares that makes our team better. That's a key to team success.”
“Individuals should keep sight of why they joined the team, what keeps them on the team, and what unique skills they offer the team. Conducting regular self-evaluations helps with individual performance as well as team success. Ask yourself what contribution you have made today or this week, and how you could contribute more tomorrow or next week.”
— Joe Montana
Focus on the Journey
“The process is everything, the outcome is nothing.”
— Bruce Lee
As we have previously learned from Bill Walsh, it is much more important to focus on process over results. In fact, Walsh understood that focusing solely on winning can create undue pressure and lead to suboptimal performance. Instead, Walsh advocated for a concentration on the processes that drive success. Especially at the beginning of his reign as the coach of the San Francisco 49ers, Walsh insisted “to channel the concentration of the 49ers toward improving performance on the field and throughout the organization.”
Walsh explains that when teams obsess over their execution and the quality of their thinking, success will inevitably follow. He once said, “I directed our focus less to the prize of victory than to the process of improving—obsessing, perhaps, about the quality of our execution and the content of our thinking.” This approach allows for a sustainable path to achievement, where improved performance becomes the primary goal rather than fleeting victories.
Instead of focusing on results, Walsh prioritizes the development of skills and fostering a growth mindset; he cultivated an atmosphere where individuals could thrive without the paralyzing fear of failure. His philosophy encourages leaders to cultivate patience and persistence by emphasizing that that the true measure of success lies in continuous improvement rather than immediate results. He believed that when individuals are committed to their processes, the outcomes—both on and off the field—will take care of themselves.
"Consequently, the score wasn’t the crushing issue that overrode everything else; the record didn’t mean as much as the season progressed, because we were immersed in building the inventory of skills, both attitudinal and physical, that would lead to improved execution. That was the key."
— Bill Walsh
Similarly, Phil Jackson had the same mentality when it came to coaching basketball teams. While winning championships was undoubtedly a goal, he was more focused on the journey rather than on the outcome. He encouraged his players to find meaning and fulfillment in the process of playing the game. As he explains, “That’s why at the start of every season I always encouraged players to focus on the journey rather than the goal. What matters most is playing the game the right way and having the courage to grow, as human beings as well as basketball players. When you do that, the ring takes care of itself.”
He believes that by focusing on the present moment, embracing challenges, and striving for continuous improvement, the desired results would naturally follow. He understood that obsessing about winning can be counterproductive and that the most one can hope for is to create the best possible conditions for success and then let go of the outcome.
“What’s more, obsessing about winning is a loser’s game: The most we can hope for is to create the best possible conditions for success, then let go of the outcome. The ride is a lot more fun that way.”
— Phil Jackson
Lead Through Empowerment
"You have to enable and empower people to make decisions independent of you. As I've learned, each person on a team is an extension of your leadership; if they feel empowered by you they will magnify your power to lead. Trust is a great force multiplier.”
— Tom Ridge
We have previously learned how authority is important for a football manager to succeed. As we have seen from Alex Ferguson, it is the manager’s responsibility to rule over all the players coming from various backgrounds; big players, wealthy players and even world-famous players. And, it is the manager’s responsibility is to rule over them and to lead them to become a successful football team. As Ferguson once said, “There is only one boss of Manchester United, and that’s the manager.”
As a matter of fact, Ferguson explains that “The minute a Manchester United player thought he was bigger than the manager, he had to go. I used to say, ‘The moment the manager loses his authority, you don’t have a club. The players will be running it, and then you’re in trouble.’” Ferguson reiterates that the authority is what counts and a manager cannot have a player taking over the dressing room.
“The most important thing in my job is control. The minute they threaten your control, you have to get rid of them.”
— Alex Ferguson
While one can see a football manager being in a position of power, Ferguson explains that to be a successful gaffer, one must be in control of the situation rather than to just use brute power. He explains that “Power is useful if you want to use it, but I don’t think it resonates with footballers, who are mostly working-class men. But control was my aim. I could use my power if I wished, and I did, but when you reach the station I attained at United, power came with it naturally. The big decisions you make in those jobs are usually seen by outsiders as exercises in power, when control is really what it’s about.”
By consequence, Ferguson mentions that it is important for the manager to stand up for himself. He gives examples of his days at St Mirren where the captain made a gesture behind his back in a team photo that was published in the local newspaper. The next Monday, Ferguson called him into his office and informed him that he was going on a free transfer. He explained to the player that “For a start, doing a V-sign behind a manager doesn’t tell me you’re an experienced player, or that you’re a mature person. If I’m looking for a captain I’m looking for maturity. That was a childish schoolboy trick. You have to go.”
However, it is interesting to note that Phil Jackson’s leadership style defies this stereotype of the authoritarian coach barking orders from the sidelines. Instead, he embraced a paradoxical approach: relinquishing control to gain influence, empowering his players to solve problems themselves, and adapting his methods to the unique dynamics of each team. He explains that, “After years of experimenting, I discovered that the more I tried to exert power directly, the less powerful I became. I learned to dial back my ego and distribute power as widely as possible without surrendering final authority”.
“Leadership is not about forcing your will on others. It’s about mastering the art of letting go.”
— Phil Jackson
This was evident in the way he would handle last minute game situations. Rather than micromanaging, he often let his players figure things out on their own. He mentions that, ***“*The standard rule of thumb in the NBA is that you should call a time-out as soon as an opposing team goes on a 6–0 run. Much to my coaching staff’s dismay, I often let the clock keep running at that point, so that the players would be forced to come up with a solution on their own. This not only built solidarity but also increased what Michael Jordan used to call the team’s collective “think power.””
Furthermore, Phil Jackson promoted an environment where players were empowered to ownership of their roles, express their creativity, and to contribute to the team’s overall success based on their unique gifts and strengths. He didn't try to mold them into a predetermined image but instead allowed them to express their individuality while working towards a common goal. This approach not only enhanced their individual performance but also strengthened the team as a whole.
As he explains, “When a player isn’t forcing a shot or trying to impose his personality on the team, his gifts as an athlete most fully manifest. Paradoxically, by playing within his natural abilities, he activates a higher potential for the team that transcends his own limitations and helps his teammates transcend theirs. When this happens, the whole begins to add up to more than the sum of its parts.”
“My approach was always to relate to each player as a whole person, not just as a cog in the basketball machine. That meant pushing him to discover what distinct qualities he could bring to the game beyond taking shots and making passes. How much courage did he have? Or resilience? What about character under fire? Many players I’ve coached didn’t look special on paper, but in the process of creating a role for themselves they grew into formidable champions.”
— Phil Jackson
Beyond the Book
Read "Working Together: Why Great Partnerships Succeed" by Farnam Street
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