Wooden's Wisdom | Leadership Resource Center

Issue 648 - "A Great Leader Is Confident And Humble" (Daniel Coyle and John Wooden)


Wooden's Wisdom - Volume 13	Issue 648
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"A GREAT LEADER IS CONFIDENT AND HUMBLE" (DANIEL COYLE AND JOHN WOODEN) John Wooden Video Clip (1 min 20 sec.): Coach Wooden is asked: "Is there anything in your coaching career you would do over?" Daniel Coyle is the New York Times bestselling author of The Culture Code. In his book, Coyle identifies the building blocks of a great team culture. The first building block he calls "Build Safety." You "Build Safety" on a team when the leader is confident and humble. John Wooden was confident in his ability because of preparation and experience. In his 1967 Preseason Letter to the team, Coach displayed confidence and humility when he wrote the following: "My experience in teaching and coaching over many years has naturally caused me to become somewhat opinionated in certain areas. But even most of those who are inexperienced will agree that experience is a great, although sometimes hard teacher." Coach constantly demonstrated his humility whether it was cleaning up the locker room after a game, encouraging input from his assistants, or always listening to suggestions from the players. His humility caused him to be a lifelong learner and his constant addition of new knowledge maintained his confidence. In his book Wooden on Leadership, he put it this way: "When you’re through learning, you’re through. Learning is a leader’s lifetime pursuit. You must never reach the point of self-delusion that you know it all. Remind yourself, "It’s what I learn after I know it all that counts.It’s the truth." In his book, Daniel Coyle described the Confident and Humble Leader this way: "In any interaction, we have a natural tendency to try to hide our weaknesses and appear competent. If you want to create safety, this is exactly the wrong move. Instead, you should open up, show you make mistakes, and invite input with simple phrases like "This is just my two cents." "Of course, I could be wrong here." "What am I missing?" "What do you think?" How often do you say: "What do you think?" Click here for personal development exercise: Issue 648. Click here for Printable Poetry: Issue 648. Yours in Coaching, Craig Impelman www.woodenswisdom.com Follow @woodenswisdom	COACH'S FAVORITE POETRY AND PROSE The Lucky Man Luck had a favor to bestow And wondered where to let it go. 'No lazy man on earth,' said she, 'Shall get this happy gift from me. 'I will not pass it to the man Who will not do the best he can. 'I will not make this splendid gift To one who has not practiced thrift. 'It shall not benefit deceit, Nor help the man who's played the cheat. 'He that has failed to fight with pluck Shall never know the Goddess Luck. 'I'll look around a bit to see What man has earned some help from me.' She found a man whose hands were soiled Because from day to day he'd toiled. He'd dreamed by night and worked by day To make life's contest go his way. He'd kept his post and daily slaved, And something of his wage he'd saved. He'd clutched at every circumstance Which might have been his golden chance. The goddess smiled and then, kerslap! She dropped her favor in his lap. Edgar Albert Guest (1881-1959)
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