Wooden's Wisdom | Leadership Resource Center

Issue 694 - "How Would Coach Wooden Use Artificial Intelligence?"


Wooden's Wisdom - Volume 13	Issue 694
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"HOW WOULD COACH WOODEN USE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE?" John Wooden Video Clip (102 sec.): Coach Wooden is asked: "How did you end up at UCLA?" Great clip! "There is no substitute for work. If you're looking for the easy way, the shortcut, the trick, you may get something done for a while, but it will not be lasting, and you will not be developing your ability." – John Wooden How would Coach Wooden use AI—the ultimate shortcut? Coach wouldn’t use AI as a shortcut. He would use it to enhance critical thinking and expand his horizons. What Coach Would Do: ✅ Use It as a Learning Tool, Not a Thinking Replacement – Coach Wooden believed in learning from the experiences of others. He would use AI to access knowledge faster, but he would still analyze, question, and think for himself. True learning isn’t just gathering facts—it’s understanding them. ✅ Expand Knowledge, Not Just Confirm Beliefs – Coach would use AI to challenge his thinking, not reinforce what he already knew. ✅ Ask Better Questions – Coach would ask challenging questions to dig deeper and connect ideas. He would always ask AI to provide proof. He would take the time to read the articles or books AI referred to and challenge them. What Coach Wouldn’t Do: 🚫 Let AI Replace Effort – AI makes it easy to get quick answers, but quick isn’t always better. He would never accept surface-level thinking in place of real understanding. 🚫 Allow AI to Limit His Perspective – Overuse of AI can create an echo chamber, feeding you only what aligns with your past searches. Coach sought wisdom from diverse sources and wouldn’t let an algorithm decide what he should learn. 🚫 Mistake Information for Wisdom – AI can provide facts, but wisdom comes from reflection, application, and experience. For Coach Wooden, AI wouldn’t be a crutch—it would be an opportunity to think better, not less. As he was fond of saying: "It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts." Click here for personal development exercise: Issue 694. Click here for Printable Poetry: Issue 694. Yours in Coaching, Craig Impelman www.woodenswisdom.com Follow @woodenswisdom	COACH'S FAVORITE POETRY AND PROSE How Do You Tackle Your Work Each Day? How do you tackle your work each day? Are you scared of the job you find? Do you grapple the task that comes your way With a confident, easy mind? Do you stand right up to the work ahead Or fearfully pause to view it? Do you start to toil with a sense of dread? Or feel that you're going to do it? You can do as much as you think you can, But you'll never accomplish more; If you're afraid of yourself, young man, There's little for you in store. For failure comes from the inside first, It's there if we only knew it, And you can win, though you face the worst, If you feel that you're going to do it. Success! It's found in the soul of you, And not in the realm of luck! The world will furnish the work to do, But you must provide the pluck. You can do whatever you think you can, It's all in the way you view it. It's all in the start you make, young man: You must feel that you're going to do it. How do you tackle your work each day? With confidence clear, or dread? What to yourself do you stop and say When a new task lies ahead? What is the thought that is in your mind? Is fear ever running through it? If so, just tackle the next you find By thinking you're going to do it. Edgar Albert Guest (1881-1959)
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