While basketball fans mourn the loss of a record-setting legend, business and retail industry leaders are encouraged to adopt and adapt Coach John Wooden's leadership strategies, which are much more than just "how to play basketball."
When legendary NCAA basketball Coach John Wooden passed away at the age of 99, it had been 35 years since he had retired from the basketball coaching profession. The effusive outpourings of praise and accolades that followed the announcement of Wooden's death, however, proved that although he was long gone from the sport of basketball, he was anything but forgotten.
The avalanche of admiration began on the night of Wooden's death when Los Angeles Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully was so affected by the event that he was moved to quote Shakespeare to the baseball fans gathered at Dodgers stadium. "His life was gentle, and the elements so mixed in him that nature might stand up and say to all the world, 'This was a man,'" Scully said of Wooden. That was quite a tribute.
Over the years, people who had known, worked with, and played for Coach Wooden have expressed their admiration for him in equally superlative terms...
"I admire Coach Wooden so greatly because of his core of integrity which led to an honest, straightforward life. - Bill Bradley, basketball Olympian and U.S. Senator
"He was a molder of character and basketball was just a means for him to affect us and make us deal with our character issues... I had a lot of great mentors in my life but [John Wooden] looms large." - Kareem Abdul-Jabar
"I think if you talk to any of his players, players that played for him, I think the thing that's consistent is that he made them better people..." - Kobe Bryant
"John Wooden is a genuine person in an era of self-promotion and hype. He proves that nice guys can finish first." - Tony Luftman, UCLA student manager 1984-1985
"His life refutes the argument that to be successful in life you have to look the other way and cut corners. He has achieved the ultimate level of success in his career, and he never compromised his values to get there." - Joe Wootten, basketball coach, son of coach Morgan Wootten
"I know of no instance during my time as a college basketball coach that Coach Wooden let anyone down or set a bad example. He modeled decent, proper behavior 24 hours a day, 365 days a year." - Charlie Moir, Virginia Tech basketball coach
"John Wooden is an intergalactic treasure who has selflessly lived his life for the betterment of others." - Bill Walton, UCLA and NBA center
"John Wooden is God's closest creation to the perfect man." - Dick Enberg, TV sports announcer
There just doesn't seem to be enough superlatives in the English language for people to use when they're describing Coach John Wooden. Notably, when paying tribute to "coach," very few people mention Wooden's coaching record, his 88 consecutive wins, or his 10 national championships. Rather, all of the praise for him is focused on how he led his team and who he was as a person. By all accounts, John Wooden was, above all, a man of great character.
In reading about Coach Wooden this weekend, I wondered how many of our contemporary leaders in the business world are held in such high esteem. Specifically, would any of today's most powerful and influential U.S. retail industry leaders be eulogized as "molders of character," "intergalactic treasures," or "God's closest creation to the perfect man/woman?" More importantly, do today's business leaders even care about how they influence the people who are following their lead?
It's probably safe to say that "character influence" is not in the job description of any business leader at any level today. And as many of my corporate clients have reminded me repeatedly, "If it isn't in the job description or on the performance review form, it doesn't get done."
Character influence is just one of the many intangible leadership soft skills that can't be quantified, and therefore, is not a required leadership proficiency. But according to a recent study, even though the act of character influence can't be measured, the effects of leadership character on individual employees and their performance can clearly be measured.
According to the Towers Watson 2010 Global Workforce Study, 55% of employees want the leaders of their company to demonstrate a sincere interest in their well-being, but only 38% believe that they do. Nearly two-thirds of employees think trustworthiness is the most important characteristic of a senior leader, but only 47% of employees surveyed think their leaders are trustworthy. And only 42% of the Global Workforce Study respondents said that they are engaged or inspired by the leaders of their company.
These numbers identify an interesting gap in leadership expectations and delivery. But the even more interesting number identified in this Global Workforce Study has to do with workplace engagement. In 2008, (at the beginning of the recession), only 29% of employees said that their company's image was important to their engagement level at work. In 2009, that number more than doubled to 60%. In a post-recession post-meltdown economy, employees are extremely unhappy about being associated with or supporting organizations which are perceived as being unethical, socially negligent, uncaring, or irresponsible.
Translated, what that study finding means is that employees aren't motivated to do their best work for dishonest leaders, selfish leaders, thoughtless leaders, careless leaders, or greedy leaders. What employees want is to align their entire heart and passionate contributions behind a leader with values that they know, respect, trust, and believe in.
In other words, employees want to work for a leader with character. So, John Wooden had it right all along.
There's one story in particular about John Wooden that I got reminded about over the weekend that demonstrates what it means to lead with character as well as any leadership story I've ever known. In the spirit of full disclosure, I'm recommending the story not because I was paid to write it up (which I was), and not because I get paid extra if a lot of people read it, (which I don't), but because it's a story that deserves to be remembered, whether you're a basketball fan or not. (Read about one John Wooden phone call that changed the history of basketball.)
John Wooden deserves to be remembered. The highest calling of those in a leadership position deserves to be remembered. The power of an unwavering commitment to an organization's mission, vision and values deserves to be remembered. The invaluable contribution to be gained from team members filled with passion, pride and purpose deserves to be remembered.
In reading through the effusive tributes that have been written about Wooden since his passing, I had to remind myself that this was not the man who found the cure for cancer, launched the internet, or negotiated peace in the Middle East. Wooden also didn't invent the game of basketball or even revolutionize it. What he did was teach a relatively small number of really tall college students how to handle an orange rubber ball better than any of the other really tall ball-handling college students in the U.S. And in the process, he changed the course of many lives.
Like any retail manager at any level, Coach Wooden's job description was to teach, correct, develop, and manage his team to achieve goals and perform competently. Also like any retail manager in any retail organization, Wooden wasn't contractually obligated to be the role model for high moral standards or make a long-lasting impact on anyone's life.
Building character wasn't Coach Wooden's responsibility. It was his privilege. And from everything I have read about him, it was also his greatest joy.
Nobody says that any leaders in any industry have to influence any of the people they manage in any kind of meaningful way. The question is, if you are in a position to make a life-changing positive impact on another person - as all authority leadership figures are - then why wouldn't you want to?
Reportedly Coach Wooden started every pre-game speech to his basketball team with the same sentence. And since his greatest legacy extends far beyond the basketball court, I imagine that Coach Wooden would consider that same sentence to be the most appropriate thing he could say to leaders around the world as he passes his legacy of leadership on to the next generation...
"I've done my job, the rest is up to you."
Quotable quotes from John Wooden about leadership character >>
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