success.docx
Success
By
Coach John Wooden
My father was one of the most remarkable persons I have ever known. He
never had much in the way of material possessions, but he had a great
deal more in other ways. His words and actions helped me in developing
my personal definition of success which states: “Success is the peace
of mind, which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you
made the effort to become the best of which you are capable“.
When I graduated from High School, my dad gave me something which I
have carried with me all these years. The gift was a piece of paper
with this poem on one side: “For things a man must learn to do, if he
would make his life more true: To think without confusion clearly, to
love his fellow men sincerely, to act from honest motives purely, to
trust in God and heaven securely.” It didn’t mean as much to me at the
time but years later I realized its real value and it has become an
important part of my philosophy and life.
On the other side of this paper is a creed that I have handled so many
times that I have almost worn it out. The creed goes like this: “Seven
things you must do to be true to yourself: 1)To your own self be true
and if you are you cannot then be false to any man. 2) Make each day
your masterpiece. 3) Live each day as it should be lived; don’t put
off until tomorrow what should be done today. 4) Help others; a
perfect life could be lived in helping others; 5) Drink deeply from
good books. 6) Don’t take friendship for granted. Study friendship and
make it a fine art. 7) Pray for guidance every day and divine guidance
will come in some way.” I have kept these rules, and they have been
meaningful through my years of teaching and coaching.
These words have enabled me to develop a better attitude towards
victory and defeat, which every athlete and coach experiences. You
can’t judge truly the success of a team by the number of games it
wins, as against the number of games it loses, because there are so
many other things that enter into the picture. Likewise you can’t
judge the success of a person by his accomplishments. We do not have
the same opportunities. Some will have better opportunities because of
their environment. Some coaches will have better players than others,/
Some will be better coaches than others.
In the many years I have coached at UCLA, I don’t believe you will
find a player who has ever heard me mention winning to him. We want to
win as much as the next person and we play to win. Yet, I don’t
mention winning I just imply it by what I teach. I tell our players
that I’m not worried about the opposition; I’m worried about them. If
each plays as he should, and at the close of the game he can honestly
say to himself that he did his very best, the outcome of the game will
be more pleasing, even more than he realizes. I feel that perhaps my
success as a basketball coach, or as a teacher, may be in direct
proportion to my ability to get this idea across to my players and my
students.
Now if they’re going to be successful, however, there are some
important things to practice, which I have learned from years of
coaching and observing some of the best athletes of the nation: They
must be industrious. If boys are going to do well, in their life or in
athletes, they are going to have to work. There will be many
temptations; there may be many disappointments, but practice and hard
work are essential.
You also must be enthusiastic about what you’re doing and what you
believe. You must be enthusiastic about your faith and you must be
enthusiastic about your relationships with others. It won’t be easy,
but enthusiasm brushes off upon those with whom you’re in contact.
Our players also know that if they are going to become the best
they’re capable of becoming, they are going to have to have a
knowledge of, and the ability to properly execute the fundamentals of
the game of basketball. This is true for any sport. A brain surgeon
must have more than a knowledge of brain surgery. He must be able to
execute his skills and knowledge to the best of his ability, otherwise
I would not want him performing surgery on my loved ones or on anyone
else. It isn’t enough just to have knowledge of the fundamentals. You
must be able to execute them. You learn to execute them by practice,
hard work, and continued repetition.
I always stress the need for team spirit, a loyalty and dependence
upon one another. This means that each player must do is best so the
entire team may benefit. He must be alert. He must be intent. He must
have initiative and not be afraid to make decisions to get things
done. The man who does nothing is the one who makes no mistakes. If he
has initiative he is going to make mistakes, bet he is probably going
to accomplish things.
All these qualities are essentials for success and the fortitude to
excel. But I believe that there is no possible way to attain anything
worthwhile without prayer and complete devotion to our fellow men and
creator.
Questions to Consider and Answer When Writing Your Paper
1. Who is John Wooden?
2. Why was he so loved and respected?
3. Why was the gift his father gave him so important?
4. What did he physically, emotionally, and professionally do with
this gift from his father?
5. What do you think of his definition of success?
6. Is there someone in your life like a John Wooden who has left a
lasting positive impact on your life?
7. What have you learned from reading and thinking about this
article by John Wooden?
Leila@
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