Leadership Wisdom From the King of March Madness (Part 2)

March 20, 2017

You can’t mention March Madness without including Coach Wooden. His UCLA teams won an unprecedented 10 National Championships in 11 years.

Last week I told you that I had the opportunity to spend a few days with Coach Wooden, and in that short time I learned a great deal about both the man and the success he achieved. In the last blog I mentioned that he was,

A Humble and Value Centered Man….who had a
A Strong Commitment to Excellence…and was
A Repository of Wisdom and Success…and conveyed
A Caring Beyond Performance.

Now today I’ll cover a few more traits that I believe contributed to Coach Wooden’s success.

An Acknowledgement of all Contributors

Organizations generally tend to acknowledge contributions of the stars and high performers. However, Coach Wooden believed it was essential to acknowledge the contributions of all of the players on his team. He did this regardless of how small that role might be.

Using an analogy he explained his logic:

“I’d say, we’re like a powerful automobile and Jabbar is the engine. You now, are only a wheel; and you over here are only a nut that holds that wheel on. Now which is most important? What good is that engine if we don’t have wheels? What if you don’t have the nuts holding that wheel on? You also need somebody behind that wheel or you’ll go in circles. You all have an important part to play. And I made a special effort to let those who weren’t playing very much know how much I appreciated them.”

A Passion for Planning

In my fundraising consulting with organizations I’ve found very little consistency in strategic planning. Some organizations rarely plan, while others plan annually. However, Coach Wooden planned regularly. In fact, he shared something with me that made a lot of sense. He said simply and with conviction that, “Failing to plan is planning to fail.”

While it’s a catchy phrase, clearly Coach Wooden lived it. He planned everything practices, recruiting, drills, player development and much more. And to think that the Coach planned just once a year is silly. He actually did annual planning, but he also planned monthly, weekly, daily and minute-by-minute during games.

A Foundation of Trust

The empirical data on the benefits of trust is clear. Leaders who build trust produce both higher productivity and profitability. I reference the following examples frequently in capital campaign consulting. These are the results of just two of hundreds of studies on trust:

A Cornell University study of 6,300 Holiday Inn employees found that hotels where managers followed through on promises and demonstrated integrity were more profitable.
A Watson Wyatt study found that organizations where front-line employees trusted senior leaders had a 42% higher return on shareholder investment than organizations where distrust was the norm.

Coach Wooden clearly was a trust builder. In addition to acknowledging team member contributions, he built trust relationally.

He noted, that he,” wanted them to be considerate of each other. To my wife and me, our players were an extension of our own family. I’ve had players refer to my wife as kind of like their mother. And I wanted that. I wanted them close with each other and to know that I was concerned about them as I would be my own children and their future – not just as basketball players. They wouldn’t know this (at) first, but I hoped they would perceive it as time went by.”

The coach’s intent was captured in the words of former UCLA star and NBA great, Bill Walton: “Coach Wooden represents everything that is good, not only in the world of basketball, but in life in general. He is such a positive influence on everyone. He has taught me everything I know. Not so much about basketball, but about life.”

“I really support The Covenant Group’s strategic planning process because their approach encourages staff-based support with board buy-in, and I felt that was important given what we were trying to achieve. The outcome is an effective plan that builds consensus and provides a clear sense of direction.”
- Jennifer Scott, Director of Development - The Cabbage Patch Settlement House

“The Covenant Group is highly competent, very experienced and knowledgeable. They provided a broad perspective by equipping us with useful data…and best practices in the field. All in all, they are excellent.”
- Dan Jones, CEO - 21st Century Parks

“The campaign has truly been a miracle. People were committed from the beginning, but…even raising $650,000 seemed like a stretch. To nearly double that amount is incredible! When the plan they developed allows you to hit a goal like that, it builds such a sense of community. The momentum built by the campaign is spilling outside the walls of our church and benefiting others in the process.”
-Father John Hollowell - Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Catholic Church

“For those of us who don’t do this everyday, The Covenant Group instilled confidence in us. They helped us get through the fear and apprehension by providing us with a process, training and motivation. They taught us and helped us plan in a way that was for the better. We have built lasting relationships with donors and we will continue to steward these relationships long into the future.”
- Sue Finke, Director of Institutional Advancement - Covington Catholic High School

“No one anticipated we could raise this amount. Even the Archdiocese is surprised. The funds raised represent about 15 times our annual giving. But it’s not just the financial results. People stand around talking more than they did before the campaign. There is also a renewed and energized spirit among the parishioners. It’s the most exciting thing to happen in our parish in the last 100 years.”
- Gary Libs, Campaign Co-Chair - St. Mary of the Knobs Catholic Church

“The Covenant Group’s process involved a lot of people in our congregation doing small tasks … that built ownership. They took our vision and put it into a concrete plan. They helped us understand the importance of making our vision clear and laid out the steps to make the vision a reality. Their process built consensus and showed people how they could help. Their methods are based on a solid theological foundation that includes key documents, prayer support, and requisite training … all of which were invaluable.”
- Daniel Montgomery, Pastor - Sojourn Community Church

“Everything The Covenant Group did to help us…in the initial stages was helpful…the development of the case statement; our materials; the training of our Board members; strategies; all these steps laid the foundation for eventual success. They brought such a high level of professionalism, a wealth of experience and a strong track record of integrity and success… just being associated with The Covenant Group helped us.”
- Nancy Doctor, Development Director - Wellspring

“The structure The Covenant Group provided was excellent. It allowed our members to use their God-given talents to benefit the church community They helped us develop a plan and identify key leadership candidates to chair the effort, as well as engaging between 80 to 100 people to carry out the work of the campaign. It was truly a whole congregation effort and The Covenant Group helped facilitate that. They helped us reach our full potential as a congregation.”
- Ron Poisel, Pastor - Christ Lutheran Church

Leadership Wisdom From the King of March Madness (Part 2)

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