True success John Wooden

I coined my own definite definition of

success in 1934 when I was teaching at a

high school in South Bend Indiana being

a little bit disappointed and delusioned

perhaps by the way parents of the

youngsters in my English classes

expected their youngsters to get an A or

B they thought a C was alright for the

neighbors children because the neighbors

children all average but they weren’t

satisfied by their own would make the

teacher feel that they had failed or the

youngsters failed and that’s not right

the good Lord and His infinite wisdom

didn’t create us all equal as far as

intelligent concerned any more than we

could for size appearance not everybody

could earn an A or B and I didn’t like

that way of judging and and I did know

how the alumni of various schools back

in the 30s judged

coaches and athletic teams if you won

them all and you were considered to be

reasonably successful not completely

because I found out we had a number of

years of UCLA where we did it was a game

but it seemed that we didn’t win each

individual game with the margin the some

of our alumni had predicted and quite

frequently I

quite frequently I really felt that they

had backed up their predictions in a

more materialistic manner but I was true

back in their 30s so I understood that

so but I didn’t like it I didn’t agree

with it and I wanted to come up with

something that I hope could make me a

better teacher and give the youngsters

under my supervision whether it be in

athletics or in the English classroom

something which to aspire other than

just a higher mark in the classroom or

more points in some athletic contests

and I thought about that for quite a

spell and I wanted to come up with my

own definition I thought that might help

and I knew how mr. Webster defined it as

the accumulation of material possessions

or the attainment of position of power

prestige or something of that sort

worthy accomplishments perhaps but in my

opinion not necessarily indicative of

success so I want to come up something

of my own and I recall that I was raised

on a small farm in southern Indiana and

dad tried to teach me of my brothers

that you should never try to be better

than someone else I’m sure at the time

he did that I didn’t it didn’t well

somewhere I guess in the hidden recesses

of mind it popped out years later never

tried to be better than someone else

always learned from others and never

cease trying to be the best you could be

that’s under your control and if you get

too engrossed involved and concerned in

regard to the things over which you have

no control it will adversely affect the

things over which you have control then

I ran across a simple verse that said at

God’s footstool to confess the poor soul

knelt and bowed his head I failed he

cried the master said now didst I best

that is success from those things and

one other perhaps I coined my own

definition of success which is peace of

mind attained only through self

satisfaction in knowing you made the

effort to do the best of which you’re

capable I believe that’s true if you

make the effort do the best and put your

cape on trying to improve the situation

that exists for you I think that’s

success and I don’t think others can

judge that I think it’s like character

and reputation your reputation is what

you’re perceived to be your character is

what you really are and I think the

character is much more important than

what you are perceived to be and hope

north be good but they don’t necessarily

be the same well that was my idea that

what I was going to try to get across to

the youngsters I ran across other things

I love to teach and he was mentioned by

the previous speaker that that I enjoyed

poetry and I devil in it a bit in love

and there are some things that help me

and he be better than it would have been

I know no one ought to be you know what

it should be but I think I’m better than

it would have been if I hadn’t run

across certain things and one was it

just a little verse that said no no

written word no spoken plea can teach

our youth what they should be nor all

the books on all the shelves is what the

teachers are themselves that made an

impression on me in the 1930s in and I

tried to use that more or less in my

teaching whether it be in sports or

whether it be getting the English

classroom and I I love poetry and all we

had an interest in that and somehow and

maybe it’s because Dad and used to read

to us at night the coal oil lamp we

didn’t have electricity in our farm home

and they had to read poetry to us so I

always liked it and about the same time

that I ran across this one verse I ran

across another one that someone asked a

lady teacher why she taught and she

after some time she said she want to

think about that then she came up and

said they asked me why I teach and I

reply where could I find such splendid

company there sits a statesman strong

unbiased wise another leader Webster

silver-tongued a doctor sits beside him

whose quick steady hand may mend a bone

or stem the life Bloods flow and there a

builder couple drives the arch of that

church she builds within that Minister

may speak the Word of God and lead

assembling school to touch the Christ

and all about a gathering of teachers

farmers Merchants labors those who work

on voting build and plan and pray and

praying to a great tomorrow and let me

say I may not see the church or hear the

word or eat the food their hands make

aroma yet again I may and later I may

say I knew him once and he was weak or

strong or bold

proud or gay I knew him once but then he

was a boy they asked me why I teach and

I reply where could I find such splendid

company and I believe the teaching

profession that’s true you have so many

youngsters and I gotta think my

youngsters UCLA 30 some attorneys 11

dentist in doctors have many many

teachers and in other professions and

that gives you a great deal of pleasure

to see them go on I always tried to make

the youngsters feel that they’re there

to get an education number one

basketball the second was it playing

their way and they do need a little time

for social activities but you let social

activities take a little precedence over

the other two and you’re not going to

have any very long so that was the ideas

that I tried to get across to the

youngsters under my supervision

I had three rules pretty much that I

stuck with practically all the time I’d

learned these prior to coming to UCLA

and I decided they were very important

one was never be late never be late

later on I had I said certain things

that I had the players if we’re leaving

to someone they had to be neat and clean

there was a time when I

I made them wear jackets and shirts and

ties but then I saw our Chancellor

coming school and longer in the denims

and and turtlenecks and I thought it was

not right for me to keep this other so I

let him just add to be neat and clean

and I had one of my one of my greatest

players that you probably heard of Bill

Walton he came and gets the bus who were

leaving for somewhere and play and he

wasn’t clean neat so I I would let him

go he couldn’t get on the bus he had to

go home and and and get cleaned up to

get to the airport to forget so I was a

stickler for that I believed in that I

believe in time very important I believe

you should be on time but I felt a

practice for example we start on time we

close on time the youngsters didn’t have

to feel that we’re going to keep them

over when I speak in coaching clinics I

often tell young coaches in the coaching

clinics more less there’ll be the

younger coaches getting in and the

profession that and most of our young

you know and probably newly married

and I tell them don’t run practices late

because you’ll go home in a bad mood and

then that’s not good for a young married

man to go home in a bad mood when you

get older when you get older to make a

difference but so I did believe on time

I believe starting on time not believe

closing on time and another one I had

was not one word to profanity one word

to profanity and you you out of here for

the day if I see it in a game you’re

going to come out and sit on the bench

and the third one was never criticize a

teammate I didn’t want that I used tell

him I was paid to do that that’s my job

I’m paid to do it pitifully poor but I

am paid to do not like the coaches today

for gracious sakes know they’re in there

it’s a little different than it was in

my day but those are three things that I

stuck with pretty closely all the time

and those actually came from my dad and

that’s what he tried to teach you me and

my brothers at one time I came up with a

pyramid eventually that I’m not going to

do I have the time to go on that but up

that to help me I think become a better

teacher and this is something like this

and I had blocks in the period and the

cornerstones being industrious and

enthusiasm working hard and enjoying

what you’re doing coming up to the apex

according to my definition of success

and right into the top faith in patience

and I say to you and whatever in doing

you must be patient you have to have

patience too we want things to happen to

what we talk about our youth being

impatient a lot and they are they won’t

change everything they think I’ll change

this progress and we get a little older

we’re sort of let things go and we

forget that there is no progress without

change so you must have patience and I

believe that we must have faith I

believe that we must believe really

believe now Jesus not just give a word

service believe that things will work

out as they should

providing we do what we should I think

our tendency has to hope that things

will turn out the way we want them to so

much of the time but we don’t do the

things that are necessary to make those

things become reality

I’ve worked on this for some 14 years

and I think it helped me become a better

teacher but it all involved around that

original definition of success you know

a number of years ago there was a major

league baseball umpire by the name of

George Moriarty and he spelt Moriarty

with only one eye has that I’ve never

seen that before but he did and big big

baseball players there they’re very

perceptive about those things and they

noticed he had only one eye and his name

and you’d be surprised how many also

told him that Devin’s one more than his

head at various times now but he wrote

something that I think he did what I

tried to do in this pyramid he called it

the road ahead or the road behind and he

said sometimes I think the fates must

grin as we denounce them and insist the

only reason we can’t win is the face

themselves amidst yet their lives on the

ancient claim we win or lose within

ourselves the shining trophies on

ourselves can never win tomorrow’s game

you and I know deeper down there’s

always a chance to win the crown but

when we fail to give our best we simply

haven’t met the test of giving all and

saving none until the game is really won

I’m showing what is meant by grit are

playing through another’s quip I’m

playing through not letting up it’s

bearing down that wins the cap now

dreaming there’s a goal ahead of hoping

when our dreams are dead our praying

when our hopes are fled yet losing it’s

not afraid to fall

if bravery we have given all for who can

ask more of a man than giving all within

his span giving all it seems to me is

not so far from victory

and so the facer seldom wrong no matter

how they twist and whine it’s you and I

who make our fates we open up or close

the gates on the road ahead near the

road behind reminds me of another set of

threes that my dad tried to get across

just no wine don’t complain don’t make

excuses you get out there and whatever

you do and do it the best you’re

building

no one can do more than that I tried to

get across to that my punish don’t tell

you never heard me mention winning never

mention winning my idea is that you can

lose when you outscore somebody in a

game and you can win when you’re

outscored I’ve felt that way on certain

occasions

various times and I just wanted to be

able to be able to hold their head up

after a game I guess is saying that when

when a game is over and you see somebody

they didn’t know the outcome I hope they

couldn’t tell by your actions whether

you are scored an important about

pointed out score jus and that’s what

really matters if you make your effort

to do the best you can regularly there

is also being about what they should to

be not necessarily what you would want

them to be but they’ll be about what

they should and only you will know

whether you can do that and that’s what

I wanted from them more than anything

else and as time went by and I learned

more about other things I think it

worked a little better as far as the

results but I want to thank the score of

a game to me the byproduct of these

other things and not be in themself I

believe it was and one great philosopher

said no I know there’s Cervantes serve

and he said the journey is better than

the end and and I like that I think that

is yeah it’s getting there sometimes

when you get there that’s almost self

that down but it’s getting there that’s

the fun I like to as the basketball

coach you usually I liked our practices

to be the journey and that the game

would be the end the end result I’d like

to have a sit in the stands and then

watch the players play and see whether

I’d done a decent job during the week on

there again it’s getting the players to

get that self-satisfaction knowing that

they’ve made the effort to do the best

job of which they are capable sometimes

I’m asked who is the best player I had

over the best teams I can never answer

that as far as the individual to

concerned I like to I was asked one time

about that I said suppose that you in

some way could could make the perfect

player what would you want and I said

well I’d want one knew why he was a UCLA

and to get an education there was a good

student really knew why he was there in

the first place

but I want when they can play - I don’t

want to realize that the defense usually

wins championships and will work hard on

defense and but I’d want one to play

offense - I won’t even to be unselfish

and and we look for the pass first and

not shoot all time and I don’t run the

could pass and would pass I’ve had some

that I’ve had some that could and

wouldn’t and I’ve had some that wouldn’t

could you say you couldn’t tell your

challenge so I’m on that and I wanted

him to be able to shoot from the outside

and I want to be able to be good inside

• I don’t want to be able to be able to

rebound well at both ends - and why not

just take someone like Keith Wilkes and

let it go at that

he had the qualifications and not the

only one but he was one that I used in

that particular category because I think

he he made the effort to become the best

every couple I mentioned in my book they

call me coach to players that gave me

great satisfaction that came as closest

I think anyone I ever had to reach their

full potential one was Conrad Burke and

one was Doug Macintosh when I saw them

as freshmen on our Freshman team we

didn’t have freshmen couldn’t play

varsity when I got I thought and I

thought oh gracious if these two players

either one of them they’re different

years but I thought about each one of

the time he was there who he ever makes

the bark at varsity

our varsity must be pretty miserable if

he’s good to make her good enough to

make it and you know one of them was a

starting player for a season and a half

and the other was up his next year he

played 32 minutes and national

championship game did a tremendous for

us and the next year he was a starting

starting player on national championship

team and here I thought you’d never play

a minute what it was so those are the

things that that give you a great joy

and great satisfaction to see one

neither one of those youngsters could

shoot very well but they had outstanding

shooting percentages because he didn’t

didn’t force it and you know one could

jump very well but they got kept good

position and so they did well rebounding

they remembered that that every shot was

taken they assumed it’d be missed I’ve

had two men that stand around wait to

see if it’s missed then they

once you late somebody else is in there

hit him and they weren’t very quick but

they put a good petition kept in good

balance and so they they pretty pretty

good defense for us so they had

qualities that they came close to as

close to reaching possibly their full

potential as any players I ever had so I

consider them as to be as successful as

a as a Lewis Alcindor or a Bill Walton

or in many of the others that we had

there was somehow standing up

outstanding players have I rambled

enough I heard that when he makes his

appearance I supposed shut up