Inspiration from John Wooden

I recently listened to a talk given by former UCLA Basketball Coach John Wooden, who passed away last year.  His accomplishments on the court are still unparalleled. His teams have won more games and championships than any other. After listening to him speak, I got the feeling he does not see his basketball accomplishments as his greatest success, but rather the impact he had on his players and the way he did things.

Early in the talk, in which I watched from TED.com, Wooden notes on how he defines success through giving your best effort.  He says that he grew up learning not to compare yourself to others, because you can only control yourself.  I hope my clients will understand this. If they don't, I want to help them.  All you can do is give your best everyday.  If the player in front of you at your position is an all-star, you cannot do anything about that.  What you can do is play and practice to the best of your ability, because that is the kind of person you want to be.

In his day, Wooden told his players "Education first, basketball second."  He says he takes great pride in seeing who they have become; doctors, attorneys, teachers.  Wooden viewed himself as a teacher. This is an attitude I want to take into being an agent.  Granted, so much is different in professional sports.  You are not in school anymore, and your sport is your career.  My philosophy is life first, sports second.  It is important for me to communicate here that I want to see my athletes succeed on the field, and I want to help them in every way possible, but not at the expense of certain things.  Even football coaching great Vince Lombardi said, "Faith, Family, and Football."  He said that was to be the order of priorities for his players.  I heard he said that his first year as coach of the Green Bay Packers, they won the Super Bowl that year.

Although Wooden's position was as a coach, and mine an agent, our situations are similar in that we have an opportunity to extend the realm of our position to have a greater impact.  That is exactly what I want to encourage my clients to do, see the opportunity for impact.  It is everywhere; teammates, family, community and even the world.

Wooden talked about our desire to see progress, but noted "There is no progress without change."  I want to encourage athletes to be agents of change, both in their private life, but also in community and world needs.

Wooden had the trust of the room the moment he stepped in to give this speech.  His career success commands such trust, but he didn't talk much about basketball.  He inspired and captured the audience with philosophy and insight on life.  Something everyone understands. He sat, with no dominating presence or tone, rather as an old man, calmly delivering wisdom from a long life.

Like Wooden, I hope my success is defined by much more than my career accomplishments. I want to help my clients do the same. If anyone questions whether or not this falls in the scope of my profession or if I should only worry about my client's sports career, then I would have asked you to tell John Wooden the same in his day.  He had an impact.  He was successful in life.  Oh, and his career turned out pretty alright too!
885 Wins, 10 National Championships
(UCLABruins.com)