Page 110 - How to Create a Winning Organization

6

CALL YOURSELF A TEACHER

”No written word nor spoken plea can teach your team
what it should be.”

he outside world knows your profession, what you do, by
Tthe title on your business card: sales manager, CEO, production
supervisor, or something else. However, your business card informs
someone even more important about what you do professionally,
namely, you. Don’t be misled by what it says.
In the eyes of most observers, my title is “Coach” Wooden, but
this is not what I would list first on my résumé or business card.
From my earliest years I have viewed my primary job as one of ed-
ucating others: I am a teacher.
I believe effective leaders are, first and foremost, good teachers.
We are in the education business. Whether in class or on the court,
my job was the same: to effectively teach those under my supervi-
sion how they could perform to the best of their ability in ways that
best served the goals of our team. I believe the same is true for pro-
ductive leaders in any organization.
Among experienced coaches in sports, there is little difference in
their technical knowledge of the game. All leaders basically evalu-
ate the same information, draw from the same talent pool, and are
constrained by similar financial considerations. Not always, but

92
Copyright © 2005 by John Wooden and Steve Jamison. Click here for terms of use.