Page 144 - How to Create a Winning Organization

Wooden on Leadership
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superstars who genuinely viewed their own press clippings as sec-
ondary to those of the team. When your top producers behave in this
manner, it makes a leader’s job much easier and your organization
much stronger. Of course, the opposite is also true. Effectiveness and
productivity are most likely diminished when you are plagued with
individuals who view your team as secondary to their own interests.

PRIVATE AND PUBLIC PRAISE

Acknowledging top producers does not always have to be
done publicly. It is often more effective for a leader to praise
their outstanding performance when others are not around. It
gives the “superstar” deserved recognition without creating
envy or resentment. Conversely, praise for those in lesser roles
is often maximized by doing it in a more public manner.

COAX THOSE WHO NEED IT
Of course, talented individuals often require a little coaching—that
is, coaxing—to really get it when it comes to selfless team play. For
example, a future All-American such as Sidney Wicks initially kept
too close an eye on his personal statistics. The statistics I was not-
ing, however, showed that regardless of the various combinations
of players with whom Sidney scrimmaged, his personal numbers
stayed high while those of the others tended to drop off. He was
focused on his own welfare—statistics—above that of the team.
Despite the fact that he was more talented than those who played
ahead of him, I kept him out of the starting rotation as an incen-
tive for Sidney to become a complete team player.
When he came to understand and accept my philosophy, that
the best players don’t necessarily make for the best teams and that