Page 148 - How to Create a Winning Organization

Wooden on Leadership
130
What we did then in basketball is no different than what any or-
ganization can do when leadership creates a true spirit of sharing
and selflessness directed at what most benefits the group. When
those you lead believe their best interests are served when they place
the team first, the results will often be first place for the team.

RULES TO LEAD BY

The Star of the Team Is the Team.
As leader, you must be consistent and persistent in delivering your
Team First message. Top performers and producers must fully com-
prehend that others in the organization “assist”—make possible—
their success. Individual awards and accolades are fine, but they must
never overshadow the organization and its primacy. Remember Wal-
ton and Alcindor: As talented as they were—All-Americans—they
put the team’s welfare first.

Insist that Members of Your Team Share the “Ball”—
Information, Ideas, and More.
The most effective leaders understand the importance of making
sure that no member of the team hoards data, information, ideas,
and the like. In business, it is the sharing of ideas and putting them
to work that leads to a “best practice” mindset.

Go Out of Your Way to Praise Those “Quiet” Performers Who
Make Things Happen.
In every organization there are those vital individuals who seem to
get things done with little effort and less notice. In more cases than
not, however, these key players work very hard to achieve what they
do. Often their efforts are not visible to the group. These are the
people that make the trains run on time, and they deserve your
attention.