2009: Coach John Wooden turns 99

In Encino--about 4.5 miles from our neighborhood--legendary UCLA basketball coach, John Wooden, has lived in the same modest condominium for the last 30 years.  In the 60's and 70's, Wooden's teams won 10 NCAA National Championships in 12 years, a record unmatched by any other college basketball coach.  Today, Coach Wooden turns 99.  And I wanted to honor him not because I'm a huge college basketball fan--I'm not--but because I admire the inspiring coaching philosophy he developed. 

Wooden was not your typical coach.  "On the first day of practice, I remember him saying, 'I'm not going to be talking to you about winning or losing because I think that's a byproduct of our preparation. I would much rather be focused on the process of becoming the best team we're capable of becoming,'" says John Vallely, who played under Wooden on the 1969 and 1970 UCLA national championship basketball teams.  Underlying this approach was his redefinition of success.  Rather then thinking of success as outperforming an opponent, he said:  "Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self satisfaction is knowing you made the effort to do the best of which you are capable." 

That attitude helped his teams win championships.  But to me, it's also a sensible way to approach life.  Happy birthday, Coach!

See you around the neighborhood -  Jeff
 
Find out more about the Pyramid of Success at the Official Site of Coach John Wooden. 
Find out more about John Wooden on Wikipedia or this web page from Congressman Brad Sherman who helped get the Reseda Post Office named in his honor.  

BTW:  In July 2009, I counted 34 basketball hoops in our neighborhood.