Customer Reviews

Coach Wooden's Leadership Game Plan for Success: 12 Lessons for Extraordinary Performance and Personal Excellence

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I have studied John Wooden's books and his philosophy for over 35 years, but I found his new book fresh and inspiring. The "12 Lessons for Extraordinary Performance and Personal Excellence" were very good. My favorite section was "50 Maxims and Observations on Leadership". The book concludes with a chapter "Wooden's Team" where former players have short articles on various topics related to leadership. It's amazing that a 99 year old is so prolific & relevant throughout his 90's. I loved it.

This book is loaded with Wooden's cleverly worded, succinct quotes that collectively provide a powerful guide for successful leadership. Here are a couple of examples: "A leader lacking Enthusiasm will infect the group with the same malady" and "Respect is a prerequisite for Loyalty. You gain respect by giving respect." In addition to the 12 lessons, the book offers a section on Reflections on Leadership presenting 50 maxims and observations; the section gives the short maxims as headers ("e.g., "Little things make big things happen.") followed by a brief paragraph that expands on the idea.

The book is based on Wooden's widely respected leadership course and extends the teaching of two previous books by him. This work is a hands-on guide with some lined blank pages for the reader to address questions to teach key points and gain personal insights.

While you can't become a leader by reading this or any other book on the topic, you need to become aware of what it takes to be a successful leader and reflect on your strengths and weaknesses. This book offers an a treasure trove of insights and has the potential of helping the reader learn and become more self-aware. It's a gem and we highly recommend it.

I have read alot of John Wooden's books over the years. This is a great summary version with actionable items to work thru and implement within your life. I am so glad I bought this book.

After reading this book, it is clear to me that John Wooden is an extraordinary individual with much to learn from. He is almost 100 years old now and bit old school but he has plenty of great things to teach to anyone.

For one, he himself was an extraordinary basketball player. He won 3 high school player of the year awards from his sophomore to senior year. He also was a great college basketball player at Purdue. But it is his coaching career that outshines all others in his career.

Coach Wooden grew up in what seems to be a very disciplined environment. His father wrote instructions on how one should behave, think, and approach life and passed them to John Wooden, who in return, organized much of the principles passed down by his father into his famous pyramid of success.

Most people never write down the principles they should live by let alone organize them in a coherent logical manner with detailed philosophical reasons behind each of them. This book provides that for the reader.

I was somewhat surprised UCLA basketball teams under John Wooden only practiced 2 hours a day. But he made EVERY minute of that 2 hours count and even had a detailed plan for EVERY minute. Time was to be respected and not even a single minute was wasted. Being late to practice was a big no no under coach Wooden.

Another big surprise was that John Wooden never even mentioned winning or even beating the other team. John Wooden's definition of success was practicing, preparing, and playing at the highest level one is capable. He purposely told his players to not even look at the scoreboard as it distracted from them from performing at their highest level.

One anecdote of Coach Wooden's philosophy that made an impact on me is "Make each day your masterpiece". Wow...each day should be a masterpiece (not merely decent or satisfactory). That is how he practiced his team; he made each and everyone of his practice a masterpiece. That is the path of becoming a champion.

I am glad I read this book and I am glad Coach Wooden is willing to share his well thought out and proven approach to life, success, and happiness. I have learned much from this book.

I particularly recommend this book to younger readers who are trying to find that compass in life.

Coach Wooden once again inspires us to achieve the things that are within our grasp, yet seem somehow just out of reach. Whether John Wooden is on a basketball floor, in front of hundreds of students or writing on his philosophies, he astounds the witness with a calm knowledge and confidence of leadership in our own lives. The most astonishing thing about this particular book is this... no matter what situation we are in and no matter what type of relationships that we have....we can be the leader and positively inspire those around us with our thoughts, actions and beliefs.
That Coach Wooden turned 99 on this week only makes this book more amazing.
We ALL should be very grateful for this man and for his teachings... including this wonderful book.

This is such a great book. It is simple, thought provoking, and applicable to just about every aspect of your life. Highly recommended for all ages and for all walks of life.

Exceptional book and work book for those who are serious about understanding what it takes to achieve peak personal, team and family potential.

I wish I would have had this book and its insights 30 years ago. Every coach and parent could benefit from reading it. John Wooden is one of a kind.

There's so many good reviews of this book, I don't know why I'm even wasting my time putting something up here.

If you're interested in reading Wooden's stuff or thinking about getting one of his books...It's good. Just get it.

Coach Wooden is a winner in the book arena as well as he was in the basketball one. His book is filled with basic, common sense advice that applies to life as well as sport. You can pick it up and open it at any page and find sage advice that also motivates. The style is easy to read and conversational. Glad I bought it - as is my husband, who suggested it!