John Wooden's Leadership Game Plan for Success - Part One

This is going to be a several part series on the salient points from John Wooden's Leadership Game Plan for Success

Part One: Origins of Leadership: A Compass for Core Values

Most of John Wooden's core values came from his modest upbringings on the family farm in Centerton, Indiana. From this, Coach Wooden developed his "Compass for Core Values." Four core principles represented the four points of his Moral Compass and there are centered around ethics and attitudes. "Be more concerned with your character than with your reputation. Character is what you really are. Reputation is what people say you are. Character is more important."
Four Navigation Points of Coach Wooden's Compass:

1. The Golden Rule - Simply treat other's the way you would have them treat you. This is based on Matthew 7:12.

2. Dad's Two Sets of Three - These were planted in each of the four boys, including Coach Wooden, from his father. The first set have to do with integrity: Never Lie - Never Cheat - Never Steal The second set have to do with how to face adversity: Don't Whine - Don't Complain - Don't make Excuses

3. The Caution against Comparisons - "Don't worry about being better than somebody else, but never cease trying to be the best that you can be. You have control over that. Not the other.

4. Dad's Seven Point Creed: A graduation gift from Coach Wooden's Father was a two-dollar bill and 3x5 card on which he had written this: Be true to yourself; Help others; Make each day your masterpiece; Drink deeply from good books - including the Good Book; Make friendship a fine art; Build a shelter against a rainy day; Pray for guidance, count and give thanks for you blessings every day.

Commentary

I very much enjoyed the process this book is presenting. From the start, you understand the foundation of Coach Wooden's philosophy of Leadership - not just leadership, but life. Seemingly, it is a combination of home spun philosophy, biblical truths and experience handed down from his father. It seems simplistic, but it is a solid of a foundation as one could ask for.

To the authors credit, he doesn't go on for pages and pages of examples to support the points being made. It is almost a minimalist approach as he writes - principle, simple explanation, supporting example of anecdote. Simple, straight-forward, concise - much like Coach Wooden.

From this foundation, the rest of the book seems to flow. Looking forward to posting the next section.

Prodigal Friendly Church and Will Your Prodigal Come Home - Jeff Lucas

It has been a while since I have posted about what I have been reading - but that doesn't mean I haven't been reading! (smile)

These two books are tremendous. I first read Lucas's "Creating a Prodigal Friendly Church" and was humbled by his observations about the church of today. Using the story of the Prodigal Son, he posits the question about how receptive our churches are today to the Prodigal when they finally return home.

Tucked in his observations are some tremendous ancient cultural insights to the story of the Prodigal. Especially helpful were the understanding of the Kezakah and Keffakah.

If you would like further application of the book, I used Lucas's thoughts for a lesson you can view by clicking here. One thought that stayed with me: What would have happened if the Prodigal Son had met the Older Brother before he saw the Father? How many times has that happened in our churches?

Lucas's Second Book, "Will Your Prodigal Come Home" provided an honest asssessment of many of the children and grandchildren of people in our churches today. Lucas was helpful, but brutally honest in his assessment of Prodigals and their families. He spent alot of time discussing what a prodigal is and isn't and how you can deal with them. He also provided insight into the plight of a Christian Family and their Prodigals when they come to church. Very well done book. It too provided fodder for a great lesson which can be viewed by clicking here.

I would highly recommend both books to church leaders and parents.

Choices

Just some thoughts after preaching a 17 year old's Funeral.