John Wooden, at age 99 passed away of natural causes in the early morning of June 5^th 2010. Undoubtedly, he was one of the greatest coaches of all time, developing one of the most powerful ideas for building a community of change for the greater good, by demanding that everyone “Should not measure themselves by what they have accomplished, but by what they should have accomplished with their ability.”

But, it is safe to say Wooden (known affectionately in the basketball world as ‘Coach’) would dismiss the spotlight on his awards. For Wooden, his very philosophy shy’s away from the results. Wooden was concerned with the process of realizing results. He passionately concentrated on the effort involved in achieving the reward. And the reward was secondary. This was the foundation of his and his team’s success on the court and in life.

“Success is peace of mind.” Wooden said. “[It is] The direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you made the effort to do your best, to become the best that you are capable of becoming.”

This idea to focus on, and worship, effort is the foundation for modern coach-centered leadership for sport, business, and even parenting. And what a beautiful thing an idea is. Transcendent through individuals, great ideas take on a life of their own. In the coaching world they are often described as coaching trees. These trees map the relationships that link individuals through the merging, adopting, and evolution of philosophy. Wooden’s philosophy has made a remarkable journey as his success orientation has been passed through players, coaches, and learners to all corners of the globe. Wooden’s coaching tree is worth growing because of the positive community of people it creates and empowers.

Unbeknownst to me, I was introduced to Wooden’s philosophy. Before I had even heard the name John Wooden, a branch of his tree saved my academic career. Now I have grown my own branch of the Wooden tree and let me tell you, it is magic when you see a 13-year-old embrace it and change his life through it. My branch of the Wooden Tree is called ‘Process Not Result’, where my athletes are taught to focus on the process (effort) not the result and how to apply that to everyday life. I am not naïve enough to believe that my actions will cause the tipping point and enable the grand ‘result’. But I do believe that collectively, through the effort one day that tipping point will come.

Wooden’s idea of … “Knowing you made the effort to do your best, to become the best that you are capable of becoming.”… is central to success in any aspect of life not only sport. And after listening to the news stories that surrounded Wooden’s this morning, this concept is more important than ever as it is central to all social change. It is central to developing youth into better people and the leaders of tomorrow. It is central to inspiring those around you. It is central to instilling confidence. It is central to believing you can be the change. It is central to hope. It is central to changing the world. It is central to relieving the crushing pressure and exhaustion that individuals, who strive to be the change, must endure. It is central to knowing while we, alone as individuals, will not be in the headlines for the next positive social revolution, collectively by being part of the process, part of the effort to do so, we will have a stake in positive change.

So when we hear these stories of blockades, and environmental disasters, we are hearing stories of the results of negative ideas, and toxic interactions. John Wooden is largely a story of the process. A story of the effort needed to change the world. Pass this idea on, you cannot ensure the result, but you can control the process of achieving the result. Grow this tree, this tree made of Wooden.

Here are some additional ‘Woodenisms’ to help grow your Wooden tree:

“Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.”

“Be prepared and be honest.”

“You can’t live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you.”

“What you are as a person is far more important than what you are as a basketball player.”

“If you’re not making mistakes, then you’re not doing anything. I’m positive that a doer makes mistakes.”

“It isn’t what you do, but how you do it.”

“Failure is not fatal, but failure to change might be.”

“Consider the rights of others before your own feelings and the feelings of others before your own rights.”

“Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.”

“It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.”

“It’s the little details that are vital. Little things make big things happen.”

“Success comes from knowing that you did your best to become the best that you are capable of becoming.”