Michael Jackson On Leadership

What can Michael Jackson, A Basketball Blog and John Maxwell have in common?

Actually, a lot. As I was running this morning, Michael Jackson's song, "Man In The Mirror" came on. It reminded me of playing AAU in Huntington, WV for James Hopkins. He would always say, "You need to be like Michael Jackson, 'Take a look in the mirror and make a change'". We would always make fun of him, but he's right and the lesson has stuck with me.

John Maxwell throughout his leadership series, discusses the principle that the first person we must lead is ourselves. To do so, requires many things and above all being honest with ourselves--the best way to do it--is to look in the mirror. I've included some of the lyrics below:

I'm gonna make a change,

For once in my life,

It's gonna feel real good,

Gonna make a difference

Gonna make it right...

I'm starting with the man in the mirror,

I'm asking him to change his ways,

And no message could have been any clearer,

If you want to make the world a better place,

Take a look at yourself,

And then make a change.

Belichichick Defines Leadership

"When a player comes to work in the morning, he is PREPARED, READY TO GO, READY TO GO, READY TO IMPROVE as a player, READY TO HELP the team, ALERT, AWAKE, and has a GOOD ATTITUDE. You couldn't have any more leadership than that. That's what a true leader does, and believe me, some of the best leaders on the New England Patriots would never ever in 100 years stand up in front of the team and say, "Oh guys, we've got to do this or that."

Focus

FOCUS:

• On what I WANT to do
• On what I NEED to do
• Not wasting time on things I can't control
• Intensely committed to the task at hand
  

From Good To Superb Player

GOOD PLAYER, GREAT PLAYER, SUPERB PLAYER

Positioning, Anticipation and Technique give Quickness; Therefore, you can always get quicker.
A Good player knows where he is on the court.
A Great player knows where everyone is on the court.
A Superb player knows where everyone is on the court and what everyone is going to do.

--Jerry Meyer

Bill Gates Philosophy For Success

In Mike Shanahan's book, "Think Like A Champion" he discusses Bill Gate's philosophy of success listed below:

1. Set your goals
2. Believe you can achieve them
3. Maintain a positive attitude
4. Understand the team concept
5. Plan
6. Sacrifice
7. Compete
8. Communicate
9. Finish

This philosophy sounds very simple. The problem is that too often we simply do not take the time to follow these 9 simple actions. John Maxwell says that the two hardest things to get people to do are to think and do things in order of importance.

Coach Wooden on Developing Leadership

I am continually amazed when I read from John Wooden's books. I have read and re-read them all. But, each time I find that something hits me a little differently. Just today, I was going through some notes from Coach Wooden's book, "Wooden On Leadership". Several things just jumped out at me. I'll share some over the next few days. Here's the first:

"I believe leadership itself is largely learned.

Certainly not everyone can lead

nor is everyone a leader destined for glory,

but most of us have a potential far beyond

what we think possible."

Coach Wooden goes on to say that whatever coaching and leadership skills he possesses he learned through listening, observation, study, and then trial and error along the way.

Mike Ditka On Discipline

While on vacation, I flipped through and re-read some of "Game Plans For Success" by Ray Didinger. I came across the chapter on Mike Ditka. I loved his description of discipline:

In pro football, as on Wall Street, discipline

means showing up on time for meeting,

working hard in practice or at your desk,

carrying out your assignments, and

not committing stupid errors.