John Wooden Quotes

American basketball coach (1910–2010)

John Robert Wooden (October 14, 1910 – June 4, 2010) was a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame as both a player (1961) and a coach (1973). He was the first person ever enshrined in both categories; only Lenny Wilkens and Bill Sharman have since been so honored. He was awarded the presidential Medal of Freedom in 2003. He led UCLA basketball program from 1948 until 1975. He was the coach for UCLA winning 10 championships in 12 years. He is also famous for his pyramid of success.

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Alternative Names: John Robert Wooden

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My Favorite Four-Letter Words: “Kids” and “Love

Although there is no progress without change, not all change is progress.

Be quick, but don't hurry.

The problem with new is you don't have time for the old ones.

Measure yourself by...what you have accomplished with your ability

The importance of repetition until automaticity cannot be overstated. Repetition is the key to learning.

Don't mistake activity with achievement.

Lincoln himself once said, “The worst things you can do for those you love are the things they could and should do for themselves.” He fiercely believed in self-sufficiency, and in the maturity and character that struggles and hardships can bring.

Don’t mistake activity for achievement. To produce results, tasks must be well organized and properly executed; otherwise, it’s no different from children running around the playground — everybody is doing something, but nothing is being done; lots of activity, no achievement.

A Successful Journey Is the Destination

Reputation is what others perceive you as being, and their opinion may be right or wrong. Character, however, is what you really are, and nobody knows that but you.

James Russell Lowell wrote: It’s not what we give but what we share, For the gift without the giver is bare. Who gives of himself of his alms feeds three, Himself, his hungering neighbor, and me.

I told players at UCLA that we, as a team, are like a powerful car. Maybe a Bill Walton or Kareem Abdul-Jabbar or Michael Jordan is the big engine, but if one wheel is flat, we’re going no place. And if we have brand new tires but the lug nuts are missing, the wheels come off. What good is the powerful engine now? It’s no good at all.

There is a wonderful, almost mystical, law of nature that says three of the things we want most — happiness, freedom, and peace of mind — are always attained when we give them to others.

Does worrying about it, complaining about it, change it? Nope, it just wastes your time. And if you complain about it to other people, you’re also wasting their time. Nothing is gained by wasting all of that time.