Building Your Own Pyramid of Success, Part 2

Some people spend a lifetime talking about success.  Others go on to achieve it.  John Robert Wooden did both.  Considered one of the greatest NCAA basketball head coaches of all time, he won many games as both a player and an NCAA coach.  Inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a player in 1960 and as a coach in 1973 — the first person ever to be chosen in both categories – he was wildly successful in his career.  But he also went on to memorialize his strategies for success in a system he dubbed the Pyramid of Success and became a prolific speaker on how to be successful.  He not only talked a lot about success, but he also taught others how to be successful.  He was the epitome of “teach what you know.” 

Here is a summary of his 15 main values in his Pyramid of Success.

1. Be industrious.  Some say to work smart, but he advocated old-fashioned hard work. 
2. Be a friend as evidenced by mutual respect, esteem and devotion.
3. Be loyal, dedicated to yourself and everyone who depends on you.
4. Offer cooperation to all levels of coworkers.
5. Show enthusiasm and a positive attitude for what you do. 
6. Practice self-control and keep emotions under control.  Good judgment is key.
7. Be alert, constantly observing and being open to improvement.
8. Take initiative, making decisions and thinking alone.  Don’t be afraid to fail forward.
9. Be intent.  Set a realistic goals and then proceed with determination and persistence.
10. Stay in peak condition:  mental, moral and physical condition. All things in moderation.
11. Improve skills.  Know how to execute the fundamentals. Master different abilities.
12. Have team spirit.  Sacrifice personal interests for the welfare of all.
13. Be poised.  Be at ease in any situation.  Have self-respect and composure.
14. Be confident.  Respect without fear. Keep things in proper perspective.
15. Challenge yourself.  Be your best when your best is needed.

But those building blocks cannot be firmly held in place without mortar to affix them together. When looking at Wooden’s diagram for his Pyramid of Success, he included 10 additional elements along the sides of each level of the pyramid. These are what Coach Wooden called “the mortar.” These are inner values that contribute to a successful person.  On one side of the Pyramid is “The Force of the Human Spirit,” and on the other side is “The Strength of Human Character.” At the top is what is what he referred to as “The Pinnacle”.  Combined, these personal values help to unite and strengthen the 15 core values.

The Force of Human Spirit

1. Have ambition.  While this term usually is seen in a negative way, Wooden recommends ambition for noble goals.  Successful people know which goals are truly meaningful, and pursue them intently.
2. Be adaptable. Being flexible to challenges in any situation is a crucial principle of success.  Given the accelerating pace of change, this value is increasingly important. 
3. Be resourceful.  Use good judgment to make the most of your time, energy, and talent.
4. Bring a fight / persevere.  Put forth determined effort.  Nothing worthwhile in life is achieved without effort. Sacrifice your personal interests to pursue your dreams.

The Strength of Human Character

1. Be sincere.  Remain grounded in relationships to other people. Be authentic. To have a friend, be a friend.
2. Be honest in thoughts and deeds.  Act with honesty and humility.
3. Be reliable.  People are drawn to those in whom they can rely.  Be clear in what you will do and then do it.
4. Have integrity.  Do all things with genuinely good intentions. 

The Pinnacle

1. Have faith.  Coach Wooden saw having a spiritual practice as a vital key to success… not just professional success but in all areas of life. 
2. Be patient.  Good things take time.  It takes roughly a decade to become an overnight success. Any outstanding achievement takes time, and those who make it are those who continue to believe in their ability.

Applying the Pyramid of Success

The Pyramid of Success can be useful in a number of ways. Like John Wooden himself, not only can they be used as a point of reference for one’s own path of success, it offers a structure to teach others. Those in a leadership position can take their team through the Pyramid of Success and encourage them to reflect on how much they are embodying each of the behaviors. Have each person reflect on the building blocks, and how well they have integrated these qualities in their professional and personal life.  That, in and of itself, is an illuminating and inspiring exercise.  Have them work through each quality.   Ask these questions:

1. How well am I embodying this building block?
2. Which values do I need to do more / better?

No single value is a magic ingredient. But combined, these building blocks make success attainable.  The Pyramid of Success makes greatness attainable by all.  People want to succeed. They want to do great. By working on implementing the values in the Pyramid of Success together, a leader provides them with the opportunity do great. 

Ultimately, Wooden’s Pyramid of Success has absolutely nothing to do with winning or losing basketball games or even winning or losing in life.  What Wooden was saying is that the focus should not be on the scoreboard.  In a world that looks for instant gratification – where people get caught up in checking and managing short-term results – the focus here is on preparing well, working hard, and setting high goals. It is really about everyone being the best version of themselves that they can be in everything they do.  

Any who doubt that there is any real benefit in helping employees — individually and as a team — to do and be their best following a set of pre-prescribed values, and thereby increasing engagement and teamwork, should look at the numbers.  When companies improved employee engagement– one that is supported by defined executive values as a primary management strategy — they yielded clear and better results.  When Gallup analyzed the differences in performance among business/work units, the benefits of having an engaged, values-driven workforce was clear.  Companies where employees were engaged and doing their best and the team was in sync had notable differences in business outcomes:

• 81% decrease in absenteeism
• 58% decrease in patient safety incidents
• 18% decrease in turnover for high turnover organizations
• 43% decrease in turnover for low turnover organizations
• 28% decrease in shrinkage (theft)
• 64% decrease in safety incidents / accidents
• 41% decrease in quality defects
• 10% increase in customer loyalty/engagement
• 18% increase in productivity (sales)
• 23% increase in profitability

Wooden focused on values because good values attract good people.  Wins and losses are just a byproduct of the process.  But the process is what matters.  And the process is for each person to become the best individual possible and then for everyone in an organization, collectively, to become the best team possible.  As Wooden would say, “It takes 10 hands to make a basket.” While the reference is specific to basketball, it applies to every aspect of life.  No man is an island.  You need everyone doing their best to have a successful team.

Quote of the Week

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

© 2022, Keren Peters-Atkinson. All rights reserved.

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