Sports can teach some of life’s greatest lessons like how to
be a good teammate and how to prepare for success. One of the greatest teachers
of these lessons was Coach John Wooden. In
his book, “Wooden,” he shares life lessons from on and off the court. The
wisdom in Wooden’s words can be applied to all areas of life – especially business
leadership. He recently sat down with Business2Community to share his pearls of
leadership
wisdom.
”Apply yourself
everyday to just becoming a little bit better.”
Marcus Sheridan, author of The Sales Lion blog
and Inbound and Content Marketing Made Easy, exemplifies this
principle, according to Wooden. Sheridan’s journey is unique. He started out
selling pools, but everything changed when he started to apply the
inbound marketing methodology. The work that he invested into the online
marketing tactics transformed their business into one of the largest companies
of its kind in the world.
“Without proper
self-evaluation, failure is inevitable.”
Dan Zarrella, Social Media Scientist at Hubspot, provides advice
for marketers, backed with statistics on everything from words to use on your
landing page to the best time to send a tweet. So, consider taking time each
month to evaluate which of your methods are working and which aren’t working as
a self-evaluation based on numbers could help you take your game to the next
level.
“Mix idealism with
realism and add hard work.”
Glen from ViperChill showcases this attitude in
the way he approaches his businesses, said Wooden. Glen sets goals each month
for himself and for his businesses. When you read his blog posts you can see
that Glen isn’t afraid to put in the work that is required for success. By
defining what he wants to accomplish each month, Glen can decide how he is
going to spend his time.
”You can make
mistakes, but you’re not a failure until you start blaming others for those
mistakes.”
Darren Rowse, founder of ProBlogger, accidently emailed
over one million people with an email that was meant for a few thousand,
causing people to unsubscribe and send complaint emails. So, the company drafted
an apology email to its users. This quick and honest response did more in the
end to improve their relationship with the readers.
”While you can’t
control what happens to you, you can control how you react.”
Gary Vaynerchuck, author of Crush It! and The
Thank You Economy, is a passionate guy, according to Wooden. One thing that
makes him stand out from the rest is his desire to get to know real people.
When someone leaves a negative review on Amazon, he responds by asking to talk
about their experience.
”People want to
believe you are sincerely interested in them as person. Not just for what they
can do for you.”
Mark Schaefer is a recognized speaker and marketing
consultant. Wooden says he demonstrates his sincere interest in people through
the way he communicates on Twitter, the way he writes on his blog, and the way
he interacts with people in real life. Social media channels provide companies
with an opportunity to engage and he showcases this brilliantly.
“When you improve a
little each day, eventually big things occur.”
Brian Moran was trying to build an online
baseball training business on the side. After months of trial and error, Brian found something that worked for his
business: Facebook. Soon Brian had built up a following of over 10,000 Facebook
fans. Next, he decided to start Get 10,000 Fans, a business dedicated to
sharing his formula for converting Facebook fans to customers. Today, Get
10,000 Fans is one of the largest Facebook marketing brands on the Internet.
“We must be
challenged to improve, and adversity is the challenger.”
Pat Flynn’s honest approach to teaching passive income
techniques is the cornerstone of his brand. One of the essential elements in
his “be everywhere” strategy is the Smart Passive Income podcast. When you
look at the success he has experienced in a short amount of time, you realize
that he is a guy who has risen against odds, according to Wooden.
”When the opportunity
arises, it is too late to prepare.”
During the power outage during Super Bowl XLVII, people were
all over Twitter asking questions about when the lights would come back on. The
marketing team at Oreo recognized that there was an opportunity to jump into
the conversation. They put together an image and sent the tweet, ending up with over
16,000 retweets and a massive amount of new followers.
”Focus all your
effort on what is in your power to control.”
According to Wooden, Lewis Howes was attempting to make a
career in football when an injury brought his dreams to a halt. In a
time when a lot of people would have just quit, Howes focused on what he could
control. He set himself to becoming an expert of LinkedIn networking. Today,
Lewis is considered a thought leader in sports networking and webinar marketing.
“A leader’s most
powerful ally is his or her own example.”
Scott Monty, the Head of Social Media for Ford Motor
Company, epitomizes this philosophy. Scott is viewed as a thought leader among the
social space as his philosophy of “letting the customer tell your story” has
been Ford’s social media strategy. “Dialogue with people in a way they can
understand, not corporate-speak,” Monty said.
“Progress comes
slowly but steadily if you are patient and prepare diligently.”
Jason Fried and David Hansson are the founders of software
company 37signals. Fried and Hansson started off as a design agency that was
seeking a collaborative project management solution that could manage
their international team. When they couldn’t find anything that fit their
needs, they designed their own. They have proven to keep their products simple,
not being afraid to lose customers who have out grown their solution.
”Balance means
keeping things in proper perspective.”
Anne Deeter Gallaher, CEO of Deeter Gallaher Group is an on-ramper who has never lets the odds against
her dictate her future. Anne was a stay-at-home mother before becoming an entrepreneur.
Anne says, “My experiences at
home as CEO of family and volunteer prepared me for the business world in many
ways. Have you ever tried to get three, very energetic young boys to bed on
time? That demands serious negotiating skills – and a healthy dose of
patience and clear communications!”
“Act quickly, but
don’t hurry.”
FedEx displayed for us all how to exemplify this truth in
reaction to a YouTube video of one of its deliverymen throwing a new computer
monitor over a fence. In a situation that would have people scrambling, FedEx
took to their Twitter account. It reassured people that they take pride in the
quality of their service and that this type of behavior from one of their
employees.
”If you spend too
much time learning the tricks of the trade, you may not learn the trade.”
Eric Ries, author of The Lean Startup, has pioneered
the idea of a minimal viable product. You can’t sit back and prepare
forever, it is better to launch and learn than to not launch at all! It
can be tempting to spend all of one’s time “learning up” to do something great,
according to wooden. One trait that unites all of the great business leaders is
their willingness to take action.
