BIGG Success Logo boxed

John Wooden’s Pyramid Of Success

By Bigg Success Staff
November, 25 2007

Timeless Principles

Coach John Wooden's Pyramid of Success book cover

On a previous post, in The BIGG Success Show, we discussed definitions of success. We said that our favorite definition is by John Wooden. He was named ESPN’s coach of the twentieth century. Believe it or not, we think that honor doesn’t begin to fully recognize his accomplishments:

  • 88 consecutive wins (the longest winning streak in college basketball)
  • 10 NCAA championships, including seven in a row (the all-time record)
  • 38 consecutive NCAA tournament victories
  • 4 undefeated full seasons

Can you say “best coach ever”? No offense to all the great coaches, but the man they called The Wizard of Westwood sets the bar very high.

You don’t have to be a basketball fan, or even a sports fan in general, to benefit from Coach John Wooden’s wisdom. You see, he has written extensively on success and leadership. We recommend that you acquaint yourself with his books, including, They Call Me Coach, which we discussed in the show referenced above. It’s a great book, full of inspiration and great quotes.

You can see John Wooden’s Pyramid of Success directly on his site. We also have a series where we discuss each one. His building blocks for success are:

  • Industriousness
  • Enthusiasm
  • Friendship
  • Loyalty
  • Cooperation
  • Self-control
  • Alertness
  • Initiative
  • Intentness
  • Condition
  • Skill
  • Team Spirit
  • Poise
  • Confidence
  • Competitive Greatness

What Wooden calls his mortar blocks are:

  • Ambition
  • Sincerity
  • Adaptability
  • Honesty
  • Resourcefulness
  • Reliability
  • Fight
  • Integrity
  • Patience
  • Faith

All of these blocks lead to the apex, success. If you like what you see, you can purchase Coach Wooden’s Pyramid of Success: Building Blocks for a Better Life,  written with Jay Carty.

A full chapter is devoted to each of these blocks in this wonderful book. If you’re trying to put your life together, this book will help. If you’re striving for the next level of success, you’ll find answers. If you’re going through a life transition, you’ll be inspired.

Before you buy it, we want to make sure you know that there is a spiritual element to this particular book. What we call spiritual, you may call religious (Christianity specifically). Whether that knowledge makes you more or less likely to check out this book is up to you.

We believe that you’ll benefit greatly from John Wooden’s wisdom. That’s why we highly recommend these books. For that matter, you can’t go wrong with any book Coach Wooden writes.