The final link on the second tier of The Pyramid of Success is “Intentness.” The first and second tier is linked by “sincerity.” When we look below intentness, we see enthusiasm. When we combine all three, we see that we should remain diligent and persevere, but we must do so with an element of energy and sincerity that is sometimes hard to achieve when life is full of setbacks and adversities.
When we look at some of the great athletes of our time, we assume that the path to greatness was an easy one. Rarely do we see the hours of toil on the practice field or tears in working through an injury or the exhaustion from hours of travel, practice, game time and a life where a normal routine is often hard to find. Through the media we always seem more aware of the glamorous side of sports. We see the arms raised overhead in victory, the embrace with coach and family, the stoic face as they seem to effortlessly push themselves or their team to championships.
I am sure that if we did see the majority of our winning teams and athletes road to victory it would be marked with more setbacks than success. It is with reflection that we see how hard it is to remain true to the course when faced with adversity.
Wooden says that “the road to real achievement takes time, a long time, but you do not give up. You may have setbacks. You may have to start over. You may have to change your method. You may have to go around, or over, or under. You may have to back up and get another start. But you do not quit. You stay the course. To do that, you must have intentness.” Some of you have suffered through physical setbacks, but all of you have suffered through mental hurdles. How have you worked through those mental demons? Or, have you?
As a reminder to earlier discussions, Wooden began coaching basketball at UCLA in 1948. When he arrived there from Indiana he didn’t have a real gym, he was given a limited budget, but he was given the expectation to reach the top of the NCAA. Fifteen years later, the Bruins won their first National Championship. We don’t seem to have a lot of patience these days for teams who are expected to win. Can you imagine if Wooden had coached in today’s era? He probably would have been fired and the dynasty of winning 10 national championships in 12 years could have been lost.
Wooden makes reference to a couple of people he admires for their intentness through adversity. First, there was Lewis Alcindor- now known as Kareem Abdul Jabbar. Wooden said that despite his amazing skills and talent on the court, the press, the country and the life of a seven foot tall man worked against him. Kareem had to endure racism around the country and criticism from the media saying he was more of a “spectacle” than a person. Wooden insists Kareem was never rude and through it all remained in control and intent on helping his team win. During Kareem’s days a “no dunk” rule was put in place. Wooden believes that this rule and his intent to change to make himself better is what helped Kareem develop the deft skills and maneuvers around the basket that made him one of the best players of all time.
The other person that Wooden idolized was Abraham Lincoln who said, “Almost everyone can handle adversity. But, to test a person’s true character, give him power.”
Lincoln is known as one of America’s greatest presidents. Here is a brief summary of his career.
Failed in business 1831
Defeated for legislature 1832
Failed in business again 1833
Elected to legislature 1834
Sweetheart died 1835
Had nervous breakdown 1836
Defeated for speaker 1838
Defeated for elector 1840
Defeated for congressional nomination 1841
Elected to Congress 1846
Defeated for Congress 1848
Defeated for Senate 1855
Defeated for Vice President 1856
Defeated for Senate 1859
Elected President of the United States 1860
You each become more successful the more chances you give yourself at failure.
Don’t quit.
When we look at some of the great athletes of our time, we assume that the path to greatness was an easy one. Rarely do we see the hours of toil on the practice field or tears in working through an injury or the exhaustion from hours of travel, practice, game time and a life where a normal routine is often hard to find. Through the media we always seem more aware of the glamorous side of sports. We see the arms raised overhead in victory, the embrace with coach and family, the stoic face as they seem to effortlessly push themselves or their team to championships.
I am sure that if we did see the majority of our winning teams and athletes road to victory it would be marked with more setbacks than success. It is with reflection that we see how hard it is to remain true to the course when faced with adversity.
Wooden says that “the road to real achievement takes time, a long time, but you do not give up. You may have setbacks. You may have to start over. You may have to change your method. You may have to go around, or over, or under. You may have to back up and get another start. But you do not quit. You stay the course. To do that, you must have intentness.” Some of you have suffered through physical setbacks, but all of you have suffered through mental hurdles. How have you worked through those mental demons? Or, have you?
As a reminder to earlier discussions, Wooden began coaching basketball at UCLA in 1948. When he arrived there from Indiana he didn’t have a real gym, he was given a limited budget, but he was given the expectation to reach the top of the NCAA. Fifteen years later, the Bruins won their first National Championship. We don’t seem to have a lot of patience these days for teams who are expected to win. Can you imagine if Wooden had coached in today’s era? He probably would have been fired and the dynasty of winning 10 national championships in 12 years could have been lost.
Wooden makes reference to a couple of people he admires for their intentness through adversity. First, there was Lewis Alcindor- now known as Kareem Abdul Jabbar. Wooden said that despite his amazing skills and talent on the court, the press, the country and the life of a seven foot tall man worked against him. Kareem had to endure racism around the country and criticism from the media saying he was more of a “spectacle” than a person. Wooden insists Kareem was never rude and through it all remained in control and intent on helping his team win. During Kareem’s days a “no dunk” rule was put in place. Wooden believes that this rule and his intent to change to make himself better is what helped Kareem develop the deft skills and maneuvers around the basket that made him one of the best players of all time.
The other person that Wooden idolized was Abraham Lincoln who said, “Almost everyone can handle adversity. But, to test a person’s true character, give him power.”
Lincoln is known as one of America’s greatest presidents. Here is a brief summary of his career.
Failed in business 1831
Defeated for legislature 1832
Failed in business again 1833
Elected to legislature 1834
Sweetheart died 1835
Had nervous breakdown 1836
Defeated for speaker 1838
Defeated for elector 1840
Defeated for congressional nomination 1841
Elected to Congress 1846
Defeated for Congress 1848
Defeated for Senate 1855
Defeated for Vice President 1856
Defeated for Senate 1859
Elected President of the United States 1860
You each become more successful the more chances you give yourself at failure.
Don’t quit.
Written by Leisha Clendenen
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