Success within a person’s control
Wooden defined success through the peace of mind that comes from making the effort to do one’s best. Winning and succeeding could therefore come apart.
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FIND JOHN WOODEN 01 — 02
01Explore The Essential Wooden
02Explore The Pyramid of Success 
PEOPLE WORTH GETTING TO KNOW
John Wooden
A teacher of leadership, preparation, and character.
John Wooden's work reaches beyond basketball into teaching, leadership, and the habits of preparation. His books and Pyramid of Success offer several ways into that thinking.
A CLOSER LOOK
The story behind it.
A book, a pyramid, and a different way of thinking about success.
A philosophy in several forms
The Pyramid of Success organizes qualities into a structure; the TED talk gives the philosophy his voice; The Essential Wooden develops it through leadership and teaching.
START HERE
Official Pyramid of Success (opens in a new tab)Source for John Wooden: Official Pyramid of Success.
A GOOD PLACE TO BEGIN
If you only explore two things.
Book
The Essential Wooden
John Wooden & Steve Jamison
A Lifetime of Lessons on Leaders and Leadership. A collection of Wooden's thinking about leading people, preparing a team, and sustaining standards.
Explore the book →Framework
The Pyramid of Success
A picture worth spending time with
Wooden organizes qualities of success into a visual framework. Explore the original diagram and the explanations on the official site.
Explore the idea →FOLLOW YOUR CURIOSITY
More worth your time.
Talk
The difference between winning and succeeding
Hear Wooden describe success in his own voice.
Explore this talk →Sources & credits
Introductions are grounded in the sources below. Collection notes and reading prompts provide an editorial starting point; personal opinions are identified in the collection’s content.