Here was the situation that Joseph faced. He had just married Mary, and he discovers she is pregnant and not by him. In those days, such a discovery would lead to Mary and her families public humiliation at the very least and possibly death in the most terrible way -- stoning. However, Joseph "being a righteous man" (Matthew 1:19) and not wanting to disgrace Mary decides to privately divorce her. Joseph's righteousness saves Mary and thus Jesus and so an act of love or kindness or pity or selflessness (depending on your interpretation) to a women in a tough spot one could argue changes human history.
Just in case you forgot what happens next, Joseph does not divorce Mary because an angel comes to him in a dream and fills him in on what was going to happen next. Joseph's willingness to sacrifice (one might say surrender) his desires as a new husband for the good of the women he loves and an unknown child he will act as father to, makes him the ultimate stand up guy to me.
Admittedly, this is a bit of an oversimplification of the Bible story, but it is at the core of what I love about Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success by Phil Jackson and Hugh Delehanty. In an era where celebrity is king, in a league that seems to worship individual stars, Phil Jackson was able to get guys like Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, Shaquille O'Neil, Kobe Bryant and others to put aside their selfish interests and come together for 11 championship seasons and play for each other -- play "righteous basketball."
How Jackson accomplishes this I believe is worth reading and re-reading by coaches at all levels in any sport and probably anyone whose responsibilities include managing people. It is truly a story of the art of coaching; of how to bring talents together to accomplish a common vision. This is summed up in the last line of the book "the soul of success is surrendering to what is."
A lot has been made of the myth of Phil Jackson as the Zen master. What was interesting to read was there is so much more to the success of his teams than just the influence of Zen Buddhism. Jackson's gifts seem to me to start with an understanding that each of his players is different and needs a different approach to motivate, engage or approach. One of the most endearing qualities of his coaching that I learned was his practice of choosing books for his players to read that he hoped in some way would influence them. Here are some of the books he mentions, and the players he suggests them to.
Song of Solomon -- Michael Jordan
Things Fall Apart -- Bill Cartwright
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance -- John Paxson
The Ways of White Folks -- Scottie Pippen
Joshua: A Parable for Today -- Horace Grant
Zen Mind, Beginners Mind -- B.J. Armstrong
Way of the Peaceful Warrior -- Craig Hodges
On the Road -- Will Perdue
Beavis and Butt-Head: This Book Sucks -- Stacey King
Corelli's Mandolin -- Kobe Bryant
Sidhartha -- Shaquille O'Neil
Beyond the understanding of the differences of his players is Jackson's understanding of the delicate balance between freedom and structure. Jackson is no fan of rules and does away with team curfews and shows little interest in the behavior of his players during their private time. But there is a lot of discussion throughout the book of the benefits of the triangle offense which creates much more structure than many professional basketball teams have. A common theme in both the Chicago Bulls and the Los Angeles Lakers success is Jackson's and Tex Winter's (designer of the triangle offense) struggles to get the teams' stars -- primarily Michael Jordan in the Bulls case and Kobe Bryant in the Lakers case -- to surrender some of their ability to produce offensively in order to share opportunities with others on the team. Jordan and Bryant are two of the NBA's all time greats, but once they ultimately agree to share the ball more with teammates based on the structure of the offense they are able to transcend NBA stardom demonstrated by their teams multiple championships -- the Bulls 6 and the Lakers 5.
Where Jackson's Zen influence becomes most noticeable to me is in his ability to manage turmoil. One should not underestimate how difficult strong personalities like Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O'Neil, and Dennis Rodman can be. Especially at a time of constant public scrutiny the journey to 11 rings is filled with problems. The book reminded me of many turmoils that I had forgotten about. Jackson manages them in a variety of ways, but the Zen philosophy of chop wood, carry water resonated most. That is life circumstances are constantly changing. It is in the daily -- some might say mundane -- duties of life that are where true meaning can be found. Thus do not let the highs and lows of life distract you from your daily duties.
Jackson is not a saint. He had a number of mess ups in managing his players. It took seven years for him to overcome one poor statement he made to the press about Kobe Bryant. He welcomed, though, disagreement, debate and questioning of his players as he believed it indicated engagement. But what is instructional to me is that Phil Jackson's coaching methods were the sum of his years of experience -- the son of two pentecostal ministers, lucky to have had two future NBA coaches as his college coaches, influenced considerably by Knicks coach Red Holzman, embracing the best intentions of the counterculture sixties and seventies, open to the ideas of Tex Winter, able to appreciate the talents of often maligned Jerry Krause, humble enough to accept his destiny when he is undermined after winning three championships in LA. He was ultimately able to pull on all of this experience to overcome significant obstacles and lead the Lakers to his final two championships -- his tenth and eleventh rings.
Each of the 22 chapters starts with a thematic quote that range from Kierkgaard to Jobs demonstrating his breadth of interests. Each of them has tremendous meaning to certain seasons of his coaching. The book is organized in a chronological fashion but is filled with explanatory diversions which allow Jackson to expand on his philosophy of coaching and management.
Ultimately, this is a saga of how Jackson helped people with diverse interests, desires and personalities trust one another to accomplish a common vision. It once again demonstrates that sport success is not just about talent but about character. Like the New Testament Joseph story, Jackson's Eleven Rings reminds me that often through the surrender of what one desires for what is, a greater achievement than one can imagine might be possible. Coaches and all those interested in sports should not overlook or dismiss Jackson's legacy. Eleven Rings is a MUST READ!
Each of the 22 chapters starts with a thematic quote that range from Kierkgaard to Jobs demonstrating his breadth of interests. Each of them has tremendous meaning to certain seasons of his coaching. The book is organized in a chronological fashion but is filled with explanatory diversions which allow Jackson to expand on his philosophy of coaching and management.
Ultimately, this is a saga of how Jackson helped people with diverse interests, desires and personalities trust one another to accomplish a common vision. It once again demonstrates that sport success is not just about talent but about character. Like the New Testament Joseph story, Jackson's Eleven Rings reminds me that often through the surrender of what one desires for what is, a greater achievement than one can imagine might be possible. Coaches and all those interested in sports should not overlook or dismiss Jackson's legacy. Eleven Rings is a MUST READ!
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