Phil Jackson is arguably the most successful professional head coach ever, winning the most Championships among any coaches in any professional sports. He coached two of the NBA’s ‘super teams’ in Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls (6 rings) and Kobe Bryant’s & Shaq O’Neal’s Los Angeles Lakers (5 rings).
The book is a memoir written from Jackson’s experience during his unprecedented coaching career. He briefly talked about his upbringing but focused on each year of the 11 successful seasons he led his team to the championship and a few other years he did not quite reach that height, but providing his mindset and feelings throughout.
What are some of his coaching philosophy? Here are some aspects that are quite interesting to contemplate
- Zen mindset: Knowing as the ‘Zen Master’ he incorporated a lot of Buddhist teachings and the philosophy of bettering and being at peace with oneself. He believed in pragmatic, down to earth approach and how to live with compassion. He practiced meditation and forced his team to also be part of it as well
- Flexibility: He had no fixed way of coaching. He tried to understand his team members, one by one, and change the way he teached and strategized. With the Bulls, he was able to rely on Jordan’s, Rodman’s and Pippin’s ungodly defence and Jordan’s unparalleled offensive skill. However, With the Lakers, he relied a lot on Shaq’s bully-ball style
- Empathy: His coaching also went towards a personal level. He taught and challenged his team members differently and tried to find ways to bring the best in them. I like how he chose different books that he thought was relevant to that person and gave to each of his team members each year. This showed the level of commitment to know personally each player and the care to want to get them to be better
- Team first: He was able to manage the egos of each team and make sure they focus on team first. He prioritized team harmony. He’s known for his ‘Triangle Offence’ but actually had to spend time converting some of his superstars (see Bryant) to buy in to his system. He talked about reaching the highest level of tribal leadership (From ‘1. Life sucks’ -> ‘2. My life sucks’ -> ‘3. I’m great and you’re not’ -> ‘4. We are great’ -> ‘5. Life is great’). He wants people to grow as individual band then develop within the team structure
- Pacing: Jackson was the master of pacing his team through the season so the team can peak at the playoff and perform at their best when it matters. Understanding this rhythm is actually quite important since it’d be impossible to demand everyone to perform 100% all the time without burning them out.
Jackson could come off as aloof and enigmatic but his leadership style sure brought the best out of every team he coached. His retelling showed how he managed the feat and succeed in the brightest arenas of Basketball. This book also shows that you don’t have to be the loudest or the flashiest to be a good leader. There are other ways to lead successfully, as long as you lead with love and compassion and the desire to be the best.