John Wooden Quotes

The worst thing about new books is that they keep us from reading the old ones.

Failure is not fatal, but failure to change might be.

Winning takes talent, to repeat takes character.

In the end, it’s about the teaching, and what I always loved about coaching was the practices. Not the games, not the tournaments, not the alumni stuff. But teaching the players during practice was what coaching was all about to me.

Just try to be the best you can be; never cease trying to be the best you can be. That’s in your power.

Remember this, the choices you make in life, make you.

You can’t live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you.

I met Tiger Woods when he was younger. He’s amazing – obviously technically, but his mental approach, too. He’s really something.

A mistake is valuable if you do four things with it: recognize it, admit it, learn from it, forget it

No one can really honestly be the very best, no one.

You can do more good by being good than any other way.

Don’t measure yourself by what you have accomplished, but by what you should have accomplished with your ability.

Defense is a definite part of the game, and a great part of defense is learning to play it without fouling.

There’s as much crookedness as you want to find. There was something Abraham Lincoln said – he’d rather trust and be disappointed than distrust and be miserable all the time. Maybe I trusted too much.

Consider the rights of others before your own feelings, and the feelings of others before your own rights.

Young people need models, not critics.

Be prepared and be honest.