EDITOR’S NOTE

Steve Guglielmo is GAWDA Media’s Editor-in-Chief. He has more than a decade of experience working with industrial associations. He can be reached at steveg@gawdamedia.com.

The Pyramid of Success

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO

It’s so fitting that the opening tailgate of this year’s Spring Management Conference will take place at the NCAA Hall of Champions. With this year’s theme of “Leaders Mentoring Leaders,” I can’t think of any more appropriate place for GAWDA to gather.

I’ve always been much more of a professional sports fan, than a college sports fan, personally. I think part of that is because I grew up in the Northeast where college football isn’t king, like it is in the South. It’s hard to get up every Saturday to cheer on 5-7 Syracuse, unlike what Bob Ewing gets to experience down in Death Valley. But even though I’m more of a professional sports fan, I’ve always had the utmost respect for the job that college coaches do. Unlike in the pros, college coaches are truly tasked with molding young men and women. There is probably nobody in the world more confident but less prepared for success than a freshman Division 1 athlete. One of the best coaches of all-time was UCLA’s John Wooden. Wooden won 10 national championships at UCLA and coached some of the greatest basketball players of all time. But what he’s most famous for, arguably, is his “Pyramid of Success.”

Even though he had some of the most dominant players in history, including Kareem AbdulJabbar, who they literally had to change the rules to slow down, “talent” is only in the third level of the pyramid. For those unfamiliar, the pyramid is made up of the following blocks and levels.

The Foundation: industriousness (one of the cornerstones); friendship, loyalty, cooperation, enthusiasm (the other cornerstone)

The Second Tier: self-control, alertness, initiative, intentness

The Heart of the Pyramid: condition, skill, team spirit

Nearing the Peak: poise, confidence

The Pinnacle: competitive greatness

I think this year’s theme of Leaders Mentoring Leaders couldn’t possibly come at a better time for industry. Bob said it best in his column on page 06, “Perhaps it’s true that there are ‘born leaders,’ but I wouldn’t bet your business on finding enough of them.”

Leaders, by and large, are made, not born. And GAWDA’s conventions are a great place to help grow and mold the next generation of leadership. As the Wizard of Westwood said, “Success is never final, failure is never fatal, and it’s courage that counts.” Your business may be humming now, but it can all come crumbling down with the next generation. Likewise, they may make mistakes as they learn along the way. But, as Bob said, “Leaders are developed under fire. Only when they feel the pinch of their inexperience will they seek true coaching. If they are properly supported, and if their potential is real, they will grow.”

I look forward to seeing everybody in Indianapolis as we gather together in the shadow of some of the great coaches and athletes in our history. May they set the tone for our meeting and be an example for our association.

Photo: Associated Students, University of California, Los Angeles - "UCLA: Southern Campus: 1960", https://archive. org/details/southerncampus1960univ