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Don't beat yourself. That's the worst kind of defeat you'll ever suffer.

John Wooden

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John Wooden
Age: 99 †
Born: 1910
Born: October 14
Died: 2010
Died: May 26
Basketball Coach
Basketball Player
Military Officer
Hall
Indiana
John Robert Wooden
Beat
Suffer
Defeat
Beats
Worst
Suffering
Ever
Kind

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Be quick but do not hurry.
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I talked to the players and tried to make them aware of what was good and bad, but I didn't try to run their lives.
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Each of us has a huge capacity to learn and to achieve. Being ever alert makes the task of becoming all we are capable of becoming so much easier.
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Doing the best you are capable of doing is victory in itself, and less than that is defeat.
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Be more concerned with your character than your reputation.
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If we, as coaches, aren't teachers, we are nothing
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Seek opportunities to show you care. The smallest gestures often make the biggest difference.
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Too often, we just ask for help instead of really giving thanks for the many things that we've had and are so helpful to us that we did nothing to deserve, so we should give thanks each and every day and pray for guidance in helping us along the proper path.
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The athlete who says that something can't be done should never interrupt the one who's doing it
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I think that in any group activity - whether it be business, sports, or family - there has to be leadership or it wont be successful.
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Strive to accomplish the very best you are capable of. Nothing less than your best effort will suffice.
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The time to prepare isn't after you have been given the opportunity. It's long before that opportunity arises. Once the opportunity arrives, it's too late to prepare.
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I never let our players get satisfied, I never let our Coaches get satisfied, I was never satisfied. We can always do it better.
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Confidence - Poise and confidence are not possible unless you have prepared correctly. Failing to prepare is preparing to fail. Poise and confidence are a natural result of proper preparation.
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While you, the leader, can teach many things, character is not taught easily to adults who arrive at your desk lacking it. Be cautious about taking on reclamation projects regardless of the talent they may possess. Have the courage to make character count among the qualities you seek in others.
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The courageous struggle for a noble cause should be considered success itself.
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I think permitting the game to become too physical takes away a little bit of the beauty.
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Success travels in the company of very hard work. There is no trick, no easy way.
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There are little details in everything you do, and if you get away from any one of the little details, you're not teaching the thing as a whole. For it is little things which, together, make the whole. This, I think, is extremely important.
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It is difficult for young players to learn - because of the great emphasis on records - but, ideally, the joy and frustration of sport should come from the performance itself, not the score. While he is playing, the worst thing a player can think about in terms of concentration - and therefore of success - is losing. The next worst is winning.
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