While going through my twice-yearly ritual of backing up my computer files, I came across a folder filled with quotes from the late John Wooden.

Wooden, you may know, was the legendary college basketball coach at UCLA who coached 10 national championship teams. He became known for sharing inspiring leadership and business lessons throughout his career.

Among Coach Wooden’s inspiring quotes, I found these gems that definitely apply to business:

“Never mistake activity for achievement.” 

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

 “If you’re not making mistakes, then you’re not doing anything.” 

 “Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.”

“I worry that business leaders are more interested in material gain than they are in having the patience to build up a strong organization, and a strong organization starts with caring for their people.”

 In my experience, the most effective leaders have developed exceptional coaching skills—giving them the ability to inspire, empower, and engage. As Wooden said:

“A coach is someone who can give correction without causing resentment.”

“Teaching players during practices was what coaching was all about to me.” 

Leadership Tip
Develop exceptional coaching skills to improve your leadership ability.

It’s easy to tell people what to do and how to do it. Strong leaders inspire, empower, and engage employees through the practice of coaching — and succeed in retaining the best ones!

Whether you’re running the company or working toward that goal, you’ll find plenty of opportunities to learn by taking advantage of key coaching moments. To pick up a few techniques for developing your own coaching skills, read my article on Forbes here.