eleven-rings

Make no mistake, this is a basketball book.  It's a book about the New York Knicks of the 60's and 70's.  It's a book about the Chicago Bulls of the 80's and 90's.  It's a book about the Los Angeles Lakers of the 00's.

This is a book about leadership.  About taking an ever-changing collection of well-compensated individuals and enabling them to gel as a team.  Over 20 seasons as a head coach in the NBA, Phil Jackson's teams attained 11 championships—Eleven Rings!

This is a book about spirituality.  He borrows from native American culture, The Lakota and The Sioux, in particular.  He borrows from Zen Buddhism.  He incorporates mindful meditation and rituals into his team development philosophy.  Jackson is often referred to as The Zen Master.

As a leader Jackson is able to admit his weaknesses—sometimes aloof and enigmatic.  As a leader he surrounds himself with the strongest, most knowledgeable coaching staff and then delegates authority as much as possible to nurture the leadership skills in others.

Jackson quotes Casey Stengel on how to develop team chemistry:<blockquote>"The secret of managing is to keep the guys who hate you away from the guys who are undecided."</blockquote>At the core, this book is about mindfulness, about being present in the moment as much as possible, not weighed down by thoughts of the past or the future.  What I learned most from The Zen Master is the value of incorporating mindfulness into this journey we call life.

Access Gene Babon's reviews of books on <strong>Business Leadership</strong> and <strong>Business Strategy</strong> at <strong><a href="https://www.pinterest.com/webapprentices/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a>.</strong>