During his storied career as head coach of the Chicago Bulls
and Los Angeles Lakers, Phil Jackson won more championships
than any coach in the history of professional sports. Even
more important, he succeeded in never wavering from coaching
his way, from a place of deep values. Jackson was tagged as
the “Zen master” half in jest by sportswriters, but the
nickname speaks to an important truth: this is a coach who
inspired, not goaded; who led by awakening and challenging
the better angels of his players’ nature, not their egos,
fear, or greed.
This is the story of a preacher’s kid from North Dakota who
grew up to be one of the most innovative leaders of our time.
In his quest to reinvent himself, Jackson explored everything
from humanistic psychology and Native American philosophy to
Zen meditation. In the process, he developed a new approach
to leadership based on freedom, authenticity, and selfless
teamwork that turned the hypercompetitive world of
professional sports on its head.
In
Eleven Rings, Jackson candidly describes how he:
- Learned the secrets of mindfulness and team chemistry
while playing for the champion New York Knicks in the 1970s
- Managed Michael Jordan, the greatest player in the
world, and got him to embrace selflessness, even if it
meant losing a scoring title
- Forged successful teams out of players of varying
abilities by getting them to trust one another and perform
in sync
- Inspired Dennis Rodman and other “uncoachable”
personalities to devote themselves to something larger than
themselves
- Transformed Kobe Bryant from a rebellious teenager into
a mature leader of a championship team.
Eleven times, Jackson led his teams to the ultimate
goal: the NBA championship—six times with the Chicago Bulls
and five times with the Los Angeles Lakers. We all know the
legendary stars on those teams, or think we do. What
Eleven Rings shows us, however, is that when it comes
to the most important lessons, we don’t know very much at
all. This book is full of revelations: about fascinating
personalities and their drive to win; about the wellsprings
of motivation and competition at the highest levels; and
about what it takes to bring out the best in ourselves and
others.