Go find your broom

I love everything I’ve ever read by or about John Wooden on leadership. Today I saw this quote and couldn’t help but bring it to you.

John Wooden coached basketball at UCLA for a living, but his calling was to impact people, and with all those national championships, guess what he was found doing in the middle of the week? Going into the cupboard, grabbing a broom and sweeping his own gym floor. You want to make an impact? Find your broom. Every day of your life, you find your broom. You grow your influence that way. That way, you’re attracting people so that you can impact them.

Rick Rigsby said it about Wooden, and I hope someone says it about everyone striving to lead well.

The formula is sound: one leads to the next. If you want impact, start by serving people. This will attract others. That gives you influence. And influence leads to impact.

So never forget this sequence:

service > attraction > influence > impact

And go find your broom.