Swensday Stuff

You May Do Your Best Teaching After You Retire
Swen Nater

I figure Coach Wooden coached a few hundred boys in his day and we learned a lot on and off the court. But thousands have learned from Coach after his retirement, mostly by conversation in his little Encino condominium. Players, coaches, fans, sportswriters, and admirers have learned lessons that, in their words, “changed their lives.” Coach Wooden may have done his most important teaching after he left UCLA.

“A single conversation with a wise man is worth ten years of study,” Chinese Proverb

While you’re teaching, students know you are a good teacher. But many years later, when they are older and become parents, they often realize just how good you were. When they come back to ask questions, it’s more like a grandparent/grandchild relationship than a teacher/student. At that time, students are even more receptive to what the wise teacher has to say.

 “When the student is ready, the master appears.” Buddhist Proverb

But those that come to ask questions about Xs and Os may be in for a shocking surprise. The wise coach knows, teaching success has little to do with the system used. So when students and others ask tactical questions, they will receive answers related to leadership, teaching, relationships, discipline, teamwork, and mental conditioning.  This is what Coach Wooden did in his Encino condominium. And, when someone asked a question, he often provided the perfect quote, axiom, or poem to drive home the truths he shared.

When I coached college, I paid him a visit to ask him about the contents of his book, Practical Modern Basketball. After about ten minutes of my questions about the High-Post Offense, he stopped me and said, “Swen. The most important things about coaching are found in the beginning of the book, before the Offense and Defense are covered.” When I opened the book, I learned that section had to do with planning, teaching, and organization.

If we do a good job teaching, some day, our players and others will come to us asking questions. Like me, some may want to know about the Xs and Os. But you and I know the real reasons for success, don’t we? Let’s get prepared by studying those areas, not just while we are teaching but also after, just like Coach Wooden did. In fact, it’s in retirement we have the time to look at the important things and put it all together. If we do, like Coach, we’ll do our best job of teaching after we retire.

“You won’t know what kind of teacher you were until twenty years after the fact.”