The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Episode #281: George Raveling – Eight Decades Of Wisdom: From Dr. Martin Luther King To Michael Jordan

Show Notes:

  • Commonalities of sustaining excellence:
    • Growth mindset
    • Immense curiosity
    • High level of self awareness — “It starts within”
    • Great vision
    • Most important = “they execute”
  • Relationship lessons learned over eight decades – “Be a giver, not a taker. Try to genuinely help people.”
    • Develop trust, respect, and care for others — “It’s all about love.  Don’t keep score.  Do the right thing, be kind, but don’t keep score or trade favors.  That’s not how it works.”
  • Standing next to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr for the “I Have A Dream” speech
    • Asking Dr. King for the speech after he finished (and getting it… still has it!)
    • Why he won’t sell of try to profit from the speech despite it being worth millions
    • The power of “showing up early” and “asking for what you want”
  • Why Coach reads so much — “The slave owners used to hide money in books because they knew slaves would never look in the books because they couldn’t read.” — “If someone can control my mind, they can control my body.  I will not let that happen.  Books are my mistress.”
  • Information = knowledge = wisdom = opportunity = growth = success
  • The importance of his upbringing – His dad died when he was 9, his mom was institutionalized when he was 13. He was raised by his grandmother and nuns.
    • “My grandmother taught me to be curious.  She taught me to ask.  She taught me good manners.  She taught me humility. She taught me to help people.  She was the #metoo movement before the #metoo movement”
  • How basketball was the “greatest vehicle for transformation in my life.”
    • Earned scholarship to Villanova — When George was first offered a scholarship, he didn’t know what that meant.
    • Going from player to coach and why he was suited to be a great coach
    • Becoming the first African American head coach of the Pac 8 (Pac 12)
  • The mindset of thinking of yourself as an educator/teacher
  • George is a voracious reader and marks up each and every page of the books he likes (I saw first hand and it’s amazing)
  • The importance for older people to have 4-5 younger mentors in their life.  Ryan Holiday plays this role for Coach.
  • The importance of self leadership – “You must take care of yourself before trying to lead others”
  • Working at Nike for Phil Knight — Helping sign Michael Jordan away from Adidas
  • Focus on being a great decision maker and seeking out growth opportunities
  • Why you don’t need a title to be an effective leader
  • In order to be promoted, focus on being incredibly great at what you’re doing right now
  • The 10 realities of life Coach Raveling values most at age 81
  • Pushing Coach to write a book about living a great life — Tweet him to do this!
  • Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea
  • Use the “Get To Know You Document

Leave A Comment