Imagination
IMAGINATION allows us to escape the predictable. Artists, scientists [engineers], and poets use the power of imagination every day. For those of us who found it in playing the game [basketball], it has shaped our joy in countless ways. It has enriched us to feel the thrill of fresh creation. It has put us in touch with what most makes us human. Above all it enables us to see beyond the moment – to transcend our circumstances, however dire they appear – and to reply to the common wisdom that says we cannot soar by saying, “Just watch!”
When you inspire others to do the same, that’s leadership. Leadership means getting people to think, believe, see, and do what they might not have without you. It means possessing the vision to set the right goal and the decisiveness to pursue it single-mindedly. It means being aware of the fears and anxieties felt by those you lead even as you urge them to overcome those fears. It can appear in a speech before thousands of people or in a dialogue with one person – or by example.
The great leaders in basketball have never been afraid of change, and they have led from the strength of their own convictions. And above all, they have brought out the best in the people they led.
BILL BRADLEY
Values of the Game
Artisan
