John or Bobby?
As a coach for several decades in sports ranging from rugby, cricket and softball to basketball, cycling and tennis, I have been the cause of a lot of pain in my athletes. (And no Kyle not just a pain in the ass.) Not all pain is good, in fact, pain generally is a sign that one should stop doing whatever it is that
is causing the pain. It’s a body’s way of informing that all is not right. However, there are certain types of pain that are necessary if one is to grow faster, stronger, quicker, more agile, fully prepared for the rigors of athletic competition. Coaches, athletes and trainers have to be able to distinguish the types of pain; one that signals the body is getting stronger from one that signals the body is breaking down.
Samuel Chand suggests in his book, Leadership Pain, that all leaders experience pain and that raising one’s pain threshold is necessary to grow as a leader. In this premise he is referring to the type of pain that good coaches put their athletes through in pre-season conditioning or weight training. This type of pain should not be avoided and in raising the pain threshold leaders will grow stronger and gain greater ability to lead.[1]
All of this is true, but one must also be alert to those times that the pain being experienced is a sign to stop before serious damage is done. It is certainly valid that “one’s inability or unwillingness to face pain will limit one’s progress”,[2] but it should also be remembered that not all pain is growth.
Bobby Knight coached the Indiana University basketball team to 3 NCAA National Championships 
and amassed 902 Division 1 wins during the course of his career, ranking him third currently on the all-time wins list.[3] Yet, he was known for his extreme outbursts of rage and causing psychological damage in his players. These eventually became too frequent and extreme to ignore and he was dismissed from his head coaching position in 2000. The pain that he both caused in his players and experienced as a result of his firing, was a direct result of his imbalance. Sometimes the pain threshold is there for a purpose and part of God’s design to make us alert to imbalances in our lives.
John Wooden on the other hand won 10 NCAA basketball titles in 12 years with the UCLA Bruins.[4] He however was revered by his players as a leader who understood how to push his players to the
brink and drawing them together as a team to be better than they were as individuals. His players looked to him as a father figure, a man of genuine character, and one who truly cared more about his athletes than he did about his own coaching record.
While the text presented multiple scenarios about specific leaders needing to make difficult decisions in dismissing co-workers and friends not ready or capable of leading at the next level there is evident an underlying assumption that bigger is better, that numeric growth is a sign of God’s blessing and confirmation that people are growing in their leadership capabilities. I look at the life of Moses and wonder whether or not he ever fully developed as a leader in that regard. He seems to me to represent and unwilling leader thrust into a role who consistently wants to abdicate his God-given responsibilities. When we raise up standards of leadership such as power, influence, numeric growth as testament to God’s blessing we risk causing irrevocable damage to others in service to our own ego.
This text was a challenge for me, as have been several of the others this semester, because I have been in a season of extreme pain and yet I am not sure that it is healthy nor am I convinced that it has anything to do with leadership. While I do maintain several leadership positions currently, the pain being experienced does not seem to be related to these roles. Chand suggests that; “If you’re leading, you’re bleeding” but, just because you are bleeding does not mean you are leading.
In a doctoral program that is designed to prepare students in their ability to lead how should one utilize the text by Chand? In my unrefined reflections in the midst of personal anguish, with extreme 
caution, constant prayers for the wisdom of Solomon, and strong relationships of accountability from outside one’s position of leadership. Yes, certainly there is no growth without pain and we should all be alert to our tendencies to avoid this type of pain. But, we should also be cautious of celebrating pain for its own sake and hurting people because we think it represents part of the necessary process of growth. A wise coach will push her/his athletes toward the brink, then allow them to recover sufficiently that they may become a more integral part of the team or recognize in themselves a desire to move on.
May we all grow in our leadership ability, press into the pain that grows us while being certain to instill confidence, character, and Godliness in those we are leading as well as those with whom we are leading. I prefer the John Wooden model.
[1] Chand, Samuel R. Leadership Pain: The Classroom for Growth. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2015. P. 21
[2] Borrett, Mark. “LEADERSHIP PAIN: THE CLASSROOM FOR GROWTH.” Andrews University JACL – Journal of Applied Christian Leadership. Accessed April 12, 2018. http://aujacl.com/the-quick-brown-fox-jumps-over-a-lazy-dog/.
[3] “Bob Knight.” Wikipedia. April 11, 2018. Accessed April 12, 2018. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Knight.
[4] “John Wooden.” Wikipedia. April 11, 2018. Accessed April 12, 2018. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wooden.
About the Author
Dan Kreiss
Former director of the Youth Ministry program at King University in Bristol, TN and Dean of the School of Missions. I have worked in youth ministry my entire life most of that time in New Zealand before becoming faculty at King. I love helping people recognize themselves as children of God and helping them engage with the world in all its diversity. I am particularly passionate about encouraging the church to reflect the diversity found in their surrounding community in regard to age, gender, ethnicity, education, economic status, etc. I am a husband, father of 4, graduate of Emmanuel Christian Seminary, an avid cyclist and fly-fisherman still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up.7 responses to “John or Bobby?”
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Well done coach! I read so much of the highlights of John Wooden, and he is so idolized in the sports world, I rarely see any of the horror stories about him. I wonder what were his episodes of great pain, and how he handled them. Of course with love and dignity and not rage and explosion, but I’d like to hear more than just the highlights and stats.
On the flipside, do you know how Bobby Knight responded to the pain of being fired?
Hi Dan,
Loved reading about Bobby Knight and John Wooden. This is my kind of reading! I am referencing John Wooden in my Dissertation research. I love that guy. I was able to go see Indiana play when Bobby Knight was coaching. Whew! I cringed for the moms who were watching their sons on his team…
Thanks most of all for expressing your pain in this difficult season. I feel your pain and we are with you my Brother!
Dan,
My heart goes out to you, bro, in your extreme pain. I’m glad you’re with us on this journey, and hope you know we are here with and for you.
You said, “When we raise up standards of leadership such as power, influence, numeric growth as testament to God’s blessing we risk causing irrevocable damage to others in service to our own ego.” I heartily agree.
Dan
I pray your pain will lead you higher but that it does not break you. I always use the metaphor of lifting in growing, you tear the muscle just enough in lifting so that it heals with growth but not so much that it tears completely. Both are pain both are tears but one is more damaging than growth inducing. I think this is how we grow through God, he allows just enough pain to induce the growth, if we allow him to, but man it sure is hard. Praying for you brother.
Jason
I had a discussion with one of our elders a couple years ago concerning his “right” to step down as an elder. His calling was not negotiable in his own mind, though his body, heart and memory were seeming to interfere. We learn that there is nothing so great that God will not help us get through it, but does God ever give us an escape. I thought about his struggle for over a year when I found that even the priests of the Old Testament were given a period of time in which they could basically retire from the role of priest. I believe that God understands that we reach a point where we are just not as effective any more; but I also believe that sometimes we quit too early.
I think the greatest challenge can sometimes be to determine between the two. I never want to quit on God, but there have been a number of times where I felt that someone in better health or dealing with fewer physical struggles may be more effective than myself.
Dan,
I am not a sports buff but I appreciate your distinguishing between pain that helps versus pain that harms long term. I saw in Chand’s text that he talks much about what helps but not much about the pain of Jesus or the pain that causes long term damage.
I am praying for you to discern the type of pain you are enduring and what appropriate next steps need to happen. May Jesus meet you and give you wisdom and comfort in this painful space.
Enjoyable last post of the quarter Dan! I need to start by saying I am so sorry that you are experiencing such extreme pain at this time in your life. I also hope you are getting the love and support you need and I want you to know you can contact me anytime if you just need to talk or process things (not just because this is what I do every day 🙂 ) I also have to say John Wooden is one of my all-time favorite coaches. His UCLA dynasty will most likely never be repeated. I loved your sports analogy with the wisdom of pushing someone to the brink of healthy pain before it becomes damaging pain. I just wish more leaders today knew the difference and stopped setting an unhealthy example of leadership. Hang in there buddy!