Re: Wooden, Paterno, and Lombardi (Managing skills)

["Walker, Arlen P" <Arlen -dot- P -dot- Walker -at- JCI -dot- COM>]

      > Larry isn't the first to have taken my list seriously - even though
      > I don't take it very seriously myself. The obvious common
      > denominator, which I tried to underline in my usual heavy-handed
      > fashion, is that Wooden, Paterno, and Lombardi were *language*
      > teachers (Paterno used to be - and maybe still is - a tenured
      > English professor).

Sorry I missed the beginning of this part of the thread, now that I see it
touches on St. Vincent of Lambeau.

I wouldn't put too high a value on the idea that these coaches were
language teachers. Coaches were considered to be part-time employees,
because the athletic season they coached was only a part of the school
year. As a result, they were pressed into service as teachers for whatever
the school needed, especially in HS. A quick look around the city shows
English, Driver's Ed and History to be the popular subjects for HS coaches.
I wonder if the subject of choice is related to the coach's choice or to
the opinion the school administration has on the difficulty of teaching the
subject?

To be specific, Lombardi was brought to St Cecilia's for football coaching,
not language teaching. (At one point he was headed for seminary to become a
priest. Let us now spend a moment contemplating *that* particular catechism
class!)

      Are you saying there's a correlation between skill in using language
      and ability to lead?  That's certainly bound to be popular in this
      forum; and, IMO, it has the added benefit of being true.

I would imagine a command of language is necessary for clear communication,
a skill every leader needs. But I'm afraid there are other skills far more
important than language skills to a leader. It probably bears the same
relationship to leadership as flour does to a cake; it's a necessary
ingredient, but neither the sole one nor the determining factor in the
recipe.

      Can we extend the correlation beyond "ability to lead" to "success in
      any field," as you seem to be suggesting, and thus apply it to the
      C-word debate?  I'm not convinced yet, but it's an interesting
      thought.  (Or have I misunderstood what you said?)

Hmm. Is language skill tested for on any of the other certification tests
(beyond, of course, the ability to read the questions)? Don't recall much
about past particples on the CPA materials my wife had, but perhaps I
missed them.

It's probably a good bet that language ability is necessary to success, but
I thought certification was to determine competence, not ability to
succeed. That, at least, seems to be the intent in other fields. Passing
the bar exam does not gurantee you'll succeed as a lawyer, does it? Are you
proposing that TW certification results be directly related to success
rather than ability?

      I like this a lot, Wayne.  I've observed that successful people in
      all fields focus on staying current and doing excellent work -- on
      keeping their own houses in order -- not on reacting to what others
      are doing.  Several people on this list are good examples of that.

Hard not to agree with that, Larry. Perhaps something worthwhile in there
is the focus on the individual; this sort of thing doesn't come from
anywhere but inside the individual in question.

Have fun,
Arlen
Chief Managing Director In Charge, Department of Redundancy Department
DNRC 224

Arlen -dot- P -dot- Walker -at- JCI -dot- Com
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