Be Quick But Don't Hurry

By Andrew Hill

Book Overview

Be Quick, But Don't Hurry presents the team-building management secrets of the greatest coach of the twentieth century, cloaked in the heartwarming tale of the reluctant protege who learned those secrets in spite of himself.

Perhaps the least controversial sports honor in living memory was the selection of John Wooden as "Coach of the Century" by ESPN, honoring his ten NCAA basketball championships in a twelve-year stretch. His UCLA teams won with great centers and with small lineups, with superstars and with team effort, always with quickness, always with class. Wooden was a teacher first and foremost, and his lessons -- taught on the basketball court, but applicable throughout one's life -- are summarized in his famed Pyramid of Success.

Andrew Hill was one of the lucky young men who got to learn from Wooden in his favored classroom -- though that is hardly how Hill would have described it at the time. An all-city high school player in Los Angeles, Hill played -- a little -- on three national champions, from 1970 to 1972. Hill was left embittered by his experience at UCLA; he was upset at how unequally Wooden treated his starting players and his substitutes.

Hill went on to a successful career in television, rising to the presidency of CBS Productions, where he was responsible for the success of such popular series as Touched by an Angel and Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. Hill's job required him to manage many creative people, with the egos and insecurities that usually go along with such talents. And one day, some twenty-five years after he graduated, he was hit with the realization that everything he knew about getting the best out of people he had learned directly from Coach John Wooden.
With no small trepidation, Hill picked up the phone to call and thank his old coach and unexpected mentor. To his surprise, Wooden greeted him warmly and enthusiastically. A strong friendship, sealed in frequent visits and conversations, ensued, and endures.

Be Quick -- But Don't Hurry! tells the story of that friendship. But it also shares the lessons and secrets that Hill learned from Coach Wooden, which hold the key to managing creatively in the idea-driven economy of the twenty-first century. Among those lessons are:

-The team with the best players almost always wins

-Be quick, but don't hurry: there is never enough time to be sure (and if you are sure, you're probably too late), but you must always keep your balance

-Failing to prepare is preparing to fail

-The team that makes the most mistakes...wins!

Full of sound advice and warm reminiscence, Be Quick -- But Don't Hurry! is the management book of a lifetime.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743213882
• ISBN13: 9780743213882
• Release Date: March 2001
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.62 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.2" x 7.3"

Customer Reviews

Life, success, leadership, relationships

Andrew Hill did something that I have never seen an author do before - he wrote a loving and wonderful book about a man whom he bitterly "viewed as a teacher who had failed [him] in his class for three straight years." Hill's journey of introspection and ultimate friendship with his former UCLA basketball coach, the legendary John Wooden, is just half of this great book. The other half is John Wooden's twenty-one secrets, or teachings, for a lifetime of success. I highly recommend this unique and inspiring book to leaders and followers, teachers and scholars, coaches and players, fathers and sons, and husbands and wives.After I read "Wooden" by John Wooden and Steve Jamison, I bought and read this book. I was initially disappointed with Hill's less-than-stellar, yet brutally honest, portrayal of a man for whom I have the deepest respect. I even thought about throwing the book away in disgust. I am glad I decided to keep it and read it all the way. I would have missed out on a truly fascinating and entertaining opportunity to learn many things that are helping me be a better person. I believe the same opportunity exists for anyone who reads this book.

Finally, Wooden's magic is nailed!

As a former UCLA basketballer under John Wooden, I have been waiting for someone to summarize his "secrets." In a quick and articulate read, Andy Hill has done it! Now when someone asks what made Wooden so great, I can tell them to read this book. Former Wooden players are honored to have played for him, but more importantly we implement his philosophy daily. I suppose many college athletes are influenced by their coaches, but everday in everything they do? Interesting, sitting on the bench and thinking he did little, Andy Hill now stands tall among the former Bruin hoopsters. Lynn Shackelford 67-69

Fantastic!

There have been many treatments of Wooden's ideas over the years and I've read them all. None have been by anyone who knows first-hand what it was like to play for him and learn from him.The book, which is a quick read at under 200 pages, is not just business and leadership insights, but is also the story of Hill and Wooden's evolving relationship from antagonistic and perplexing to warm and intimate. It really makes you want to reach out to that person in your life whom you might not have appreciated when you were young, but who has had a lasting impact, if only to say thanks.You should absolutely read this book.

A Best Seller that Actually Lives Up to Its Hype

So here it is: A book on management by basketball legend John Wooden and TV exec Andy Hill (two men who clearly understand both what a winning season means AND how to get there ) and the result is not only helpful and informative but humorous and compassionate as well. Hill, who played for Wooden at UCLA before going off to run CBS Television productions, learned more than basketball from the master. He learned how to get the best out of people in the workplace by fostering a unique blend of team spirit and personal initiative. What makes this book so special though is the way Hill interweaves stories of their personal (and often stormy) relationship along with practical, hands-on advice. This book is a must for anyone interested in business, basketball or the volatile relationship between students and mentors, bosses and employees, fathers and sons.

For Teachers, Managers, Basketball Fans, Men and Their Wives

Be Quick But Don't Hurry is not only a great and quick read, but Andy Hill's application of the 23 "Secrets" (Wooden's Pyramid of success)that Coach John Wooden utilized in coaching the most successful teams in the history of college basketball are transferable to teaching, business, the non-profit sector, management and even friendships. Hill's touching relationship with Wooden speaks to the lives of any man who thinks of his own father, for better and worse. After 30 years, Hill recognized that his own personal success in business was fundamentally influenced by what the Coach taught him and his team mates. This book can be of good use by teachers, clergy (of which I am one), managers in large and small business, students, athletes, men and their wives who want to better understand their husband's relationships not only with other men, but more importantly with their fathers.