Russell Rules: 11 Lessons on Leadership from the Twentieth Century's Greatest Winner

I was severely disappointed by this book.First off, I am a huge admirer of Russell, on and off the court. I have loved his writing in the past, his book "Second Wind" is probably my all-time favorite. I admire his courage, his humor, his stubbornness. I still think he was the best NBA color commentator ever!!!But this book is awful. Part of it is the whole genre, that successful sports figures and organizations can teach executives and companies the secrets of success. There is only so much you can say on the subject, and it has been said too many times and often by people who should keep their mouths shut. Just off the top of my head, Mike Jarvis who was fired mid-season by St. John's University is an example of that.That said, there are four other drawbacks with the book.First off, it is incredibly repetitious. His 11 points can be easily condensed into 4 or 5. Midway into the book, I felt it would make a decent magazine article but it was stretched out terribly. How many times do we have to hear about how he and KC Jones were such students of the game.By harping on the lessons learned on the Celtics, Bill goes against much of what he has said in the past. I have heard him many times state that winning and losing has nothing to do with character, it has everything to do with who has the better players. If you can reconcile that with the premise of this book, you have me.Another issue is his plugging of the National Mentoring organization. I agree with the virtues of mentoring, but the whole plugging seemed like Russell trying to justify to himself the reason for writing the book.Finally, I firmly believe that you are as good as your record says you are. Russell often says that winning is the only measure. But away from the Celtics, Russell was not much of a winner. He was involved with the Sonics for a few years and had a brief period of success with them. But after a period of subsequent failure, he left by mutual agreement. He was bored and sick of the job and they weren't asking him to stay. He subsequently took a coaching job with the Kings that was even more disastrous.So if Russell has all the lessons of success from his Celtic days, then why couldn't he repeat them outside of Auerbachland?If you were to look for ex-players who have repeated their stardom off the court, you can look at Jerry West or Bill Sharman.The book is not a complete loss. To those unfamiliar with Russell and the Celtics, there is some good information. Plus Russell makes some interesting comparisons between Wilt's style and his own. But overall, the book is a disappointment to me.

Best leadership book I’ve ever read! Love to teach every lesson My favorite is #3–Listening is never casual

Sometimes the best books are books that make us think. That's what this book does, it takes lessons learned in many arena's of Bill Russell's life, though mainly basketball of course, and encourages the reader to think of how those lessons might be applicable in his or her daily life. I would definitely recommend it.

This is an important book that provides insights about what it means to be a real champion. It is one of the best books on success and leadership I have seen.

Bill Russell gives wonderful insight and detail into why and how he became the greatest winner of all-time. I am only 26 so he was before my time. Let me tell you, it is like stumbling upon a gold mine. Today's youth should read this book because he puts Lebron to shame. Great book and one of the top 5 players to ever touch a basketball.

Best business guidebook ever

An excellent read and the rules that are outlined in Bill Russell's book can be applied to anyone who has an ambition to succeed in whatever endeavor a person is involved in. With the athletic skills that he was endowed with along with his mental and analytical attributes, success in life for him was a positive by-product. If anyone desires to make a positive change the direction of their lile, there is no better book.to read to achieve this goal

Great gift, time line received was great.I will order again.Thank you.

Inspirational!

This book is to teach you how to win, not how to be famous or flashy.If you are an outcome/ result seeker, this book is for you.