Legacy: What the All Blacks Can Teach Us About the Business of Life

by James Kerr

His success, he said, was based on what he called the ‘Lombardi Model’, which began with a simple statement: —— Only by knowing yourself can you become an effective leader. For him, it all begins with self-knowledge, with the great ‘I Am’; a fundamental understanding and appreciation of our own personal values. It was on this foundation that he built his teams and his success. From self-knowledge, Lombardi believed, we develop character and integrity. And from character and integrity comes leadership.

Jon Kabat-Zinn (In Wherever You Go, There You Are) tells a story about Buckminster Fuller, the visionary architect and thinker. Depressed and considering suicide, Fuller asked himself some questions that revolutionized his life: —— ‘What is my job on the planet? What is it that needs doing, that I know something about, that probably won’t happen unless I take responsibility for it?’

about the results, you focus on the team.’ ‘The challenge of every team is to build a feeling of oneness, of dependence on one another,’ said Vince Lombardi. ‘Because the question is usually not how well each person performs, but how well they work together.’ Collective character is vital to success. Focus on getting the culture right; the results will follow.

Vision without action is a dream. Action without vision is a nightmare.

Ethos is the Greek word for character.

Our values decide our character. Our character decides our value.

‘What is my job on the planet? What is it that needs doing, that I know something about, that probably won’t happen unless I take responsibility for it?’ Buckminster Fuller