Last year, as Billy Wireman fought through surgeries and chemotherapy, he published a thin book that was part personal memoir, part reflection on four men who made a tremendous impact on his leadership skills: basketball coach Adolph Rupp, retail giant Jack Eckerd, nuclear engineer Bill Lee and banker Hugh McColl Jr. Here are excerpts of what Wireman wrote about each in "Lessons from the Big Guys: What I Learned From Servant Leaders:"
On Rupp's preparation:
Run the drill until you get it right. Run it some more until you have it perfectly. When the players have confidence that the play will work ... the many shifting contexts and situations of the actual game are not worrisome.
On Eckerd:
Jack was convinced that teaching was a leader's most important task. A great leader, in Jack's book, was not someone who scrambled to fortune and fame on others' backs. No, a great leader was someone who helped others cultivate their abilities, who helped others grow and prosper and flourish.
On Lee:
Bill Lee was convinced of the necessity of nuclear power for the future well-being of all life on Planet Earth. He knew that the issue was global and demanded international cooperation and understanding. As an engineer, he knew the facts of the industry, and he had the incisive mind to see the whole as greater than the sum of the parts. As a humanitarian, he knew the fears of the people and the need for convincing explanations, education, and a sensitivity to the needs of his audience.
On McColl:
It is not fire and intimidation that I recall from my years with McColl: It is a distinct kind of leadership. Action-packed, fired with energy, it was leadership that created not simply wealth but trust; not just power but loyalty and care, and yes, love. Its secret was, I think, this: Hugh McColl, the boss, the master entrepreneur, America's banker, the former Marine officer, is in his heart, a steward and servant.
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