Pat Summitt's Definite Dozen

Meeting Pat Summitt in the locker room after the Lady Vols 
played Vanderbilt University (Feb. 2000)

Respect Yourself and Others

• There is no such thing as self-respect without respect for others.
• Individual success is a myth. No one succeeds all by themselves.
• People who do not respect those around them will not make good team members and probably lack self-esteem themselves.
• When you ask yourself, “Do I deserve to succeed?”, make sure the answer is yes.

Take Full Responsibility

• There are no shortcuts to success.
• You can’t assume larger responsibility without taking responsibility for the small things, too.
• Being responsible sometimes means making tough, unpopular decisions.
• Admit to and make yourself accountable for mistakes. How can you improve if you’re never wrong?

Develop and Demonstrate Loyalty

• Loyalty is not unilateral. You have to give it to receive it.
• The family business model is a successful one because it fosters loyalty and trust.
• Surround yourself with people who are better than you are. Seek out quality people, acknowledge their talents, and let them do their jobs. You win with people.

Learn to Be a Great Communicator

• Communication eliminates mistakes.
• Listening is crucial to good communication.
• We communicate all the time, even when we don’t realize it. Be aware of body language.
• Make good eye contact.
• Silence is a form of communication, too. Sometimes less is more.

Discipline Yourself So No One Else Has To

• Self-discipline helps you believe in yourself.
• Group discipline produces a unified effort toward a common goal.
• When disciplining others, be fair, be firm, be consistent.
• Discipline helps you finish a job, and finishing is what separates excellent work from average work.

Make Hard Work Your Passion

• Do the things that aren’t fun first, and do them well.
• Plan your work, and work your plan.
• See yourself as self-employed.

Don’t Just Work Hard, Work Smart

• Success is about having the right person, in the right place, at the right time.
• Know your strengths, weaknesses, and needs.
• When you understand yourself and those around you, you are better able to minimize weaknesses and maximize strengths. Personality profiles help.

Put the Team Before Yourself

• Teamwork doesn’t come naturally. It must be taught.
• Teamwork allows common people to obtain uncommon results.
• Not everyone is born to lead. Role players are critical to group success.
• In group success there is individual success.

Make Winning an Attitude

• Combine practice with belief.
• Attitude is a choice. Maintain a positive outlook.
• No one ever got anywhere by being negative.
• Confidence is what happens when you’ve done the hard work that entitles you to succeed.

Be a Competitor

• Competition isn’t social. It separates achievers from the average.
• You can’t always be the most talented person in the room, but you can be the most competitive.
• Influence your opponent: By being competitive you can affect how your adversary performs. 
• There is nothing wrong with having competitive instincts. They are survival instincts.

Change Is a Must

• It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts the most.
• Change equals self-improvement. Push yourself to places you haven’t been before.
• Take risks. You can’t steal second base with your foot on first.

Handle Success Like You Handle Failure 

• You can’t always control what happens, but you can control how you handle it.
• Sometimes you learn more from losing than winning. Losing forces you to reexamine.
• It’s harder to stay on top than it is to make the climb. Continue to seek new goals.

-Taken from "Reach for the Summit: The Definite Dozen System for Succeeding at Whatever You Do" by Pat Summitt (1999)