Famed University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) basketball coach John Wooden said, “it’s the little details that are vital. Little things make big things happen.” With a record string of victories – ten National Collegiate Athletic Association national championships in a 12-year period – few can argue with his assertion. The “Wizard of Westwood” achieved astounding success by coaxing the best from talented players who responded to his long history of personal, honorable conduct, accomplishments and unique basketball court strategies. Wooden advocated a “Pyramid of Success”, applicable to life in general as well as athletics. At the base of the pyramid are basic patterns of human endeavor including loyalty, friendship, cooperation and enthusiasm. Building upon this foundation, skill, self-control, confidence, poise and initiative lead toward the goal of competitive greatness. The result of this pyramid’s building blocks is “…the peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best that you are capable of becoming.”
Other exceptional individuals have also noted the importance of detailed analysis and planning. Military and political figures have long recognized problems associated with hasty and desultory and careless inspection of obstacles and challenges. Politician, diplomat General Colin Powell described it this way: “Strategy equals execution. All the great ideas and visions in the world are worthless if they can't be implemented rapidly and efficiently. Good leaders delegate and empower others liberally, but they pay attention to details, every day.”
Commentator Peggy Noonan, whose credits include a Pulitzer Prize, columnist for The Wall Street Journal, and Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan, considers attention to details as a defense against the erosion of fear. She states: “We are all afraid. That's the thing that unites all truly successful people: fear, fear of failing, fear of criticism, fear of letting down the team in some way. That why they try so hard, that's why they pay attention to detail and try to get every possible duck in a row. It's fear.”
Each example, in its own way emphasizes that a major requirement in any endeavor is attention to details without surrendering to fear. As our communities emerge from the specter of COVID-19, many other significant and consequential problems will begin to share the public and political stage. It is tempting to leap at simple, inviting solutions without a clear understanding of what a detailed analysis might reveal. The opposite can also be true as, mired in details, action is delayed beyond a reasonable timeframe.
From Wooden to Powell to Noonan, consequences of detail avoidance can be extreme. Monumental challenges of climate change, homelessness, poverty, equality and education have never receded from importance; they have simply been overshadowed by a worldwide catastrophe. It is now time to address these issues with thoughtful, detail-oriented, yet prompt action. This all begins at the local level. Waiting for solutions to appear invites intrusion by other, more inclusive governmental entities (state and federal) that cannot match the sensitivity and direction of neighbors.
Recent discussions of safe and sanitary parking for homeless is an example of how local government can address a pressing issue before state intrusion intercedes. In another example dealing with homelessness, state action has begun mandating rules and regulations of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs). In this case, decisions have been determined outside local control and each municipality is bound by such regulations. Whether for good or ill, details will always make a difference, but too much delay can result in another entity proscribing them for you.
The devil is in the details.