“There are no shortcuts to any place worthwhile in life, no quick and easy roads to achievement.”

If passion and personality were all it took to make it big, you’d have it made. Don’t let procrastination, lack of focus, and uncertainty derail your dreams of living like a champion.

In clear, straightforward style, Matthew Mitchell reveals the tools that made him and his teams successful: honesty, hard work, and discipline. He details how leaders who make decisions based on the Winning Tools enjoy added benefits. Personal satisfaction, professional success, and financial rewards naturally follow. 


Discover the power of character-based leadership. Find out how to form solid foundations for progress and prosperity, regardless of the industry or your role in it. You’ve got vision. Winning Tools is the playbook.

  • Tool #1: Honesty

    If you simply think of honesty as telling the bare minimum truth, that’s not a winning tool. The kind of honesty I’m talking about means surfacing all the issues, always acting with integrity, and being truthful with yourself about how much effort you’re putting forth.

  • Tool #2: Hard work

    Here’s another simple-sounding tool that has deeper layers. To be a good leader, you need to help your team get a clear understanding of the value of hard work and how it can transform organizations (and also lives). People are willing to work harder once they understand its value.

  • Tool #3: Discipline

    Discipline relies heavily on mental toughness. How do you keep the right attitude, even when things seem to be going against you? And do you often overreact in the moment, or are you developing the skill of perspective? As a leader, if you fail at discipline, so will your team.

About the author

Leadership coach, mentor, and speaker Matthew Mitchell is a three-time SEC Coach of the Year and the winningest head coach in the history of the University of Kentucky women’s basketball program. He established the Winning Tools principles as the foundation for his teams’ success. Mitchell’s focus on the fundamentals led to seven twenty-five-plus winning seasons and UK’s first SEC Championship in thirty years.

Mitchell now helms the Winning Tools leadership platform, sharing the proven value of these principles with high-level leaders and teams. He and his wife, Jenna, founded the Mitchell Family Foundation, a nonprofit organization that benefits Lexington charities.