John Wooden, the legendary coach of the UCLA Bruins had a rule for his team The rule was that no facial hair was allowed by any players on the team. Bill Walton was the star center on the Bruins team. The team had a ten day layoff and Bill Walton came to practice with a beard. Wooden asked Walton if he had forgotten something? Walton replied, " Coach, if you mean the beard, I think I should be allowed to wear it. It's my right." Wooden asked, "Do you believe that strongly? Walton replied, "Yes I do coach, very much." Wooden politely said, " Bill, I have great respect for individuals who stand up for those things in which they believe. I really do. And the team is going to miss you. " Walton immediately went to the locker room and shaved off his beard. I want you to think about this question before I go on. What do you think would have happened if Coach Wooden had let Bill Walton break this simple rule? Would other players on the team have broken other simple rules? Would the other players have said, "It's not fair that Bill can break a rule and we can't? Do you think the breaking of a simple rule could have hurt the team. The answer would have been yes to all of these questions. Let's talk about the rule. Did not having facial hair make his team play better? I would say that it wouldn't make any difference. I think this story is really about discipline and following rules and showing respect. I like this story. It reminds me of my job. We have a dress code that associates don't like to follow. Its not about the dress code, it's about being disciplined to do what we are suppose to do. If you can't follow a simple rule, how can you do the tough jobs?