Zig Ziglar’s success as a salesman may have begun with P.C. Merrell’s prodding, but home was where he learned the importance of integrity and love. “I’ve had the home-court advantage all of my life,” he says. Ziglar remembers his mother as the wisest woman he’s known, though her formal education ended in fi fth grade. When his father died in 1932, Ziglar’s mother was left with eight of their 12 children still at home—six of them too young to work. Her strong faith and character weren’t lost on her children. “She always encouraged us to do the right thing in the right way, and to always be studying and learning new things,” he says.

The home-court advantage continued for Ziglar when he married his fi rst and only love, Jean. “When I met that pretty red-headed wife of mine on Sept. 15, 1944, 9:08 p.m. at the YWCA in Jackson, Miss., I was 17, she was 16. I’m not going to tell you I was in love with her. But I am going to tell you I knew instantly I wanted to get to know her better,” Ziglar says. And after some good, old-fashioned courting, the couple married in 1946. “I court that pretty red-headed wife of mine every day. There’s never a day that goes by that I don’t tell her at least three times how much I love her,” he says.

Zig and Jean Ziglar had four children, who gave them seven grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren. “We spend a lot of time together and we talk about everything. That’s been very significant in our family life, as well as in my personal and business life,” he says. “Early on I learned that the intelligence of a woman and the intelligence of a man are different. One’s not necessarily bigger or better than the other, but when you combine the two you have the homecourt advantage.”

Of the mantras Ziglar lives, the most significant is putting God first, his family second and his career third. Maybe it’s because he understands the value of relationships at home, or because his mother taught him about faith by her own unwavering example. In fact, it’s likely that the combination of these elements plays a role in Ziglar’s commitment. And because he has achieved balanced success by remaining loyal to his faith and his family, he encourages others to adopt the same philosophy and experience their own home-court advantage.