10 Qualities of a True Champion

Champions are born but they are also made by relentless practice, clear goals, never say die attitude and a willingness to learn something new every day. I loved the book “The Way of the Champion” by Jerry Lynch. It has a lot of examples from sports but a lot of it can be applicable to us as well. Here are the lessons I gleaned.
Self-acceptance: The first step in being a champion is being comfortable with who you are. Accept yourself unconditionally and remember all champions have weaknesses. Understand your strengths focusing on those while complementing your weakness are with the strengths of others.
Self-definition: Define what you want to be known for. For example, you may want to be known for your discipline, passion, persistence and ask yourself every day if you are doing these things. Decide what message you want to send to your team or stakeholders.
Modesty:  If you know you are a champion you don’t need to show off. You will be totally comfortable with yourself and you can afford to project a modest image. In fact, that also makes you more likable. Courage and Compassion: All champions have enormous courage to go after their goals. They are not afraid of failure. They take calculated risks. Have compassion to every member of your team and treat everyone with respect.
Perseverance: All of us can set lofty goals and that is the starting point. Once that is done the next step is going after your goals with relentless persistence. This the true holy grail of all champions from every walk of life. They have persisted longer than what any reasonable person can think of.
Believe in yourself: It is unlikely that everyone will believe you. In fact, the only person who can believe in your dream is you. If you believe in yourself then everything else is possible. Believe in yourself even when no one else does. Fortitude is another key which is similar as it involves having an unshakable belief in yourself no matter what obstacles you face.
Sacrifice: It goes without saying that all champions are prepared to sacrifice. It has been said that successful people do the things that others don’t so that they can reach where other people cannot. Be willing to sacrifice some things that are dear to you to achieve what you really want.
Yielding: I take this to mean bending to any circumstance that shows up. The key is whatever happens don’t get mired in the results. Invest in the process do your best and leave the rest to life.
Integrity: Here the author defines integrity as closing the gap between who you say you are and who you are. Champions exhibit integrity in all areas of their life. If a champion says they never give up then even when they are down at halftime they come all guns blazing in second half. They stick to what they say they are. This is a great lesson for all of us and will hold us in good stead as we march forward in our lives.
Respect: Finally have respect for yourself, respect others and respect whatever you do for a living.
These qualities are timeless and the more we incorporate them in our lives the better we will perform. Thanks for reading this post.
The views expressed here are my own and do not represent my organization.