Be a Champion?
Currently I live equidistant between the main campuses of Harvard and MIT; needless to say there is a high IQ index and one is easily humbled. But over the last two or three weeks I have become preoccupied with the idea of champions.
A few weeks back I was in one of my favorite coffee shops and I overheard a small group talking. It was obvious this group was meeting for the first time, as they were making introductions and detailing a shopping list of their skills and assets. One of the introductions, however, caught me off gaurd.
“Hi, my name is [fill-in-the-blank], and I am a champion project manager“
I immediately began thinking about this phrase, wondering what it meant to be a champion. The blogosphere and twitter are full of titles like professional, expert, guru, ninja, etc. Everyone tries to come up with the catchy, trendy title; but what do they mean? What does it mean to be more than an expert? What does it mean to be a champion?
With all of these question racing in my head a grabbed out a piece of paper and started writing down some of the characteristics of a champion.
The Characteristics of a Champion:
- Champions are not defined in a moment. Champions are defined through a history of excellence; champions rise through a journey.
- Being a champion does not mean perfection; plenty of champions screw up. A champion comes back from a mistake stronger and more determined. A champion comes out on top.
- Champions are not self-proclaimed. A champion is given their title by a group of their peers, colleagues, or even competition.
- Champions are not permanent and require self-improvement. A champion is always challenged and never stops learning or growing.
Here is a shortlist of some people I consider champions. I have a learned a lot from every person on this list, and if I haven’t met you, I look forward to thanking you in person some day.
- Champion Presenter: Garr Reynolds (@presentationzen)
- Champion Blogger: Seth Godin
- Champion Evangelist: Guy Kawasaki (@guykawasaki)
- Champion Innovator: Clayton Christensen
- Champion Photographer: Scott Kelby (@scottkelby)
- Champion Thinker/Reformer: Lawrence Lessig (@lessig)
- Champion in Social Media: Chris Brogan (@chrisbrogan) and Laura Fitton (@pistachio)
*Sorry, I couldn’t settle on one social media champion. Maybe Laura and Chris will just have to battle it out?
What are your ideas of a champion?
Who are your champions?
(Please comment below)
Nice post! I like your lines of thinking when it comes to what a Champion is and I have to agree. Scott is definitely one! =)
Of course, I know I sound biased because I work for him but as a person who sees what happens “behind the scenes,” I have to say that you are spot on about the kind of guy Scott Kelby is and I can think of quite a few examples of each criteria you’ve listed when it comes to him.
I think another criteria you can add is that Champions use their “status” to give the people around them opportunities to succeed as well. They are not afraid to let other “stars” around them to shine, nor do they care if they sometimes get “outshined” for that effort.
I agree with the rest of your list too. =)
I whole-heartedly agree with your definition of what makes for a champion.
I’m extremely fortunate in my work to be able to work with champions of innovation everyday. They’re people you’ve never heard of, yet their work as leading innovators of the Fortune 500 changes the lives of literally billions of people. They ask for no fanfare, work in cubicles and sit for hours in commuter traffic just like the rest of us. Each share the traits you listed above.
Last October, over 100 of these champions gathered in Boston at our company’s global user conference. One of our champions from Johnson & Johnson, talked about the day to day aspects of championing innovation. He spoke of constant metrics and learning as a requirement for sustainable innovation.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vd7gHRI5jro
I wanted to share this with you, to put a face on a champion you might otherwise never know.
Thanks for the great article.
Interesting.
Here it’s used as an adjective. More recently, I’ve seen it used as a verb, meaning that one is FOR something. In this context, I’m thinking that being a “champion project manager” is less about oneself, than about supporting those they manage.
One thing’s for sure … there’s no debate that all these people eat Wheaties for breakfast!
PS – Yer captcha (which has been defeated) relies on JavaScript. Yuck.