| A CHAMPION It takes more than being a good dancer…more than being a state or even national champion to BE a CHAMPION. This should be evident by those naturally talented individuals who don’t work as hard as they can. They may receive awards, but are such dancers really CHAMPIONS, in the true sense of the word? Not on your life! The true creed of a CHAMPION is the thrill of all out effort brought about by the agony of preparation. No dancer who gives less than her best, either when performing or when training, has the right to call herself a CHAMPION. In fact, any dancer who gives less than her best, in either regard, is a cheater. She is cheating her coach, her team and herself, and such a cheater can never be called a CHAMPION. A CHAMPION dances right through the pain barrier, instead of cheating by slowing down or quitting. A CHAMPION forces one more inch just when it seems her kicks can’t get any higher or her arms any sharper. A CHAMPION finds a way to execute in every situation, even though she doesn’t always feel up to it, instead of cheating and hoping someone else will do it. A CHAMPION uses her lack of great natural ability to work harder, instead of using it as an excuse not to improve. And on the performance floor, a CHAMPION reacts to adversity by becoming MORE focused and MORE intense, instead of cheating by shying away from conflict. A CHAMPION is not necessarily the person who wins all of the time, but the person who prepares and strives to win all of the time. She seeks the thrill of victory and knows, win or lose, she has given every ounce of effort she has to give. She revels in the challenge instead of cheating, by pretending that winning doesn’t matter or searching for an excuse for losing. Remember, you are the one who decides whether or not to be a CHAMPION. For you and you alone are the one who decides if you’re going to work as hard as you can. Not your coach…not your teammates…just you. So, get one thing straight. If you want to be a CHAMPION, put it in your mind right now that you’re going to dance as hard as you can, and there isn’t anything or anyone that’s going to stop you. For you’re on your way to becoming a CHAMPION and God help whoever gets in your way! BE A CHAMPION…BELIEVE, AND BE THE BEST! |