A few of the characteristics of champions...

• Courage
  All champions have enormous courage to go after their goals. They are not afraid of failure. They take calculated risks. 

• Compassion & Respect
  They have compassion for every member of their team and treat everyone with respect.

• Perseverance & Resilience
  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 is the true holy grail of all champions from every walk of life. They have persisted longer than any reasonable person can think of (when others have already given up).

• Belief in Oneself
  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 that 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.

• Integrity
  Champions exhibit integrity and respect 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 the second half. They stick to what they say they are.