Becoming a Legend

I was at the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event in Toronto last weekend with a friend. It was epic. As a martial artist, I deeply appreciated the skill, endurance and tenacity of the fighters. In the program, I read a quote from Georges St-Pierre, who was in the title round. He said “I want to fight to become a legend in the sport.” This really stuck...wanting to become a legend. Maybe we can’t all be a sports legend, but we can aspire to be great at what we do, no matter what that is. We can aspire to create a great company, do a great job or be a great boss.

Lessons from champion George St-Pierre on stepping into legendary:

Train Hard

It takes a whole lot of work to make something look easy. This applies as much to work as it does to sports. Training at work includes continually seeking learning opportunities and working hard to achieve great results. 

Be Disciplined

Discipline evokes a sense of control and structure, but discipline is also liberating. Discipline at work helps us shed what we do not need, allows us to see past negativity and empowers us to accomplish our goals. 

Focus

Having a clear line of sight to what we need to do in order to finish a task, move a project forward or move up in our career gives us clarity. We need to de-clutter frequently in order to keep this clear line of sight. 

Set Your Sights High

Ask yourself “What would it take for me to be great at this?” Consider what greatness means for your company or your role. How can you measure that success? 

I left the event energized and pondering the question, which I encourage you to ask yourself: “How can I become a legend?”