Arriving home on a Saturday March night from my birthday weekend in Philly, Alex and I fixed up a charcuterie platter with our new food find, sheep’s milk cheese (more easily digestible and might I add delicious!) to watch one of the city’s greatest gifts, Rocky. So intrigued, it turned into a marathon of all five! Surprisingly, I’ve never seen Rocky before, as it is my kind of movie, but popping my cherry couldn’t have come at a more optimal time.
Promoting a book is so different than creating one. As hard as I worked on the book, I feel promoting it is going to be even harder. Creating the book, I felt comfortable and safe. I could just hide in my kitchen while I formulated recipe after recipe, snapping away at my camera. Unlike promoting the book , which is forcing me out of my comfort zone. The last time my brother asked me to take the Myers & Briggs test a decade ago, the results concluded I was a combo of introvert and extrovert. I can see this as I gain energy from both being alone and being social. However, I really feel I favor more towards the introvert side, and putting myself and my work out in the world is a challenge.
But I have books to sell, a message to be received, so it’s time to hoodie up, and channel my inner Rocky!
THE MAKINGS OF A CHAMPION
MORNING ROUTINE
Rocky’s alarm went off before sunrise while the rest of Philly was still sleeping. He drank a glass of raw eggs then hit the empty streets in frigid 20 degree temperatures to run his route which ended in an ascent up the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s stairs. He stamped his finish by throwing his arms up in the air followed by some air punches. So iconic they have his footprints bronzed on the top of the steps. This morning routine put him in champion mode for the rest of the day.
POSITIVITY
Rocky was unquestionably the underdog. Rocky, an unknown club fighter, was chosen to fight against the undisputed World Champion, Apollo, as a publicity stunt. Yet, he never demonstrated a defeatist attitude. While Apollo provided lip service, Rocky never talked badly about his opponent, even calling him “great.” To remain positive when the odds appear so stacked against you, is definitely a winner attitude.
PERSEVERENCE
Rocky’s goal wasn’t to knock Apollo out, it was to last till the end of the match. Rocky understood the power and strength in the long game.
MENTOR
Rocky had a coach, Mickie, to advise him on how to act both inside and outside of the ring.
RESOURCEFUL
Rocky didn’t have much, but he worked with what he had. He found alternative running weights in bricks and a punching bag in meat. *cringe
ACTED PRO
Knowing his first fight was supposed to be just a show, he still treated it like a fight. He trained hard and disciplined his lifestyle.
HEART
Lastly, and possibly the most important quality that made Rocky a champion is heart. Round after round, beat down after beat down, he stayed standing. If he was knocked down, he got up. It wasn’t skill, it was his heart that strengthened him to go the distance with Apollo. He proved to himself he wasn’t a bum from the neighborhood, and he also inspired other underdogs to keep fighting.
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When I reflect on these seven qualities, I have them inherently and have demonstrated them all at once at one point in my life, before life’s hardships intercepted. But it’s time to put on my boss girl hoodie, lean into my mentor, God, and channel back my inner Lyndsay.
Have you ever had a time in your life where you had to be and act like a champion, even if you didn’t feel like you were there yet? Or, are you in a season like me, where I’m just starting to reembrace a champion mindset, lifestyle and attitude in order to reach a goal and/or to fulfill a dream?
