(English) On Becoming a Champion

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The 2012 Sino-American Joint Program Commencement Ceremony
at the Ningbo Institute of Technology (NIT), Zhejiang, China
Phylis Lan Lin, PhD
Associate Vice President for International Partnerships University of Indianapolis
President Jin, Party Secretary Fei, Vice President Yang, distinguished faculty and staff,
proud parents, and especially the graduates of the University of Indianapolis (UIndy)-
Ningbo Institute of Technology (NIT) Joint Program Cohort 8, Class of 2012.

I am deeply honored to deliver this commencement address on behalf of President Beverley Pitts and the university’s faculty. President Pitts, who will retire at the end of June, offers her best wishes for a wonderful commencement ceremony and acknowledges her and Vice President Mary Moore’s pleasant visit to NIT last September, when you celebrated your 10th anniversary. We are so honored to be part of NIT’s glorious history, and we cherish our partnership.
We have worked together to overcome many challenges in the past few years, and we have pledged to work even closer in the years to come to continue to make our joint program one of the best in China and the US. We are very proud of the success of our joint program. We have to attribute this success to everyone, including the staff and professional staff, the faculty, the administrative leaders who have been working together both as a team and as a big family, and especially the graduates—you have brought both NIT and UIndy recognition at the provincial, national, and international levels. We salute your graduation today: you are champions.
We have a moral commitment to you. We must provide for you not just a good education but the best education any joint program can deliver. Your academic performance and positive life attitudes have assured us that our program goals and our guidance are on the right course. Your courage and hard work have placed our joint program on the map in China and in the US.
To assess student learning outcomes, I have distributed survey questionnaires to NIT students since 2010. We are so pleased to learn that over 90 percent of you expressed in the 2012 NIT Students American Experience Survey that you “have a sense of pride in the Joint Program.” In addition, about the same percentage of students who participated in this biennial survey said that UIndy has provided them with a good education. I also asked you in the survey to list a few general achievements that you have had since you came to America. The most often-mentioned achievements include speaking much better English, learning to be independent, gaining a better understanding of America, and improving your driving skills.
Furthermore, I must share with your parents the following findings: when I asked you “Has the relationship between you and your family changed since you came to America?” you answered that it has, with “getting closer with each other,” “more appreciation for my parents,” “more communication with family members,” “fewer complaints to parents,” and “learn how to manage money.” What a wonderful byproduct from spending two years in America!
You have grown. We want to congratulate you on your maturity as well. I hope you are as proud of yourselves as your parents are of you. You have worked long and hard to arrive at this point—academic accomplishments and mental maturity. You are the champions. But remember, in any accomplishment in life, there are many hidden heroes, so my congratulations also go to all your parents, grandparents, and extended family members for their continuous support in the past four years. I often said that your hidden heroes deserve half of your diplomas!
As college graduates, you are about to enter the most challenging and paradoxical era in world history. With all the technological advancements, civil wars in certain parts of the world, the global economic recession, the progress in democratization in many countries, the construction of speed trains, the high unemployment rates, and so on, the world economy seems to be growing and declining at the same time, and the world political system seems to be becoming more democratic in certain countries even as other countries have less freedom. You are about to enter a world that Charles Dickens described in his book A Tale of Two Cities, written in 18th-century England; he said, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness.”
Challenges lie ahead of you. Today, you are champions because you have achieved a difficult goal and are proud of that achievement, but today is just the beginning of an end. You have accomplished your first dream—to get a college degree—but you have many more dreams you want to accomplish. How do you sustain your championship performance? How do you prepare for and achieve the new set of goals in life, graduate school, or the work ahead of you? As you are ready to launch into a new journey and become lifetime champions, I hope I will be able to share some thoughts and shed some light on these questions.
First of all, what is a champion? A champion is someone who can take charge in life (including of one’s beliefs, feelings, and actions) and who has made the commitment to do something with passion, to do one’s best, and to be proud of what has been accomplished. A champion is someone who competes with himself or herself more than with others. You don’t have to be number one to become a champion, but you have to be the best, according to your own standards and expectations, to become a champion. The measurement for the “best” is not set by a referee or a committee but by you. Only you know what is your best, and only if you trust and believe in yourself will you be able to reach your best.
No one is born a champion. A champion is made and thrives even in adversity in the form of situations, physical conditions, mental states, unexpected problems, shortages of resources, and so on. Strength and character are built after one overcomes such adversities. Often, a champion has to learn the hard way, so you must have the determination to achieve an outcome that you desire and that will bring you personal pride. A champion has high self-esteem but does not have a large ego. A champion continues to cultivate inner strength. A champion must have not only physical fitness but also mental fitness, as both physical and mental fitness will bring strength. Marathon runners will never reach the finish line unless they have both physical and mental fitness. They know their limits but are not defeated by their limits. They have the courage to thrive beyond those limits, often breaking their own records.
Champions will accept the praise given by other people, but champions are not blinded by praise; nor do they become too content to make improvements. Champions cherish praise, awards, or rewards for their current accomplishments, but they will use these incentives as new benchmarks from which to do something even better. Many of you have received recommendation letters from your professors while you were applying for graduate schools or jobs. Champions humbly accept recognition from others—especially from those who write recommendation letters! You should not be shy in reading these nice letters about you. You should ask yourself, “Am I really that good? Have I really fulfilled my potential?” These letters about you will lead you to the next higher level of performance. You must continue to thrive, strive, and excel.
Becoming a champion is becoming a peak performer. You must develop a sense of mission that will prompt your passion and commitment. Know what you want, and go for it. Do what you enjoy and enjoy what you do. Don’t be afraid of losing or of winning; instead, be afraid of not putting forth your best effort. People can encourage and support you, but the person who will reach that finish line is you. A champion has to make calculated risks. Merely taking a risk may be ill-advised, but when you take a calculated risk, you will have control of the situation. You are in the driver’s seat.
It will take a lot of energy and commitment to excel, to become champions. You may have to make sacrifices at times. You will meet demands from all directions. You need to learn how to manage your time and set priorities. Time management is part of stress management. A higher level of time management skill is not just managing how to get things done in the time everyone has available—24 hours a day—but also being able to have fun while working hard. A champion knows how to take time out and relax a little bit. Don’t feel guilty for taking a break. Taking a break is not withdrawing or retreating. Use your relaxation time wisely and see it as a chance to recharge your energy and reflect on your thoughts. I love watching movies. Regardless of how busy I am, I always manage to watch one or two movies each month. I especially like Chinese classic historical miniseries (中国历史古装连续剧). But I don’t have the time to watch them all, so I watch a few chapters in the beginning, a few in the middle, and a few at the end. If I can’t connect the entire story, I ask my husband. He is retired and has time to watch the DVD from the beginning to the end. Winston Churchill took catnaps daily, and he painted as his hobby. He had good ways to revitalize himself. Champions have lives with abalance between work and family and between work and leisure.
Sometimes a champion must be willing to fail. Those who never fail are those who never attempt anything. To reach peak performance, you must be willing to accept the risks, the pressures, and, above all, the possibility that you may be defeated. Champions are willing to do continuous learning and to find ways to improve themselves, to learn from their own performance records, and to learn from others. Champions may choose to receive additional training, read books, or ask their mentors to provide them advice. Many coaches will ask their players to study the opposing team, inside out and outside in, before and after a game. Learning gives us new insights and clues into reasons why the other team could do a better job than our team. Champions are the best learners. Champions learn not only the skills but also rules, attitudes, ethical teachings, and responsibilities. Champions are humble persons because they are willing to learn from other champions and also to be influenced by role models or mentors. There are many real champions in the world. Some inspiring examples are Abraham Lincoln; Helen Keller; Mahatma Gandhi; Martin Luther King Jr.; Albert Einstein; Margret Thatcher; Sun Yet-sen; Jack Ma; the most recent champion in basketball, Lin Shuhao (“Linsanity”); and many others whose lives are full of championship stories.
Build your support system. In China, we use the term “assisted by precious persons”(贵人相助) to describe one of the most important factors for success. Without these supporters, we could accomplish little. I have been very fortunate to have many of these precious persons surrounding me. I would never claim to have accomplished anything without thanking these “angels” first. Champions are good observers and listeners. The champion is like a “360-degree leader” in a company who is willing to take advice and feedback from all directions. There are many success stories in this world. Pick a few of these successful persons’ biographies—learn about their success philosophies. In daily encounters, cham5 pions value differences of opinions and lifestyles. When they notice the differences that others uphold, they will pause a minute and seek alternatives. Champions are firm with their principles but flexible enough to consider alternatives.
Our life goal is to accept challenges and to search for excellence. Champions set high standards for themselves. They seek methods of self-development. The word “impossible” is not in their dictionary. Champions set clear goals for themselves. They have dreams that they are determined to reach. They set the best strategies for getting the job done. They focus on what they are trying to do. Learn to ignore what you can’t control, and learn to control what you can. The internationally renowned public speaker Anthony Robbins once said, “The amazing fact is that most events in your own life are within your control.” The well-known Chinese ancient military strategist Suntze said, “Know yourself and your opponent well; you will always win.” (知己知彼，百战百胜) Be honest with yourself, set realistic goals, and work with the best team, and then you are one step closer to the realization of your dreams.
Nothing comes easily. You must try to persevere in all difficulties and challenges. You must never give up. Becoming a champion is like climbing to the top of the Alps; there are hurdles and dangers you must encounter along the way. The Chinese phrase “the carp jumps over the dragon gate” (鲤鱼跳龙门) describes how the carp swims against the current and jumps over the dragon gate to reach to the origin of the Yellow River. It implies that you have overcome all obstacles (against all the odds) to reach the destination or the highest point. A champion never quits. When you believe in yourself and your ability, you will be well prepared and you will achieve your destiny. Try to be a good and service-oriented person. You will encounter rapid social change, especially the process of globalization and the surge in information technology. Try to make a difference in business, in education, in politics, and in enhancing the quality of life not just for you but also for others. There is an ancient Chinese saying: “When you win, show no arrogance; when you lose, show no discouragement.” (位尊而不骄傲；逆境而而不气馁) Your inner strength and self-cultivation shall make you a true champion.
I hope my message will inspire and encourage you to beat all odds, to fulfill your potential, and to have a new life perspective. I salute you again, for you’re not only the champions of today but also the champions of tomorrow. Thank you for listening, and best wishes for you all.