Post by theironyuppie on Mar 10, 2019 7:02:27 GMT -5
Yesterday, Triple H, Charlotte Flair and Cathy Kelley spoke at a SXSW panel on 'how to stand out in a male-dominated industry' (video of the 30-minute session is available here), and it had some very interesting tidbits, including Hunter talking about NXT/WWE try-outs and what makes a wrestler stand out:
HHH: So I think from a talent standpoint, charisma being the first one, the person that brings that intangible, um, to the table, someone who walks in the room that makes you see them differently, or can at least begin to exude that quality. But realistically, we look at it, even probably more than that, for the human being first. So the funny thing at our tryouts, we go through this physical series of testing over a three or four-day period, depending on the tryout. First day we exhaust 'em, second day we *exhaust* them, very very harsh, and then on the second [sic] day we begin to do it again, to the point of 'I cannot do this', and then you look for the emergent leader.
Its a different person, that like when, there's a saying and I can't remember it right now, exhaustion makes cowards of us all, and that's when you really see who somebody is. When they're gasping for air, when they're exhausted, when they're at the end of their rope, when they can't do this anymore, do they shove the person next to them down so they get ahead, and use that to push off of? Or do they grab that person that just fell down next to them and pick them up and say 'come with me, we're going to do this'. Emergent leaders is what we're looking for, because emergent leaders will take that next step, They're the ones who always go forward, the ones who drive you to that next level, they're the ones who will really carry things like this forward. You can give a talent an opportunity, but what they do with it is up to them. You just put it out in front of them, but they have to take it... You're looking for that leader who will bring them up, because in our business, it takes two. This is not a business where you're working against, you're working in conjunction with, working a partnership to create a magic moment and tell a wonderful story. But you need others to do it, so you're looking for that leader who can bind them all together and take them to that next level, so if I had to pick one thing, it would be that. The rest of it, [besides] that and charisma, you can teach. That's what we got out of this group that came up.
Its a different person, that like when, there's a saying and I can't remember it right now, exhaustion makes cowards of us all, and that's when you really see who somebody is. When they're gasping for air, when they're exhausted, when they're at the end of their rope, when they can't do this anymore, do they shove the person next to them down so they get ahead, and use that to push off of? Or do they grab that person that just fell down next to them and pick them up and say 'come with me, we're going to do this'. Emergent leaders is what we're looking for, because emergent leaders will take that next step, They're the ones who always go forward, the ones who drive you to that next level, they're the ones who will really carry things like this forward. You can give a talent an opportunity, but what they do with it is up to them. You just put it out in front of them, but they have to take it... You're looking for that leader who will bring them up, because in our business, it takes two. This is not a business where you're working against, you're working in conjunction with, working a partnership to create a magic moment and tell a wonderful story. But you need others to do it, so you're looking for that leader who can bind them all together and take them to that next level, so if I had to pick one thing, it would be that. The rest of it, [besides] that and charisma, you can teach. That's what we got out of this group that came up.
There was also an interesting section with Charlotte talking about her team sport background and how important it is for any top star to be a team player:
Charlotte: I think because, my story's a little different, like, I didn't grow up wanting to be a wrestler, and most of the women that I came up with through NXT, that was their dream. Like, they knew what their dream was when they were a little girl, and I had absolutely no clue... The girls that I came up with, they idolised men, so these women wanted to wrestle like the guys. So when I got to NXT, I think my strength was that I came from team sports, and I knew what it meant to work together, and the bond, and dedication to sport, and then being able to work with everyone, I think is, I guess, my gift is being able to adapt to each player in the game, and go from there and hopefully lead by example inside the ring, because what he [HHH] said, the most important part of what we do is working together, and the ones that don't work with the others, they fall off. They might be here [raises her arm high], but they fall off. This is a team effort even though it looks like individual superstars. It takes an entire women's roster to get where we are.
