Being competitive in this practical world.
“If you define success by the failure of others you have gained nothing. And if you define your losses by the success of others you will live in eternal misery. The important games to win are the ones in which you advance others along the way”.
-John Lee.
“Enroll yourself for the posted making competition” the board outside the college reads. Similar boards bearing details of various competitions have been put up across various colleges/institutions across the city, if not country.
We are now officially looking for only the best and everyone who wants to compete for it is most welcome, until the moment you lose. Then you’re just a loser.
When did this really happen? To be honest, one can only guess. It would probably to right on our part to guess that man has been wanting to win ever right from the early stages. Like they say, “Do we kill the predator or does it kill us?” This question has now evolved into a constant quest for victory and triumph which is now equate with survival. The world has two groups for every activity, Us against Them. But competition is going to prevail among us no matter what because the unfulfilled craving we have to beat a person at something and be awarded for it cannot be taken away, and in today’s practical world, could we do without it? No. But could we concentrate on other factors like learning, growing from the process? Yes. Could we try to teach people that reaching one’s potential and developing while climbing up the ladder is utmost important too? We could always tell then what Matt Blair’s once wisely said: “If you have given your best, pushed yourself as hard as possible, and you still don’t win, rejoice in your effort. Rejoice.” And rightly so. What should matter is the journey, the destination is much later. We forget to realize watching a person give in his everything and emerge victorious, his opponent had to endure through the same amount of blood, sweat, tears to get there. Perhaps if we would all come to terms with the fact that winning isn’t everything and healthy competition is best for us to survive as one, we would be able to balance our lives in a much better way than we are now. Perhaps if we wouldn’t all always compete for first place but with ourselves and beat the one person who could be better than you previously were: yourself, Then the win/loss record, medals, awards, prizes would be just another acknowledgement and we could possibly term our lives fulfilling and complete.
Ian Jackson rightly said “You win with Finesse, not Force.”
After all the last man cannot remain standing forever, can he?
