One day I’ll share the story of how I got my nickname in water polo. It was in a game that didn’t matter in the standing at Nationals, but it mattered to me. I wanted to win.
I was a defensive player, not a playmaker, or a goal scorer. I wasn’t talented, but rather a hard worker… and I always wanted to win, and was willing to do what needed to get done. I’ll share the full details another time, but I was reminded of this today and wanted to bring this idea up.
I just finished Episode 7 of The Last Dance on Netflix.
‘The Last Dance is a 2020 American sports documentary miniseries co-produced by ESPN Films and Netflix. Directed by Jason Hehir, the series revolves around the career of Michael Jordan, with particular focus on his last season with the Chicago Bulls.’
I don’t know if anyone had both the desire to win and also the ability to put themselves into ‘the zone’ and perform at their peak like Michael Jordan did. This got me thinking about the athletes that I worked with as a coach. If they showed this drive during the game, they usually showed it elsewhere too.
In the past 20 years I’ve seen a drop in competition and opportunities to compete (beyond sports) in school. With most sports seasons cancelled this year, its even more obvious. I also see a huge increase in anxiety from students put into competitive situations. I’m not saying we need to create win-at-all-cost opportunities in schools, but I think we need to keep some level of competitiveness in schools. Things like the YELL Entrepreneurship Venture Challenge pit students from different districts against each other in a Dragon’s Den style pitch-off. The students put everything on the line and often aspire to pursue their ideas beyond the competition.
We need to foster teamwork and collaboration and maximize participation in schools, but we also need to create situations and scenarios where competition and competitive drive are encouraged. We need to allow the Jordan’s in our schools the opportunity to excel in their areas of passion, not just on sports fields, but in academics too.
Although I agree with your premise, competition can bring out the best and push people to do amazing things, the biggest takeaway I gained from watching The Last Dance is how much Jordan pushed people away in his desire to win. He didn’t seem like he was very happy, despite being largely regarded as the greatest player of all time. Many of his teammates didn’t seem to like him. Some costs are too high in my opinion. I’ve crossed the line in my desire to win, which I am not proud of, and I think we need to encourage excellence both of performance and character.
Excellent point Rob. I’ve crossed that lone too. It’s not a badge of honour to keep your mouth guard in during the after game handshake out of fear. You aren’t left feeling that you accomplished anything good, even if you won the game.
I wasn’t really thinking of the next Jordan, I was thinking about the way we’ve moved so far away from competition, and that some healthy competition in schools is good. And your comment is key to making sure that the competition is healthy… with competition we need to learn to both win and lose with grace.