Football is like life – it requires perseverance, self-denial, hard work, sacrifice, dedication and respect for authority.
—Vince LombardiThere is no room for second place. There is only one place in my game and that is first place. I have finished second twice in my time at Green Bay and I never want to finish second again.
—Vince Lombardi
Is your life really like football? I agree with Vince Lombardi that if you want to lead a fulfilled life you have to make choices and give up some things for the sake of others that are more important. You need commitment and perseverance. But football is about winning over your competitors, and one of the traits (Item #8) of Stress-Hardy, Resilient People is thinking in terms of cooperation, looking for win-win solutions rather than trying to win over opponents.
Lombardi believed that “men are competitive and the most competitive games draw the most competitive men.” I can’t argue with the last part of that statement. But in a famous speech he goes too far for me: “… in truth, I’ve never known a man worth his salt who in the long run, deep down in his heart, didn’t appreciate the grind, the discipline. There is something in good men that really yearns for discipline and the harsh reality of head to head combat.” I know people, including women, who are strongly competitive, and who are making important contributions to society. But I also know people, including men, who are motivated by something other than competition and are working just as hard and are contributing as much. And even though perseverance and discipline are an important part of my life, I’m not willing to say people who don’t have those traits are somehow inferior specimens of mankind.
What about you? How important is competition as source of motivation in your life? If it isn’t very important, what does motivate you? Do you believe football is really like life? Please share your thoughts in the comment section.
Thanks to bikehikebabe for commenting on last week’s post.
Thanks also to Steve Olson for inspiring this post.
I don’t like competition. I’d volley tennis balls but didn’t feel good enough to play a game. I did compete biking. I’d train by myself so that I’d do well in my bike group. If my husband had done a hike that I didn’t do, I’d try to do the same amount later. I’d only compete to win. Sorry to admit that! That’s no fun. 🙁
About the coach in the video–Nobody can drive me. It has to come from me.
What motivates me? Anything that makes me strong. Things that make other people happy-especially my kids & grandkids.
bikehikebabe,
🙂 Thanks for coming by and commenting. There’s nothing wrong with competition, it’s just not one of my main motivators. The reason I love the picture of the two kids competing is it shows that the urge for competition is a strong motivator for a lot of people. This site is about sharing our honest reactions so we understand ourselves and others better.
I, too, love to see people happy. And not just people…I’m working with a dog at the local shelter now and it warms my heart to think of him smiling. He was scared when he was dumped there, and he acts as if he’s been abused. Even though he knows me, he still will drop to the ground and cower if I move my hand too fast. When I first started giving him little massages he trusted me and accepted the touch, but he trembled while I was doing it. Now he loves them and asks for more.
Well, I am a HUGE Giant fan….and I have learned a lot the last 5 weeks about what a team can accomplish when they have belief, and play together.
Yes, Football IS like life….I am not sure if I believed it before the SB, but now I DEF do…
Todd
Todd,
I’m not a football fan, but I was blown away by the Super Bowl. I always turn it on and essentially stop watching it once it becomes too one-sided. Instead I got hooked and was rooting for the Giants, too. But I think it takes more than belief. It takes talent and a lot of coercion from the coach. Would you be willing to give up your creativity and put yourself under the control of someone else? Judging from your post, The Benefits of Flexible Goal Setting, your answer would be no. In your post you say you motivate yourself by setting lofty, exciting goals. “Be wary of the relentless pursuit of achieving your goals. This mindset can be detrimental and may blind you to bigger and better opportunities that present themselves.” It seems to me that’s just the opposite of the football approach, where you drill, drill, drill and keep pushing yourself within a more narrow mindset. So I don’t see how football is like your life.
🙂 Thanks for coming by!