Sunday, October 4, 2009

Good 'Ol Fashioned Competition: Are you a winner or a whiner?!

The ArtPrize in Grand Rapids is down to the top 10 finalists vying for $250,000. MSU just took on a state rival and came out victorious against U of M on the gridiron. We wake up every day and compete to gain more market share, more donations, more bottom line earnings.  

Good ‘Ol Fashioned competition is just that. Good.  But what happens when we turn our competition into a jeer-fest of negativity?  What happens when we belittle people and our competition?  What happens when we don’t compete in a fair or friendly manner? Competition turns ugly and it turns against us.

No one like a whiner, sore loser or complainer.  We like to associate ourselves with winners and being on the winning team.  At times, we find ourselves stooping to a level of unprofessionalism when our it looks like our “win” isn’t “in the bag” or a “sure success”  

When we stoop to that bottom rung level we suffer ourselves.  It is our reputation that is tarnished - not the person, company or event we are competing against. 

I love Good ‘Ol Fashioned Competition.  It’s fun and can be invigorating for individuals and teams. I like to remind myself when I’m on the losing side to think before acting or speaking out.  Anyone who takes part in a “jeer-fest” loses. Often, they lose much more than the game at hand.   

Posted via email from Lynne's posterous

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