How interesting is our world today that almost everything/everybody
is compared. People compete with one another on a daily basis at work, home, in
achievements, in looks, and in several other areas. In general, people
believe that being competitive keeps them on their toes to always exceed their
targeted goals, but it's that really true? I carried out a random survey
on this subject and got interesting responses. I prepared a short
questionnaire and handed them out to my colleagues at work and through social
network sites. Out of the 30 guys that voluntarily and independently took part
in the survey, only 7 admitted that they don't believe in competing with
another, adding that being in competition increases negative pressure and
causes individuals to lose their unique identities and life aspirations. The rest of the participants admitted they
believe in competition because it drives their potentials, making them more
relevant and confident. Out of the 35 ladies who took part in the survey, 30
believe in competition and emphasised the need for people to strive and aspire
to be like their role models, stating they feel more important and fulfilled
when they are being compared with someone who is very successful,
beautiful and famous. To them, competition becomes unhealthy when the
motive focuses on evil intentions, self-interests and vain glory. In a work environment, guys are extremely aggressive
especially those in sales because of bonuses. The truth is no one wants to be
at the bottom of those sales figure tables! So in this case will you consider
the competition a healthy one? This is also typical in schools. When there
are performance incentives in the form of scholarships and sponsorship deals,
students tend to compete aggressively among themselves.
Our society does encourage competition among
both sexes. In the music industry for instance, artists are always compared
against each other in looks, sex appeal, most songs on the chat, Forbes
recognition, relevance, and many other criteria. Celebrities all over the world
face this scrutiny on a daily basis. A typical example is the non-stop
comparison of Beyoncé Knowles and Kim Kardashian in the aspect of who has the
best beach body! Genevieve Nnaji and Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde, both Nigerian
actresses are oftentimes being compared too. The society compares their acting
prowess and looks which consciously or subconsciously affects their minds to
continuously strive to outdo the other. From the lyrics of some of the songs
which these artists put out there, you won’t agree less that they place more
emphases on their importance, relevance and superiority. There is always a cold
war brought about by competition, every artist wants to be the queen and king
of pop music.
Have you
ever found yourself subconsciously comparing and competing with any one, either
your sister, brother, friend, colleague at work or any one you admire from a distance
whether onscreen or just on a normal day to day living? Whatever the motive
behind competition and comparison, I think it is specially fulfilling
taking up your own specially designed path and
destiny, enjoying it and being the best God needs you to be. You enjoy
peace of mind, have great self-esteem, and life itself becomes more meaningful
to you. God is wise and I'm very sure he has our best interests at heart too!
So why try to be someone else or be in competition with someone with a
completely different destiny? It is absolutely great to admire the good in
others and have great aspirations towards developing and improving, but the
discipline and will power to stay focused on the real objectives rather than comparing and
competing are essential.
I like the fact that this post makes it clear that competition can be either positive or negative based on the context in which it's being considered. Sadly, the negative side to competition is most rampant in our society due to low self esteem, jealousy and greed in people. The media is a number one contributor to this, considering the 'standard' that are being portrayed especially to young people and this has become part of their values, even on a daily basis. People generally, are bent on going to any lent to achieve fame and wealth. If only people would 'know' themselves, there won't be a need for such competition. On the other hand, if I was an athlete, I'd try as much as possible to beat Usain Bolt! That, I think is healthy and reasonable but definitely not a joke!
ReplyDeleteHi Dotun, you have a way of making your comment very hilarious at the same time very informative, really lovely and spot on. I couldn't agree more. And about Usain Bolt, I believe you're not the only one who genuinely wants to beat him (in a good way) lol. X
ReplyDeleteThanks Laura. I re-read my comment and I understood what you mean. I usually like to write the way I feel and I know I'm a bit of a clown sometimes. I also noticed a word that should be corrected in my comment. Did you notice it? Guess I was carried away and anyway. it's soon going to be 'that season'!
ReplyDeleteI forgot to mention that I like your blog being that you write about widely varied topics and I agree with your ideas. Now that's usually unlike me! Keep up the good work.
ReplyDeleteThank you Dotun. Life is a continuous learning. it's nice to be 'you'. x
ReplyDeleteI well agree, Laura. Life is about being the best of you, as opposed to being the best there is!
ReplyDeleteWell said Mary! A nice summary of the entire message. Thanks for sharing. X
ReplyDeleteit has become a recurring decimal today for folks to compete side by side with trends of society playing out in human interactions. There is a difference between admiring a mentor therefore aspiring to achieve similar results and displaying actions that communicate strive; but the idea of competition does not hold water, rather in the process of competing you prepare for yourself a compendium of crap which u end up feeding yourself when you find out that you have invested time in a futile affair. Be confident, be your self, learn and grow.
ReplyDeleteI love your mindset and energy! Thanks for taking time to share your thoughts. Very Inspiring too. X
ReplyDeleteFailure is no crime, but low aim! When u compete, u aim very low, then failure is inevitable! Discover who are and learn how those who made it were able to conquer! You can never get better competing.
ReplyDeletewhat a beautiful way to look at it! thank you for sharing this meaningful insight. X
ReplyDeleteYou shouldn´t compare yourself to others!”, rather Admire and be Inspired!. people might tell you.
ReplyDeleteOf course, without an explanation this is about as good advice as “Just be yourself!” or “Just be more confident!”.
Most likely it will not help at all.
So, why shouldn’t we compare ourselves to others?
One reason is that there is always someone – or more likely, a bunch of folks – better than you.
If you focus your mind to compare your life to other peoples´ lives you will always find someone new above you. And your self-esteem will definitely take a beating. We are all in the position to be good examples of human beings for everyone we come in contact with. Innately, I believe, we all aspire to be better people. The problem comes when , we play the comparison game and harshly judge ourselves. It is necessary to embrace the imperfection of our own humaness. Nice one Sis, keep it rolling. Am so Proud of you.
This is absolutely beautiful Sandra. Thank you for sharing these beautiful insights and I'm really glad to see u here. X
ReplyDeleteOne Love Laura dearly!. We are here to help each other through our contribution. Indeed you are doing a great job and I am enjoying Every bit of this blog,full of Amazing People :-). Xox
ReplyDeleteI like your balanced view of how competition can be both positive and negative. Competition can be healthy or unhealthy, evoke our best or worst, it can build or destroy. But God calls us into life and competition, and He wants us to use it to accomplish positivity and good. xxx Kira xxx
ReplyDeleteThank you Kira. It's always great to hear your beautiful thoughts here! Thank you for stopping by. X
ReplyDeleteWow! Or tots are very clear and convincing! I won't compare myself with any again! Its really unhealthy because sometime s I feel I'm not doing well while others admire me and wish to be like me. Thanks Laura dear for this.
ReplyDeleteIt's nice to come to self realisation and make the necessary changes/decisions for better living. Well done Treasure! It's always my humble pleasure dear.x
ReplyDeleteCompetition is a big no for me.If u want to bé miserable in dis lyf try 2be someone else(competition).Is really good we admire,appreciate,bé hearty in approbation and lavish in praise #chikina#No need 4 competition cos we r all unique n God's masterpiece! All we need is unleash our potentials ,hv a positive influence then we can achieve personal greatness. Txx Lau 4 dis,im sure learning much already.
ReplyDeleteVery well said Honey. There's absolutely no gain in competition, you lose your self instead! You're very welcome dear and thank you for stopping by. Xx
ReplyDeleteLove this post!Think of animals that have instincts, they “compare” to know that they are with their type of animal instead of another animal that would eat them. I think everyone/thing compares, but it’s only a bad thing when you feel guilty that you’re not that person. This is really good–we should be going TOWARDS it, and accepting it, rather than trying to avoid it.
ReplyDeleteNice to read your views on this subject Scott. It is definitely not nice when people wished they were another, however I'm not too sure if it's healthy to promote comparison amongst people. xx
ReplyDeleteCompeting for the most parts could trigger a lots of remarkable breakthroughs as you rightly pointed out but it depends on how it's being applied. Usain Bolt once said when he broke the world records in 100m spirit race that " to be the best, you have to beat the best", having said that, a lots of people have been derailed completely. Instead of benchmarking others to get themselves back on track, they intend to be exactly like them. I love reading your blogs, always soul refreshing and enriching. Go Omarlics!!!
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