A RIVAL THAT REVIVES

The truth is, no matter how we look at some things, the first impression we get from them are always negative and I can safely say the word “competition” is one of those things. We strive in a world where we always seem to be in a competition with either ourselves or with others and sometimes even with the society in general. There are some people I have met in life that always take everything as a competition. They always want to win. Always want to be the center of attention and attraction and they find others who are in these positions as a competitor.

So based on the 1st edition for this week’s hivelearners topics, we are asked to talk about HEALTHY COMPETITION. There are so many ways one can see competition and the honest truth is, yes there are healthy competitions but then, we can’t take off the fact that when we most times think about competition what comes to our minds is something not positive. But in the world we live in, it’s impossible to do away with competitions because even if you don’t want to compete, the next person will still set a competition for you and I think that’s when healthy competition comes in.

Despite how much we see others try to wage a war against us because of how well we are doing at our jobs, we still choose to play by the rules and not go beyond it just because we want to make sure we win at all costs. For me, I’ll say that’s what is meant by an healthy competition. In an healthy competition, you are very much aware of the fact that there is a rival but then, you are not willing to do anything outside what is right but you are still dedicated to your goal not bothered about what the other person is doing but just focus on doing what you know you have to do at every step.

When we are able to ignore the thoughts of others doing better than us and we focus on doing better for ourselves even when we know the next person is willing to do anything to beat us at what we do, that’s a way to engage in an healthy competition. Trying to focus on what really matters rather on the fact that someone is trying to pass us. Because the more you focus on the fact that you have competitor(s) the more you feel tempted to do something that is not right just to win. Trust me, that urge is not easy to overcome and that’s why the word competition sends a negative message most of the time. It’s hard to play by the rules especially when you see those who are against you are not playing by it.

It’s possible to achieve a healthy competition with others but the best way I go about it personally, is by going into that competition with myself and not with others. That’s because, for someone to see me as a competitor, there is something they have seen in me and as long as I can improve on that, it will always make me win in their eyes and that’s fair enough for me. I have been in so many competitions with others and the interesting part is that I hardly ever win. I actually don’t win because I notice things are not going the way I want it. I hate bringing out the worst in people and if that means quitting unhealthy competitions, then I would try my best to do so.

Sometimes it takes me time to see that a competition is already headed in the other direction but immediately I notice it, I try my best to make necessary adjustments and I do that by committing it into God’s hands because I know that at that point I might not even be able to see my own wrong by myself. And one way I know that a competition is already becoming unhealthy is when I start to compromise myself just to play by the winning rule. Losing myself in the process of competition is a very clear way for me to know that I’m already engaging in an unhealthy competition.

For me, a good competition should build me and not mar me. So if it’s breaking me, then something is definitely wrong. And it is at that point I will recognize that I might be letting the idea of wanting to win, win over me. At a point like that, I try to remind myself of what the real goal is and hopefully things gets better from there.

Thank you for reading through. ❤️