The principle is competing against yourself. It’s about self improvement, about being better than you were the day before.
Steve Young
Author
A few years back, our circle of friends was limited to individuals we had actually met. Thanks to the Internet and social media sites, my circle of friends now includes people from around the world, including many I’ve only interacted with though the Internet.
One such friend lives in central Florida. She freely shares things that are going on with her and her family. Recently, she shared a story about her daughter, an 8th grader, that I thought showed great character and demonstrated a valuable lesson.
Katie is a remarkable student and participates in many extracurricular activities, both academic and athletic. In track, Katie runs the mile race. She won all the events she entered this year and was chosen to represent her school in the countywide track meet. The competition there would be very stiff, with over fifty schools participating.
But a conflict arose; there was an event Katie wanted to attend, and it was scheduled at Universal Studio theme park the night before the track meet. The event, dubbed the “Gradventure”, restricted admittance to the park for that night: only students could enter. For the kids, that privilege was a big deal; it was a party with no curfew and no lines at the rides. It was also a last chance for Katie to be with her classmates before entering high school. But there was no way she could go to the Gradventure and compete in the track meet the next day. It was a tough choice.
Katie realized that the competition would be tough, much tougher than she’d ever encountered. She was torn between having fun with her friends and representing her school at the track meet.
I think there are two great lessons here. The first is about making choices in life. The older we get, the more responsible we need to be when making choices. We need to develop the discipline to choose the right course over the fun course. In my opinion, Katie showed a lot of maturity by agreeing to represent her school rather than attending the party.
Katie didn’t win the race. She finished fourteenth out of the fifty or so participants — a very respectable showing, but not one that resulted in medals.
But I believe our definition of winning is a bit skewed. In my book, she won. Let me explain. When you look at life from a broader perspective, winning isn’t about how we stack up compared to others. Winning is about doing our best. If we enter, if we try, if we compete and do it to the best of our abilities, then in my view, we’re winners.
Katie is a great example of someone having the courage to try and giving her very best. To my mind, that’s the definition of a true winner. I wonder how many of us can make that statement about our own efforts?
Men succeed when they realize that their failures are the preparation for their victories.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
1803 – 1882
Copyright © 2013 by John Chancellor
Great post! Because if we don’t try out of fear of failure then we fail…because we don’t try!
Diana, Thanks for your comment. You are absolutely correct … far too often we let fear keep us from trying and therefore we miss out on many opportunities for learning, growing and living life to the fullest.
John, very good !! I really admire this young lady’s dedication to her school. It’s good to see our young people make unselfish choices of this nature. Just one illustration as to how many decisions she will face in life as she matures. No doubt, she will continue on this path through her life. A great pattern to follow.
Jere,
It is very refreshing and reassuring to see young people who have developed a real sense of values and actually lives by those values.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
John
John,
Thank you for this wonderful write-up. I was so proud of Katie for making the decision to pass on Gradventure so that she’d be in good form for the county track meet the next day. It wasn’t an easy decision for her.
Even though she didn’t win, she had a wonderful learning experience at the track meet, one she will always remember. She recognized that she was competing with a group of dedicated athletes, and getting to that point for all of them was the result of hard work and sacrifice. Anything less would have excluded her from this elite group.
I am hoping these lessons stay with her, and no doubt your write-up here, which she read, helped reinforce those values. Thank you again, John.
Susan
(Katie’s Mom)
Susan,
Thanks for sharing her story with your friends and allowing me to share it with others around the world.
I have no doubt that the lessons she is learning now will stick with her and guide her later in life when the decisions become much more important.
I know you are proud of Katie. Please know that she made quite the impression on many other people who are equally proud of her accomplishments.