Goal Posts

Commentary on the complex relationships between motivation, performance, competition, cooperation, and goals.

by John Tauer

Winning isn’t Everything, it’s the Only Thing….Or is it?

Why is so much emphasis placed on being #1?

Published on February 9, 2010 by John Tauer, Ph.D. in Goal Posts

The New Orleans Saints won the Super Bowl this week with a dramatic victory over the Indianapolis Colts. In the aftermath, fans and the media dissected the game and offered explanations for the upset victory. The Saints won because they called an onside kick. They had a huge interception late in the game. They played turnover free football.

The irony is that had 2-3 plays turned out differently, the Colts likely would be Super Bowl Champions. If the Colts recover the onside kick and go in to score, they would have led 17-6. Although the Saints may have come back to cut the lead, it seems plausible Peyton Manning would have been more conservative on the drive that ended in an interception had the Colts been in the lead.

Although the Saints have received much credit, the Colts and Manning have also been criticized for not pulling out a victory. It's easy to forget that the Colts were the best team in the NFL during the regular season and lost the Super Bowl in a game that came down to the final two minutes against the team with the 2nd best record in the NFL (out of 32 teams).

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Competition is defined as a zero-sum situation where one team wins and one team loses. Vince Lombardi is often quoted as having said, "Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing." However, Lombardi claimed that what he actually said (or intended to say) was "Winning isn't everything, but the desire to win is."

These two quotes, although similar on a surface level, get at fundamentally different values:

a) Winning at all costs

Vs.

b) Doing one's best, regardless of the outcome, and taking pride in one's pursuit of excellence and peak performance

Which of these statements better reflects a healthy society and a healthy view of competition? Why is our society so obsessed with being #1? What are the consequences of this focus on winning? Next week's post will examine in more detail this emphasis on winning.