Conventional wisdom says you always need to win to stay ahead of the curve. Is that correct, or does winning all the time lead to stagnation and falling behind? The simple truth is that constant success can sometimes make you complacent. People who haven’t had the option of staying in their comfort space, having to constantly struggle instead, often have distinct advantages once they finally do make it. We’ll help you figure out whether winners or failures are better in the long run.
Winning isn’t everything. In fact, you’re falling behind if you’re always winning. Failure is the most effective teacher, and you can’t fail if the competition isn’t there. Failing and winning aren’t mutually exclusive, so bear with us while we explore how crucial failure is to your success.
Here’s the Surprising Reason Failures Have the Real Edge on Winners.
Failing Allows You to Learn About Yourself
Sun Tzu originally wrote about warfare and how nations should conduct themselves during a war. His insight into the art of warfare thousands of years ago has practical implications in the realm of modern psychology. Sun Tzu’s work is a staple of many business classes; it teaches you about yourself as much as it teaches about interacting with others.
“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”
― Sun Tzu, The Art of War
This is one of Tzu’s most famous and frequently-cited quotes. It demonstrates the importance of understanding yourself and others around you to reach your goals. You can study all about other people from a distance, but the best way to know yourself is through trial and error. You won’t know what you’re capable of if you never try to accomplish anything. Failure is a part of the journey to fully understanding yourself; don’t let it get you down.
Winning Doesn’t Force You to Improve
You’re missing out on the most essential lessons if you only ever focus on winning. Winning means you overcame the challenge, and there’s no need to improve on anything if you’re always victorious. One day you’ll get knocked down a peg without realizing what went wrong — all because you’ve been executing the “winning” strategy for so long that you never saw it coming.
You need an opposing force to help you build upon and improve your strengths. Your weaknesses will show (one way or another); find them yourself before someone else does. Try switching things up if you see yourself winning too easily. Struggling to improve is the only way to get further ahead of the curve.
Winning Doesn’t Equate to Having Money
Being on top isn’t a requirement to earn money. Even the most successful businessmen start somewhere, and most of them still make the occasional mistake. So don’t be discouraged because you aren’t rich when you start out. The path to wealth is a journey filled with uncertainty and failure. You can only obtain the riches waiting for you along the way with persistence and by learning from your mistakes.
Never Being a Winner Gives You an Edge
You can learn a lot by being the underdog. You’ll figure out how to get by with as few resources as possible, unlike others that have everything they need to be handed to them on a silver platter. They might be winning right now, but they’ll lose their footing fast when the silver platter is gone. Your chance to shine will come when you understand the game in full.
Playing the game to win is a lost cause. You’re in the game to learn, grow and improve to beat out the competition. Failure is the best way to learn, so play with the expectation to fail, and you’ll come out on top in the end.
~Here’s to Your Success!
