Competition, in small measures, is a beautiful necessity. It fosters learning and friendships. It is what pushes us and forces us to do things that we otherwise may not have the guts or motivation to do. Over the years, I have learned a lot of new things because I am constantly pushed to expand my knowledge if I want to remain at the top in the cut-throat competition at my school. Also, I met one of my best friends when we were in the same group for a competition, and I have had some memorable times working with my other friends, even though we were competing against each other for a certain position. So, I can definitely say that competition is beneficial.
However, sometimes competition can produce the reverse effect. When competition overpowers one’s sense of compassion and cooperation, it can break friendships and impede learning.
It is sad when a person withholds an opportunity from others or refuses to help someone on a project or assignment, because they want to seem unique to the admission officers’ prying eyes. It is sad when a person won’t share their knowledge with others because they want to be the smartest. It is sad when a person won’t help out others because they want their assignment or project to stand out. But actually, the most unique ones are the ones who don’t push others down to get to the top; the ones who go the farthest in life are the ones who start a program to help underprivileged children not because it looks good on their resume, but because they truly want to serve those who are less fortunate. They are the ones who create an innovative product that will revolutionize our lives for the better, not because they will gain from the launch of their product, but because they will be helping out our whole world.
Although I am very fortunate to have met a few individuals like this, it is unfortunate that I have only had the opportunity to meet so few compassionate people. Many of the people I know are so blinded by their determination to be the best that they don’t have the time or the motivation to open their eyes to the bigger picture. We are so overly focused on ourselves and getting ourselves to the top, but we should really be focusing on how to better the entire community, not just ourselves. We define success as out-competing everyone else, but we should be defining success as achieving the greatest good for the greatest number of people. We should use competition not as a way to hinder others’ performance but as a way to grow, to innovate and to improve.
