At a recent collegiate competition, my team competed against some of the toughest opponents that we will face this season. Some opponents dominated us, some opponents were dominated by us, and some matches felt like a victory for both teams. Reviewing my individual record for the weekend, I thought, "Gee, if we hadn't fenced our three toughest opponents, my win percentage would have been fantastic!" Of course, my thought process did not stop there; I asked myself: "Why did we fence those three teams? Why did we not stick to choosing opponents that we knew we would beat?"
The answer to this question holds the key to why I love being a competitive athlete. Every time I ask this sort of question, I remind myself that the point of sport is not to 'win'; it is to 'improve.' This is what drives every successful competitive athlete. Every athlete who has picked himself up after a demoralizing loss has learned this lesson, but this lesson does not apply only to competitive athletes. Whether it is getting shut out by a national champion, failing a tough exam, or screwing up your audition, struggle is a prerequisite to improvement. Without pushing yourself beyond what you 'know' you are capable of, you will never know what you are 'truly' capable of.
If I hadn't lost a single bout that weekend, I would have asked myself a different question: "Why did we not fence those tougher opponents? Would I have beaten them?" Instead of asking how I could do better next time, I would have asked how I could have done better last time. I learned very early on in fencing that it is much easier to influence your future results than it is to affect your past results. For this reason, I am glad that we chose to fence some of the tougher teams at this tournament, and that we struggled against those teams. If I do not struggle at competition, I have no reason to try to improve from one competition to the next. That's why, frankly, I am glad I do not win every bout, pass every exam, and nail every audition — without struggle, I will never reach my full potential.
