As a child I didn’t like competition. I didn’t like how it made people feel less than and others feel better than. And I hated that it also becomes one of the motivating factors – wanting to feel better than and not wanting to feel less than. And then it’s reinforced by all the systems and perception around us. School, grades and rising to the top or falling to the bottom. Sports, “winners” and “losers”. Contests, notoriety and achievements. Jobs, promotions and raises. And then this drive, motivation and ambition becomes an identity.
It’s a self-fulfilling loop. The system and perception of others defining who are the “winners” and “losers” and the individual buying into that perception, seeing themselves as a “winner” or “loser”. Seeing the world through that paradigm, if they’re a winner, someone else is a loser. If they’re a loser, someone else is a winner.