Is Competition Healthy After All?

Should we actively encourage it?

Recently I have been thinking about the issue of competition. It is a controversial subject these days because it has many fans and critics. There has definitely been a move away from competition in education but is it for the best?

As mental health and anxiety become important considerations, there has been some discomfort related to competition.

Have we gone too far?

Many would argue that healthy competition is essential in preparing young people for the adult world. Moving away from competitive events could create problems later on in life.

Competition Is Everywhere

The whole world is full of competition. You only have to look at wildlife to recognise natural selection as a form of competition. Similarly, when lots of people apply for the same job, competition results. At sports events, athletes compete directly against one another for trophies as well.

So why do we discourage it in schools?

Worried about hurting an individual’s feelings, some schools have stopped having competitive sports days. Instead of giving out medals for first, second and third, they are allowing children to rotate around a series of sporting challenges, recording their scores as they go.

But why? We all know that if they want to become sports people, they will need to be used to winning and losing.

The idea of winning and losing should be embraced. Children need to know that in life they will suffer rejections regularly and they will help them grow as people.

You win some; you lose some.

Resilience comes from experiencing failure and learning from it. Whether it be sports contests or being interviewed for jobs, individuals need to be prepared for negative outcomes and understand that they cannot always succeed at everything.

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, try again.

In A Nutshell

I worry that competition is being removed in education and this will detrimentally harm young people. If we are not careful, we will create a generation who find it difficult to cope with throwbacks and failures.

In my view, competition should be encouraged and young people should be coached in how to deal with losing. Teaching them to embrace failure and learn from it would be a great way forward.

What are your thoughts on competition?